Set-Up With Motion vs. Motion With Drills

Recently, I’ve been discussing the difference between my teaching and instruction everywhere else, and I came up with this…. I teach set-up, and use motion to help people adapt. Instructors around the world tell people how to move, and use drills to cultivate their desired motion.

To me motion is incidental. Philosophy is primary, because philosophy reveals intention and need. My goal is to empower every golfer to pursue their own, unique solution to an Open Stance. And, no matter what level the golfer, all people are athletic and pursue their solution logically when attached to their sensory systems.

Interestingly, I only recommend an Open Stance to break inefficient swing habits. However, not one self-healer ever turned away from the one, proven best set-up orientation to a square or closed, swing-breaking set-up. Why do you suppose that is? Additionally, why keep it to yourself?

There IS no failure from an Open Stance when balance, leading arm extension, weight shift, plane adherence, and square club face are in tow. Isn’t that wonderful? To know you cannot fail to reach your ball-striking goal via an objective, left-brained solution is unheard of! No more achieving motion with drills!

The Open Stance saves our golfing bodies, creates a flatter swing, more lag, less rotation, equal power, more shaft-lean, distance, and satisfaction with no major swing change! I don’t mandate ANY swing change. I give options to my students and go over the requirements to achieve any given choice of motion-solution. They choose.

Open your stance, and play golf.

John Wright – Founder
The Open Stance Academy

Refer any question to my book.
https://www.amazon.com/s?k=The+open+stance+and+three+short+game+lessons&ref=nb_sb_noss

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One of my distant readers and supporters, John Dunn, sent me this video with the words, “Rory Does It Tooooooooooo!” Of course we are always talking about an Open Stance. The following video illustrates the philosophy in the words of World #1, Rory McIlroy.

Thanks, John. This is a great video for another reason, as well. Rory also talks about the adaptive process of improvement and the discomfort that always accompanies change. However, what steadies him while playing in the French Open, during an uncomfortable grip change, is the belief that his ultimate objective – improvement – will come.

Knowing… KNOWING the changes you make will make you better should be enough to sustain us through improvement’s discomfort phase. With enough experience to know we will always adapt perfectly to any stimuli change, we go through the process of fulfilling our intention. We need only doggedly pursue the example of experts like John Wright and Rory McIlroy.

Believe it. You don’t have to worry. With an Open Stance, your ultimate, ball-striking success is guaranteed. My only question is, at what point will you believe history’s immortal golf lesson? And, if not from me, from whom? This is the tip of the iceberg to golf instruction’s Titanic. Wouldn’t it be better to not be on the boat when it goes down?

Open your stance, and play golf.

John Wright – Founder
The Open Stance Academy

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We can hold more than one thought when working on our golf swings. However, almost ALL instructors believe we can only handle one at a time. Well, they’re wrong, and I can prove it. Hence, my suggestion is to separate your swing thoughts into two thought boxes.

We may only be able to convert one thought into motion at a time, but motion is not the sum total of our golf swing. In fact, MOST of our golf swing is due entirely to athletic adaptive response to stimulus. Stimulus is communication from our brain to our body about our situation and our intention.

We create our own stimulus by setting-up to our ball. If we set up intentionally, we develop mitigating or optimizing movement – however you like to think of it – to reach our objectives. Of course, creating our own stimulus means that the movement in our golf swing is quite incidental.

Our ability to click all of our intentional, set-up tumblers into place before we ready our movement speaks to human genius. We can easily think about setting our feet, hips, shoulders, ball position, grip before we ever physically move. Well, that’s five swing thoughts right there! I know a few people who have ten items on their set-up checklist. Conveniently, however, all set-up tumblers occupy only one intellectual space. Set-up, therefore, is one of our golf swing, thought boxes.

Movement has its own box, too. But, movement is where instructors live. I do not live there, so I feel no need to rehash it – except to make fun of it. “Do what I tell you to do, and practice it with much conviction. If you don’t practice and get better, I won’t tell you what to do anymore.”

