The Real Secret to the Ben Hogan Golf Swing
Written by John Lynch
What was the real secret to the Ben Hogan Golf Swing?
Dr. Bob Rotella (Doc) the sports psychologist stated in his book "Golf is Not a Game of Perfect" he interviewed Ben Hogan shortly before Hogan's death in 1997. Rotella asked Hogan what the real secret to his golf swing was?
Hogan replied he always told people his "secret" was the cupping of his left wrist at the top of his backswing which eliminated the nasty hook he had early in his career. Hogan then told Rotella the reason he said this was because people wanted to hear something mechanical about the swing - so he gave them what they wanted to hear...
Which was a lie!
Hogan went on to say it wasn't until 1946 when he was 34 that he won his first major - the PGA Championship. He said he started winning major championships because he stopped being so mechanically minded on the course and began playing by "feel" and trusting his golf swing.
Since the Ben Hogan golf swing at this point in his life was already fundamentally sound because of all those years of tireless practice, there was no need for him to think about his swing while under the extreme pressures of major championship golf. Hogan started to trust his golf swing out on the golf course and eliminated all those mechanical thoughts preventing him from entering the winner's circle more often.
Hogan learned how to take his golf swing from the practice range to the course. He said this was like lifting a ton of bricks off of him, freeing him to use his imagination and instinct rather than his ego driven intellect.
Once Hogan began playing by feel on the course his golf game took a quantum leap! He began to score, and score often...
The result, 9 major championships!
Everyone always thought (and still do) Hogan’s golf swing secret was the cupping of his left wrist at the top of the backswing which prevented him from hooking the ball – a demon he struggled with for a decade.
Hogan said you need to trust whatever golf swing you bring to the course and simply react to your target. The time to tinker with your golf swing is NOT out on the course but on the practice range...
This is the "real" secret to the Ben Hogan Golf Swing!
Now you know the real secret to the Ben Hogan Golf Swing!
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