If you are new to golf, you’ve probably never heard of David Duval.  But for me, he’s the #1 or #2 golfer of all-time in the 90s.

For whatever reason that David Duval has not been winning again, let’s take a look at his swing from Doral in 1997 to see what made him “tick”.

One thing I really like about David Duval is the way he finishes his swing with his back straight.  This is really good for painless-back golf.

On the takeaway, David Duval looks pretty good.

At top of his swing, David is in perfect plane.

Between his backswing and downswing, you can clearly tell that David is really transferring his weight back to the left.

Also notice that his head is actually turning towards the target at impact.  David Duval is the only other professional golfer I know who lets his head move freely during impact other than Annika Sorenstam.

I believe this head move can actually help the golfer hit the ball better if done right.  But if you simply move your head at impact, it will probably make you chop the ball more times than not.  To do it right, try following the golf ball as it takes off.

Watch David Duval’s wonderful wind-up finish.  He’s almost wind-up too much but you get the idea here.

Hopefully David Duval does recover from his long-term winning draught.  I have seen signs of him playing better lately at the British Open where he finishes Top 10 for the first 2 days.  Time will tell whether David Duval is able to come back to competitive golf or not but he’s still a British Open champ.

David Duval Links

David Duval Offical Profile at Pgatour.com

David Duval on Wikipedia

Here’s David Duval’s Swing from Doral Open in 97:

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With British Open coming up, players like Padraig Harrington will be at advantage as they get to play the course more often than American players.

Let’s look at Padraig’s swing and see his strengths and weaknesses.

I like how Padraig takes his club away from the ball.  He turns everything together nicely.

At the top, Padraig looks real good, starting his lower body as his backswing is finished.

At half-way down, Padraig looks pretty good, maybe a little too much lag than necessary.  (That might be why he hit this ball slightly to the right)

Too much lag can cause the golfer to release too late (or release not at all), causing the ball to fly well right of intended target).

At impact, Padraig hangs back a little too much but looks pretty good other than that.

After impact, Padraig loses control of his left foot, this could really be improved to help his stability and balance.

Overall, Padraig has a really good swing except some minor stuff he might want to concentrate on.

Here’s Padraig Harrington’s Driver swing in Slow-motion:

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Yey, Kenny Perry wins this week’s Buick Open. Although not an avid fan of Kenny Perry, he certainly has proven himself by winning twice this year and also coming up runner-up once.

So, why is Kenny winning at 48 years old while all the youngsters in the 20s are struggling?

Well, golf is a game of smart thinking more than it’s about power and accuracy.

Kenny Perry does not have a perfect swing by any means but he does very consistent with his swing, mostly controlled by arms and hands.

At top of Kenny’s swing, you can note that his left shoulder comes over his right leg.

On the downswing, Kenny keeps his lower body quiet while letting the hands and arms do most of the work.

At impact, you can see clearly that Kenny really “swings” the club rather than hit the ball.

After impact, notice how Kenny’s right foot is implanted on the ground. Kenny really tries to swing nice and smooth, which is what is required for a hands and arms swing.

If Kenny swung any harder, all his balls would hook or go left.

What to learn from Kenny’s iron swing?

You need to note that in order to be accurate with your irons, you need to let the club do most of the work for you. Of course, you can give the ball a real smack in the back but you probably won’t be consisten that way.

Here’s Kenny Perry’s iron swing in action:

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I’d have to say the best golf striker in history of golf was Ben Hogan.

Continue reading ‘Ben Hogan Front View Swing Analysis’

Phil Mickelson is doing great today over at the Crown Plaza Invitational.  Let’s look at his swing and see what kind of great things Phil is doing these days.

At address position, you can clearly see the triangle formed by Phil and the angle he is setting up to the iron shot.  The angle is not as important but it does help him set his right arm and the club very very straight.

At takeaway, check out how well he keeps his triangle in tact.

On the downswing, you can also see the triangle.  Triangles are the key to a good golf swing.  Pros might translate triangles into different words but the secret is in the 3 pointed shape.

Check out how well formed the triangle is at impact.

On the followthrough, Phil has great extension of both arms and his left arm and the club are almost completely straight.

Let’s hope good ol’ Phil wins tomorrow.

Here’s Phil in video:

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