Oh, jeez… call the cops! They’re gonna stop giving me worthless drills and clever analogies instead of knowledge! What am I gonna doooo!?

Here’s what you do…

Open your stance, and play golf.

John Wright – Founder
The Open Stance Academy

“The Ancestor of Every Action Is a Thought”

Billy Ho Is Setting Up Open, But Nobody Will Say The Word!

Our Pretending Is Ending

Commentators this week explained the work Billy Horschel did this week with his coach, Todd Anderson, during their second-round broadcast of the Phoenix Open. Talking heads said Billy is “Aiming more to the left”. So, I thought, “Billy Ho is setting up OPEN, but nobody can say the word!” What is going on here?!

The Open Stance has essentially become synonymous with low scores on tour. For example, Brooks Koepka hit fairway after fairway in shooting 63-65 in the first two rounds of the 2019 PGA. Then, he squared-up, missed over half his fairways and shot 70, 73 in the final two rounds. He still won. However, Brooksie inadvertently opened himself up to my analysis.

Patrick Reed closed his stance after his Open Stance Masters victory. Then, Pat disappeared for a year and a half until his recent hot putting streak. And, lastly, Ricky Fowler closed up from open, to square, to closed this week. Rick hit his driver everywhere in the desert and missed the cut in Phoenix, where he ususally thrives.

I’ve got to give Anderson credit. At least he is smart enough to recognize that great ball-strikers all set up Open. As a result, he got Billy back in a groove – at a minimum. Ultimately, Billy Horschel HAS started setting up Open… and with his putting, too! Therefore, what’s the problem with saying Open or Open Stance?

Is an Open Stance a mystery? Is setting up Open taboo? Or, is just saying the words Open, Open Stance, or Open Stance set-up taboo? Does my ownership of the space keep them from using the term? I hope not. In fact, I’ll issue the following disclaimer.

Ladies and Gentlemen of PGA, LPGA, and PGA of America and affiliates, I promise I will not litigate for using the word Open, Open Stance, or Open Stance Set-Up, provided you mention the world’s foremost expert in its application, John Wright. Go for it! – J. Wright

Furthermore, You can reach me in Virginia for interviews, public debates, or roundtables. Best Wishes.

Open your stance, and play golf.

John Wright – Founder
The Open Stance Academy

https://www.openstanceacademy.com/golf/percentage-golf-with-an-open-stance/

https://www.openstanceacademy.com/golf/the-open-stance-and-snowflake-swings/

https://www.openstanceacademy.com/golf/open-stance-creates-great-ball-strikers/

If you’ve never considered how club-fitting can adversely affect your golf swing, you need to pay close attention here. You need to be fit by Gurbaaz Mann, Mr. Miura, or a couple others I cannot recall. Why? Because clubs too upright are your swing’s dynamite. That’s why. Nothing will blow up your game like mis-fit clubs.

I had a session yesterday to one of our amazing, handicapped military veterans from Oregon, named William. William and I discussed his swing from beginning to current, talked about his clubs, and his dedication to improving from his 9.5 handicap index… pretty impressive considering he lost both his legs in battle.

William has utilized an Open Stance for years, and was missing in a direction we cannot miss if we seek lower scores. His miss is a viscious pull-hook with his current club set-up. Therefore, we agreed to consider flattening his lie-angle at least a degree – for starters. My suggestion was for more than that.

His clubs were fit to him 1.5 inches long, so his 2 degrees upright was even more drastic. The club-fitter put him in 60g, steel fiber graphite. which makes sense considering toe droop. However, it makes absolutely NO sense when considering his golf swing. His club set-up, as William suspected, needs tweaking.

My man swings his driver over 100 MPH! WIlliam was already considering 110g steel. I agreed that would be more stable at impact, and he can certainly handle the weight. However, my concern is almost always lie angle.

