One piece takeaway or two, asks Phil. His bigger question is how can he make a smooth backswing when he has to change direction in mid-stream in the back swing after lifting the club into the catcher’s mitt. Let’s take a stab at it.

Phil says:
I am a little confused with your takeaway (into the catchers mitt) and then vertical to the top of your backswing. That appears to be a two piece take-a-away (a mid-course change of direction). Please correct me if I am wrong. If not, please tell me or show me how I make a smooth backswing when I have to change my direction mid-stream!

The Surge says:
The PPGS takeaway into the catcher’s mitt is a one piece move. The square of the torso (shoulders to hips) sets the triangle of the shoulder and arms into motion, with the back hip and shoulder pulling in a slight turn and moving in sync. The key is that this in-sync torso and triangle movement starts the club head in motion (in sync) with them, with the sense and feeling that the toe of the club moves first and moves toe up. The club head is moved by the arms and hands lifting it, with the both arms and hands lifting from the shoulder sockets. This is how we lift with no wrist cocking and thus maintain the wrist angle set at address.

The Foundation Swing Manual on page 97 in the section titled “Takeaway & Turn states in a note: “Good wrist action is no wrist action. Do everything you can to maintain the wrist angle you established at setup. A swing thought to remember is the backswing is a little bit of turn and a lot of lift.” Point #2 in describing the takeaway says: “lift the arms from the shoulders like throwing a ball. This lifts the club in a CURVED Arc to the 9 o’clock position.”

The important words in the takeaway description are “a lot of lift” and “in a CURVED Arc.” A secondary good set of words is “like throwing a ball.” When we throw a ball, we lift the arm and hand from the shoulder socket in one smooth motion. The lift is an upward sweeping motion in the shape of a sharply rising arc. The takeaway into the mitt and up the tree is exactly this same upward sweeping arc, all done in a one piece arc, smooth and sweeping upward and all in one direction…up.

I think the concept of the initial lift into the catcher’s mitt and then lifting up the tree can be visualized as a two piece move. Lifting first into the mitt, then lifting more sharply up the tree, can create a sense, image and feeling of the up the tree being more squared off. A sharp squared off lift after the mitt would feel like an angle change of more up and thus the feeling of a two piece takeaway and upswing.

The fact is that from the first movement of lifting the arms, hands and club, they are all lifting in one direction and one direction only, and that is UP. They are lifting up into the mitt and passing right straight through, with no hesitation or stopping. The only thing happening is that the lifting gets a little steeper but stays smooth because the upswing stays in the “shape of an arc.” This is the same feeling as throwing a ball and skipping a rock on a lake. The hand sweeps back a little up as it moves away from the body and then the big sharp up sweep of the hands to the top of the throwing position.

The entire takeaway to the top of the backswing is a one piece move because it is a complete upward sweeping arc in one direction, right through the mitt and up the tree to a ¾ thumbs 12:00 o’clock vertical club.

The Surge!

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