Our stance, ball position, and adaptation form our practice foundation. How do we know its true? Because, great players practice with alignment sticks on the ground to help them set their feet. Also, players add a cross-rod to mark their desired ball position. Then, they change their movement until they make perfect contact and get their desired shot eight out of ten times, at least. Do you?

Most amateurs go to the range to exercise, even though they call it practice. I don’t like that kind of range time, so I will emphasize the proper order of things when practicing. Our feet determine, and our target lines measure. Everything else is a failure-free, intention-driven, movement experiment – as long as you employ open stance philosophy.

I’ll be honest. This site, philosophy, mission/purpose/goal is not to reach recreational golfers. I want to reach motivated, improvement-minded grinders. Unfortunately, that demographic percentage is small. However, in the coming years and decades, golf’s grinder percentage will get larger. Participation is cyclical, so sports novices predictably fall away along with their golf swing relativities.

Technology peaked a few years ago, and is losing marketing steam like Democrats after the Mueller Report release. I expect more rules-bending to make new clubs and balls “better”. Unfortunately, R&A and USGA execs. will be late to the party. Golf has lost 2 Million participants in the last five years.

So, who is left? Rich people and dreamers – golf’s obsessed contingent. I imagine a kid with one club across the fence from Fort Worth CC waiting for dusk to jump the fence and get in a few holes before sundown. Obsessed golfers don’t need new equipment. They are players. “Players” acquire skills with existing equipment, which is bad news for OEMs.

Long-held teaching secrets are bad for OEMs, too. My view is that once the lie is exposed, it’s over for them. The Open Stance carries truth under wing. Please remember, my claim is not invention. Mine is knowledge. I just know, better than anyone else in the world, why an Open Stance works.

People will be subjective about “Their swing” until they realize “Their swing” is subjective – regardless of set-up. We want to be left to our own devices, so we eschew conformity. However, the backlash over the instruction lie will push golfers into all manner of alternatives. The obsessed and intellectually-insulted cadre will lead golf back to the beginning. In proper order, our stance, ball position, and adaptation are all that matters.

Open your stance, and play golf.

John Wright – Founder
The Open Stance Academy

https://www.openstanceacademy.com/golf/anyone-write-about-open-stance-cure/
https://www.openstanceacademy.com/golf/watch-out-for-rabbits-this-year/
https://www.openstanceacademy.com/golf/why-tour-players-heads-move-down-through-impact/

Congratulations Tiger. Your adversaries didn’t provide any drama, but at least you won, right? By the way, what did you think of Augusta’s softened green contours and added length? Will Augusta ever return to its former state, like in ‘97, prior to the “Tiger-Proofing”? Unfortunately, I think those sweet days may be gone forever.

It’s one example how you alone, have changed our game. It seems, due to your dominance, integrities have ceased. For example, classic courses from Augusta to… hell – all of ‘em – ceased to maintain architectural integrity. They’re all being stretched and tucked like a Palm Beach socialite. Manufacturers also ceased to have any advertising integrity. I cite the Rocketballz campaign. And, no longer do backbones have structural integrity coming down the stretch. We watched. That is true power.

In twenty years of a world hooked on personality, you have unintentionally been able to do what Jones, Hogan, Palmer, and Nicklaus couldn’t do in 100 years… cause golf to abandon all its tradition in favor of the new. All you did was play great and smile bright. You’re the Beatles of golf. A generation will line up to kiss your ring or whatever part of you that serves their purpose. However, because we share generational status, I’d like to thank you for representing the rest of us.

We even met once. You were walking to the green on 17 at Point of Woods in ’94 or ’95 and had to watch me top a shot out of the rough trying to stay under a tree on 18. All you could do was what you did – shrug and tilt your head. But, I just wanted to tell you – I got it up and down from 180 there, because I know how concerned you must have been.

And finally, this year I missed the Master’s for the first time in eight. Just felt like I should be here for some reason. Now, I know what that reason was. No need to thank me. Your cosmic tumblers made it happen. In conclusion, if you want me to skip next year, too, we can negotiate.

Open your stance, and play golf.

John Wright – Founder
The Open Stance Academy

https://www.openstanceacademy.com/golf/no-spoon/
https://www.openstanceacademy.com/golf/hippocratic-oath-golf-instruction/
https://www.openstanceacademy.com/golf/byron-nelson-wanted-to-buy-a-farm/

I just finished watching a video on the role of the legs that didn’t talk about the legs, but the face. This video has a quarter of a million views, so people want this kind of information. I have deduced that I’m teaching all the wrong things. I just want to take this opportunity to apologize to all the people who have followed and implemented my work.

Piers and Andy get more views than almost anyone else in the YouTube game, so you better pay attention to what they have to say. For instance, they say the over-the-top move, hanging back, and early release are due to a clubface that points to the right at impact. Man, I’ll be honest… I missed that one. I should have thought about it from an impact-to-feet standpoint instead of feet-to-impact. My bad.

The guys also said the problem stems from a weak grip. Our grip is a fundamental in our golf swing. Therefore, how we put our hands on the club must determine motion. Geez, how’d I miss that? It’s not like you can hit a golf ball repeatedly straight with a weaker grip, after all. I was wrong when I said your grip is an instinctive choice based on individual intention with a golf ball. Again, I apologize.

Oh man, the mistakes I’ve made. And, all those thousands of lessons telling people to focus on intention and an Open Stance, and for what!? I’m so ashamed of my ignorance and flat-out disregard for conventional teaching methods like the ones Piers and Andy use. The golf swing really DOES begin with movement, doesn’t it?

