00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:04,000
In this concept video, we're going to go over the technical components to the distance wedge.

00:00:04,000 --> 00:00:10,000
So, the distance wedge is going to be very similar to our stock swing with a few exceptions

00:00:10,000 --> 00:00:14,000
that will help us with consistency of contact and angle of attack.

00:00:14,000 --> 00:00:18,000
Two of the big things that we're trying to promote here with the distance wedge.

00:00:18,000 --> 00:00:24,000
So, I recommend that you build three swings for your distance wedge, but we're going to go over

00:00:24,000 --> 00:00:27,000
set up for all three of them first.

00:00:27,000 --> 00:00:32,000
So, if you remember from the setup video from your stock swing, you're going to take a step forward

00:00:32,000 --> 00:00:35,000
with your left foot and then a step back with the right foot.

00:00:35,000 --> 00:00:41,000
Now, most distance wedges are going to be just slightly ahead of centered so that when I'm

00:00:41,000 --> 00:00:47,000
leaning forward, the ball position is going to be kind of off of my right eye or if you were

00:00:47,000 --> 00:00:51,000
looking at where my sternum is, if you were to drop a line straight down, it would be a couple

00:00:51,000 --> 00:00:53,000
inches in front of the golf ball.

00:00:53,000 --> 00:00:57,000
Now, this is one of the big differences between the distance wedge and our full swing because

00:00:58,000 --> 00:01:04,000
by setting up forward like so, it's going to ensure that we make ball first contact, but

00:01:04,000 --> 00:01:09,000
it's also going to limit how much energy we're going to be able to create from the lower body.

00:01:09,000 --> 00:01:14,000
With a wedge swing, it's going to be a little bit more of an upper body dominant swing.

00:01:14,000 --> 00:01:19,000
Even though we're going to use our lower body, our hips or knees or ankles, we're going

00:01:19,000 --> 00:01:25,000
to use our lower body to help create the proper sequencing as well as the shift our way

00:01:25,000 --> 00:01:29,000
to get forward and create the proper delivery path.

00:01:29,000 --> 00:01:35,000
So, again, we're going to do the small step forward, small step back so the ball is roughly

00:01:35,000 --> 00:01:41,000
just ahead of centered with our body leaning slightly left and our shoulders are going to

00:01:41,000 --> 00:01:48,000
be closer to level than if I was trying to launch a 4 or 5, 6, I heard.

00:01:48,000 --> 00:01:53,000
We're going to take our normal grip and you're welcome to play around with experimenting

00:01:53,000 --> 00:01:57,000
with either the finesse grip with the right hand a little bit in a weaker position or just

00:01:57,000 --> 00:01:59,000
your stock and standard grip.

00:01:59,000 --> 00:02:06,000
Both of them can work and produce different slightly different ball flights.

00:02:06,000 --> 00:02:11,000
So, the set up position, let's go over real quick again.

00:02:11,000 --> 00:02:14,000
Start on the head of the ball, you're going to stay there during the backswing which

00:02:14,000 --> 00:02:16,000
is one of the big key fundamentals.

00:02:16,000 --> 00:02:19,000
There's not going to be a big weight shift back.

00:02:19,000 --> 00:02:23,000
Now in the finesse wing, we talked about how the center actually moves forward.

00:02:23,000 --> 00:02:26,000
You're up to body moves forward in the backswing.

00:02:26,000 --> 00:02:33,000
With the distance wedge, it is allowed to move forward but it's best when it just stays

00:02:33,000 --> 00:02:34,000
put.

00:02:34,000 --> 00:02:38,000
When I see on 3D that it's pretty close to neutral or maybe an inch forward, those

00:02:38,000 --> 00:02:41,000
tend to be the best distance wedge players I've seen.

00:02:41,000 --> 00:02:46,000
So in the backswing, it's going to feel like you stay a little bit more stacked and

00:02:46,000 --> 00:02:48,000
like you're leaning a little bit more left.

