a step by step example of a golfers swing that utilizes the piston pivot

The Science Behind The Piston Pivot

The dog wags the tail! This has been David Leadbetter’s philosophy since he first started helping golfers try to hit the ball a little better. With time, this principle of the body being the engine of the swing has only grown stronger and become widely accepted among teachers all over the world. 

To understand the science behind one of our favorite pivot drills, the Piston Pivot, we will dive deep into the areas that affect movement and how proper movement can ultimately help generate speed, improve the quality of strike, and maintain consistency in shot shape. 

 

3 Planes Of Movement

  1. Coronal (frontal) plane – often referred to as SIDEBEND in golf
  2. Sagittal (longitudinal) plane – often referred to as FORWARD BEND in golf

Transverse (axial) plane - often referred to as ROTATION or TURN in golf

To imagine each, it’s useful to visualize a large sheet of glass that runs through your body.

Imagine the coronal (frontal) plane as a vertical sheet that runs through the side of your body, so that the sheet separates the front part of your body from the back.

Imagine the sagittal (longitudinal) plane as a vertical sheet that runs through your body from front to back, so that it divides your body into left and right sides.

Finally, imagine the axial (transverse) plane as a horizontal sheet that runs through your torso, dividing the upper and lower halves of your body.

When imagining the way your body moves, it’s useful to think of your body moving along the glass sheets (or planes) but not through them.

In any swing, good or bad, a player's body moves on all 3 planes in the backswing and the downswing, and the proper combination of the 3 movements determines a player's movement. Some call it matching the turns and tilts. 

Consider the typical movement of the torso in a swing, expressed in numbers (degrees of movement).  There may be varying opinions on the 'optimum' numbers, which may change from player to player. However, the fact remains that every player's swing moves on all 3 planes. 

I have never seen David, or for that matter, any coach that actually helps players hit the ball a little bit better ask a student to think about moving their body in 3 different ways in the back swing and then the downswing.  As a coach, it is essential that we understand the mechanics of the body works, and moves, but how we deliver it and ultimately help a player get the feel for the movement is what will separate you as a coach. 

This is what David has been a master at over the years, creating drills like the “piston Pivot” that provide the feel without getting caught up in the mechanics, and over thinking.   

Now that you understand what the body is doing, stand up and have a go at the Piston Pivot. To sense the proper movement pattern of the shoulders, the upward stretching of the right side and the winding of the core during the backswing phase of the pivot motion, in a spiraling fashion. Do this exercise:

 

  • Get into your address posture and let your arms hang down by your sides with your hands resting on your thighs. Your right arm should hang lower than the left, so your spine is tilted to the right as it would appear at address.

 

  • Using an up and down piston-like motion, with stable knees and solid feet, allow your left hand to slide down your thigh while your right hand slides up on the opposite leg.

 

  • You will get the sensation of your left side tilting lower and your right side getting higher with an internal coiling and winding sensation starting from your midsection and spiraling upward–– a sign your core muscles are working properly.

 

  • Complete the winding motion to the top where you should feel a stretch across your chest and upper back––the left knee feels lower than the right; the left hip feels lower than the right; the left shoulder feels lower than the right.

Doing this drill will almost ensure that your torso simply reacts and makes a similar (matching) move as you unwind on the downswing and then move on to the finish.

Pay attention to how the right hand sliding up your leg and the left down moves your body on the Coronal plane towards the target, while at the same time creating movement on the Transverse plane and decreasing the bend forward you had in address on the Sagittal plane. You have just turned a complex movement into a very simple one!

 

Ground forces

Anyone who has completed level 2 of our GLE education knows that there is an accepted understanding of the most efficient use of the ground in generating speed. 

Backswing = Unloading > Downswing = Loading > Impact = Unloaded

What does this mean?

Let's say you have a player weighing 80 kg (for example!)

In address, this player would weigh 100kg.  In the backswing, as the right side is stretching up, there is a slight unweighting (Unloading) of the player's weight, so by the top, they might weigh 80kg.  This movement sets off a chain reaction, as in the downswing, the player can now push down into the front of their left foot (Loading); some players can get up to 160% of their body weight in this movement, so the 100kg player would now weigh in at 160%.  They will now get the opposite reaction, uploading as they rise and turn through impact.  This is described as vertical force, with some of the longest hitter's feet come off the ground!

The key to this efficient use of the ground starts in the backswing. Without unloading, it is extremely difficult to load in the downswing correctly—it’s the start of the chain reaction!

Another strong correlation we have seen is that that the more bend of the body on the Coronal Plane the more vertical force a player can produce, equaling more clubhead speed. 

 

Jump up again and give the Piston Pivot a go. This time, make the movement with some dynamics (speed). Pay attention to how when the right side stretches up, there is a slight unloading of the body. Also, the right hand going up and the left down increases the bend of the body on the Coronal plane. 

 

Plane

Over 40 years ago, David started talking about how he would like to see the club move from steep to shallow as a preference.  He was one voice shouting about it at the time, but once again, this has become widely accepted as the desired movement, and whether you are an Adam Scott or Matthew Wolf, we see a slightly steep to shallow movement with virtually every elite player in the world. 

Getting the club in the slot early in the downswing has many benefits, such as hitting it out of the center and having a repeatable shape at the top of the list!  Maybe we need to do a “Science behind Stepp to Shallow” article!

So how does the Piston Pivot help shallow the club? 

Flexion of the T-spine on the Coronal Plane is the answer! Proper body bending on the Coronal Plane in the backswing will promote the opposition bend on the downswing, lowering the right shoulder and, in turn, shallowing the club.

Again, give it a try, focusing on how the stretch-up of the right side in the backswing sets up the opposite in the downswing. There is no question that how you move your hands and arms will affect the plane of the club, but it is not talked about enough that the pivot plays a huge role as well. 

Yes, the Piston Pivot is a simple exercise to teach our students how to move their body in the backswing, and more importantly gain the feel, but hopefully now you can see the importance of the pivot, and the genius behind this simple little exercise. 

In some ways, the pivot can be such a complex movement, but it is our job as coaches to deliver the message in a way that is understandable and simple for the player to apply on the course.

Taking onboard the Science Behind the Piston Pivot helps us all improve in two out of our five instructor values: Simplicity and Learning. 

 

 

The Straightaway

Understanding the science behind the Piston Pivot will also help you understand why the Straightway is such a great training aid and why it works! 

Hitting the checkpoints of the straightaway will have all the same benefits, as it can only be achieved with the correct turns and tilts, which encourage proper ground forces and shallowing of the club in the transition. The additional benefit is that it helps tie the movement of the arms to the body, creating an in-sync swing.

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