When we swing an upright club, our subconscious mind goes to work to make it go straight. That’s the problem. The swing needed to accomplish that task is not conducive to either control or consistency… maybe that’s the same for most people, but not me.

We can create our golf swing without having control over it. For example, to me control means musculo-skeletal coordination and cooperation of power-generating body parts. Therefore, my view is that we can, consistently, lack control.

Consistency is different because we must create efficient structures within our swing to repeat motion. Therefore, I suggest “consistency” delivering the clubhead into the ball exactly every time. Solid contact is incidental to consistency, in my book. I can always move the ball around to meet an efficient golf swing.

Efficient golf swings always include the trailing elbow structure inside the trailing hip – ALWAYS. If you’ve read my book, The Open Stance and Three Short Game Lessons, you know why. William has crafted his swing like the rest of us. He adapted to his clubs. However, now that his good swings are hitting pull-hooks, we need to change his club set-up before his good swings are replaced by others.

William,

It was a great honor to meet you. I can’t tell you how much selfless patriots like you mean to me and many other grateful Americans, but I, personally, am permanently in your debt. Call anytime. My time is yours.

John Wright – Founder
The Open Stance Academy

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I just had a conversation about, in base terms, how our ego affects our learning. Discussing recent Australian wildfires with colleagues led to how we humans believe we control the Earth. In our discussioon, we concluded the Earth, left alone, would always heal itself. But, I was left questioning how our Ego affects our thinking and learning.

I looked up Ego quotes, and found a good one. I have never heard of Terence McKenna. However, he is quoted as having said,

“Chaos is what we’ve lost touch with. This is why it is given a bad name. It is feared by the dominant archetype of our world, which is Ego, which clenches because its existence is defined in terms of control.”

Terence’s insight drew in what happens whether we are engaged or not. I think our ego just wants credit for nature’s ways of healing our planet. Hence, we get to feel like we have control over our lives. Feeling in-control makes separating ourselves from others easier. Consequently, we more easily eschew all kinds of insights from others, thereby summarily destroying our planetary community.

Furthermore, we shut down discussion of anything not centered on our own opinions and beliefs. Therefore, arriving at objective truths about anything is impossible. As a result, we retard our learning by allowing our Ego to reframe our situation so we feel insulated against chaos. People then revert to base instinct where only subjectivity rules. Moreover, our Egos tell us we are the exception to the rule. That way, necessary change is less scary.

Wildfires in Australia have occurred forever. They start, they burn everything they touch, and they burn out. Only humans irrationally think that we are integral to that process and chaos should not happen. The driest climate in the civilized world and fires should not occur there? Is that right? Hmm.

The Earth (Truth) is the only self-regulating system ever conceived, and only our Ego says differently. Fires create smoke that provide material for thunderstorms. Thunderstorms cool the Earth, etc. Likewise, the Open Stance is the only self-regulating set-up philosophy ever conceived, and only our Ego says differently.

In summation, when you think about changing, realize the changed you is ALWAYS an improved you. Allow time for change to change you, and success will follow. Be open … to your swing change. Open your mind and heart.

Open your stance, and play golf.

John Wright – Founder
The Open Stance Academy

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The Biggest Problem With The Open Stance Message?

Sponges are indiscriminate. They soak up any manner of liquid – clean or dirty. We throw away the dirty sponges and keep the cleanest ones, because we are logical. Therefore, would it not be equally logical to inspect the informational pooling beforehand?

People act like sponges. We hear this or see that, and immediately file our new informational liquid away in our ultra-absorbent brains. We always believe the liquid is valuable… because we decided to remember it! Otherwise, we would be foolish, yes?

The difference between sponges and people is in our ability to wring out the liquid in one and not the other. We can clean sponges, too. However, once our accepted “liquid gold” is taken up, we never really expunge the slag. We just slurp up new spills to mask subscription to former spills and hope the new is clean.