00:02:48,000 --> 00:02:52,000
This helps control and make sure that we don't hit behind the golf ball because we absolutely

00:02:52,000 --> 00:02:57,000
want to make sure with a distance wedge that we have enough shaft lean and that we're

00:02:57,000 --> 00:02:59,000
getting the golf ball first.

00:02:59,000 --> 00:03:04,000
So I recommend again that we build three different distance wedge swings to help control

00:03:04,000 --> 00:03:05,000
distances.

00:03:05,000 --> 00:03:07,000
These will be your stock swings.

00:03:07,000 --> 00:03:11,000
One would be basically when the shaft is parallel to the ground.

00:03:11,000 --> 00:03:15,000
Some people call this a 730 swing, some people 9 o'clock to fence how you're looking at.

00:03:15,000 --> 00:03:19,000
But basically, shaft parallel to the ground will be my first swing.

00:03:19,000 --> 00:03:22,000
Left arm parallel to the ground will be the second swing.

00:03:22,000 --> 00:03:28,000
And then kind of a full feeling backswing will be my third swing.

00:03:28,000 --> 00:03:32,000
And so if I have a couple different wedges, this gives me a couple different or a whole

00:03:32,000 --> 00:03:35,000
matrix of shots inside a hundred yards.

00:03:35,000 --> 00:03:42,000
Dave Pell is the first person who I saw do this, but I've heard about it from James Seekman.

00:03:42,000 --> 00:03:48,000
I know, I believe Stanutley talks about a similar type pattern for controlling your distance

00:03:48,000 --> 00:03:49,000
wedges.

00:03:49,000 --> 00:03:52,000
So it seems to work and it seems to be the easiest way.

00:03:52,000 --> 00:03:55,000
And then it gives you a couple of reference points that you can then adjust your distance

00:03:55,000 --> 00:03:57,000
off of when you're practicing.

00:03:57,000 --> 00:04:02,000
Because your goal is to be able to know your distance wedge swings well enough that you

00:04:02,000 --> 00:04:06,000
can take a guess at how far it is and know exactly what swing to produce.

00:04:06,000 --> 00:04:09,000
Now that takes a significant amount of practice.

00:04:09,000 --> 00:04:14,000
But as long as you practice effectively, it's not quite as much as you may think.

00:04:14,000 --> 00:04:17,000
You don't need to hit wedges every single day in order to be good with them.

00:04:18,000 --> 00:04:20,000
You've got the ideas for the setup.

00:04:20,000 --> 00:04:25,000
As far as the backswing goes, it's going to feel like there's more of a left lean to it

00:04:25,000 --> 00:04:30,000
because that's what's going to help keep my upper body staying centered.

00:04:30,000 --> 00:04:35,000
And as far as the sequencing and where the energy goes from, we're going to have

00:04:35,000 --> 00:04:42,000
most of our power coming from turning our upper body as opposed to a rapid release of your

00:04:43,000 --> 00:04:47,000
wrist or having a massive lower body leg drive.

00:04:47,000 --> 00:04:52,000
The problem with this lower body leg drive is it creates this axis tilt.

00:04:52,000 --> 00:04:55,000
I don't want to ton of this axis tilt with these wedges.

00:04:55,000 --> 00:05:01,000
I'm going to stay much more stacked or vertical so that my chin, my sternum, my belly button,

00:05:01,000 --> 00:05:05,000
my pelvis are kind of all in a similar line like so.

00:05:05,000 --> 00:05:12,000
So it's going to be lean slightly left, work on either nine o'clock, 11 o'clock,

00:05:12,000 --> 00:05:19,000
full swing, however you want to call them, shaft parallel, three quarter, full swing.

00:05:19,000 --> 00:05:25,000
However you want to dial them in, hit 10 balls or so with some yarders markers, figure out

00:05:25,000 --> 00:05:30,000
those distances and then it gives you a good idea of where to adjust when you get on the course.

00:05:31,000 --> 00:05:34,000
So that's kind of the overview of the wedges.

00:05:34,000 --> 00:05:38,000
We're going to go through specific details in other drills.