Can you imagine being a sponge in a strip club or gas station men’s room!? Well, if you listen to some popular instructors, you might as well go lick the floor in one of those spots. Because, their informational juice will do you NO GOOD – #BIGLY. Furthermore, once absorbed, you own it – for better or worse, for richer or poorer… until death do you part. Get it?

Now, do you know how to inspect the fluid BEFORE you constrict your sponge for the big suck-up? Its like inspecting any other liquid you touch – you gotta’ see it and smell it to make sure its not rotten. Most golf instruction is two-month-old milk mixed with bacon fat. However, we cannot tell the difference because we can’t see or smell literary or empirical work. Words rarely come with an aroma.

I know instructors who pride themselves on being “Sponges”. They think that a little from here, and a little from there makes them better instructors. INDISCRIMINATE! If you’re only as good as your intake, and you’re a bathroom sponge at a New Orleans strip club during Mardi Gras, then you are holding onto some bad juju. Therefore, don’t be ANY-kind-of-information sponge – Be a objective-truth sponge. Oh, and one more thing….

Open your stance, and play golf.

John Wright – Founder
The Open Stance Academy

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Merry Christmas from The Open Stance Academy!

John Wright – Founder
The Open Stance Academy

“Always Try New Ideas” – Butch” (Harmon). (Golf Digest, Dec. ’19)

Firstly,
Always – : at all Times, :FOREVER
Secondly,
Try – : to subject to something (such as undue strain or excessive hardship or provocation) that tests the powers of endurance
Thirdly,
New – : beginning as the resumption or repetition of a previous act or thing, : different from one of the same category that has existed previously
Fourthly,
Ideas – : an indefinite or unformed conception, : obsolete : an image recalled by memory

Always means unceasing. My interpretation is that Butch believes we should never settle on one course of action or underlying structure because there are only three structures, Open, square, or closed. So few do not lend themselves to clever manipulation. Only numerous, unending, myriad, et.al. movements provide fodder for golf instruction chicanery.

Try means attempt. Again, my interpretation is that Butch wants us to try one idea after another without looking for one, base, structural or philosophical truth. The parable, “Castles built on sand” comes to mind. If golfers have no foundational connection, instruction’s contractors are guaranteed constant work.

New means not remembered. “There is nothing new under the sun” does not apply to our instruction industry. Because, if the words used to explain are different, the explanation is deemed to be different. Hence, selling the same information in a forgotten collection of words is clever. However, brainpower spent on wordplay is wasted for research. I posit that fear is the greater constituent of clever, because stepping away from the word herd has consequences. I have an metaphallegory… maybe, an allegetophor. You decide.

The Open Stance is the Lion King of our golf swing on our instructional Serengeti. No matter how many clever ideas go prancing by, you can rest assured, if one or two stop for a debate, the Open Stance Lion is ready to devour them both. Consider our discussion equivalent to “The survival of the fittest”. Truth is not negotiable… it hurts. Now, on to “ideas”.

Ideas means multiple, unnamed and unqualified suggestions. However, instead of allowing our own mind to create our own ideas, instructors want to spoon feed us theirs’. We spent the better part of fifty years ingesting medicine from those invested in maintaining your illness… abominable, at best. Consequently, golf remains an undersubscribed sport. Golf is too hard because its purveyors make it so.

Is there anything sadder or more hopeless than to swing in the Sargasso Sea of relativism and torment? Those eels are creepy. Regardless, the next time you watch a famous instructor on T.V., think, “This (insert clever name) is trying to break my swing with this excrement!” Each of them WILL ONLY TALK ABOUT MOTION – NEVER set-up philosophy.

I cannot actually believe how beautifully Butch’s quote from the recent Golf digest fits into my post yesterday. Moreover, Harmon and GD feed my ongoing narrative regarding golf instructors and golf instruction. I could not ask for a finer point on my letter. Hopefully, you all will learn to spot their subterfuge, and help others with your Open Stance stories and better ball-striking. In the mean time….

Open your stance, and play golf.

John Wright – Founder
The Open Stance Academy

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