Well, there is nothing left for me to do other than hang it up and slink away quietly into the night. I’m obviously not cut out for teaching, because the overwhelming majority of instructors teach just like Piers and Andy. I mean, just look at the Ledbetter article in the latest Golf Digest, and you’ll see. Movement and grip modification are the key to a better swing for everyone.

If I’d paid attention to the fact that there is one, best combination for grip and motion, I could have helped so many more people. I could have saved myself so much humiliation. Where did I go wrong?

Look at all my bloviating about human potential and adaptive nature, as well as the Open Stance, flatter plane, and self-curative learning. It makes me literally sick to think of the knowledge and ambition chasm between our greatest instructors and myself. I am so ashamed. Please forgive me for trying to put the responsibility for your golf swing on your own shoulders. It was wrong of me.

My issue now is, how do I sidle off stage-left after ten years and thousands of Open Stance pages written? If any of my readers have a suggestion, please leave a comment. Hopefully, I’ll hear a suggestion that helps with my transition out of teaching folks to rely on themselves.

Open your stance, and play golf.

John Wright – Founder
The Open Stance Academy

https://www.openstanceacademy.com/golf/much-good-learning-something-new/
https://www.openstanceacademy.com/golf/hippocratic-oath-golf-instruction/
https://www.openstanceacademy.com/golf/my-journey-in-golf-business/

Predictions are fascinating to watch materialize or flop, aren’t they? I made some predictions a while back. Do you remember? I’ll refer you to the links down below for substantiation. For now, however, I’ll just ask if you’ve noticed any connections in recent leaderboards?

We see some names more frequently this year than in the last several. Ben An, Lucas Bjerregard, Keegan Bradley, Scott Brown, Sam Burns, Corey Conners, Lucas Glover, Charles Howell III, DJ, S. W. Kim, Kevin Kisner, K.H. Lee, Marc Leishman, Adam Long, Keith Mitchell, Adam Schenk, Johnattan Vegas, and Gary Woodland have been racing up the world rankings in 2019. There is a connection between each of them and my prediction. Anything yet?

You may be asking yourself how could there be a connection between all these high-risers when they’re all different ages from all different places. No swing looks like the other, either. Well, our connection is the year they were born in a year we all share, and the article that predicted their rise. Furthermore, it’s not magic.

Remember how I occasionally refer to astrology in golf? Yeah… that’s the key. In the Year of The Pig, these certain animal signs flourish while others languish. “It’s Science”, as Ron Burgundy said…. only without the “smelly, pirate-hookers.”

I talk about topics unrelated to a golf swing or an Open Stance for two reasons. First, there are more things under heaven than have been imagined by man. And, just because we haven’t imagined them doesn’t mean we’re not connected to them. And second, I am concerned more for our society than for your golf swing. I’ll leave your golf swing to you and your set-up philosophy.

Our ability to make connections to one another may not be in fashion or tightly-woven right now. However, one day soon, we’ll all be in need and thankful for mutual expressions and warmth of our shared humanity. We’re going to have a rough Summer in the US. Remember to breathe and love one another. If that’s too difficult, then at least show tolerance.

Open your stance, and play golf.

John Wright – Founder
The Open Stance Academy

https://www.openstanceacademy.com/golf/watch-out-for-rabbits-this-year/(opens in a new tab)
openstanceacademy.com/golf/watch-out-for-rabbits-this-year/(opens in a new tab) https://www.openstanceacademy.com/golf/open-stance-offers-the-highest-r-o-i/

The PGA Tour, the PGA of America, and other golf entities all colluded to steal the WGC – Doral Event from Trump’s Doral property from 2017-on because of the accusations flying from every corner of the liberal world. We now know our President was spied on and harassed in a treasonous attempt to unseat a duly-elected POTUS. Now that Meuller has exonerated our President Trump, my question is, will the PGA apologize to President Trump and reinstitute Doral on the WGC rota?

Doral has been a beloved and venerable site since Dick Wilson designed it in 1962. The PGA Tour held a tournament at Doral every year from 1962 to 2016 under two different PGA tournament regimes. However, in 2016, the PGA Tour announced it was leaving Doral for Mexico under the auspices they could make more money. Tour officials denied it was off-color comments by Trump. The timing was, however, remarkable.

The Doral Invitational benefitted the community of Doral, Miami, the state of Florida, and America. However, now millions in annual revenue has been shipped off to Mexico… all so the PGA Tour can fill the gap created by Tiger’s tail-off. I’m sorry, but I don’t buy the narrative, and I don’t like the reality. In conclusion, it’s time to reinstate the great Blue Monster and Doral back into the PGA Tour rotation.

At the same time, how about the tour offer Trump an olive branch by putting him out ahead of the field on Day 1 every year. This could become The Trump Clambake – East …for patriots and celebrities. Yes… let’s do that. Meanwhile…

Open your stance, and play golf.

John Wright – Founder
The Open Stance Academy

T

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

Imagine you are not the best musician in the world, and you’re suddenly called on stage to play your electrified instrument along with a great band. Would you want your volume on 1 or 10? Now, as a golfer, imagine you are not the best putter in the world, and you have to perform under similar pressure. Whether the greens are rolling a 1 – Velcro, or a 10 – Master’s Sunday, green speed is golf’s amplifier. In competition, which setting would you choose to showcase your skill?

As someone who has played badly, loudly, I can tell you the lower setting is the way to preserve your dignity. However, the highest setting does reveal your precision. Anyone can putt competently on greens that putt six on the Stimpmeter. Undulating greens like Augusta’s, cut to roll twelve and over, will make even the most steady-kneed golfers shake like he/she is “shittin’ a peach seed”, as my buddy Tim would say.

Ricky Fowler and Tommy Emmanuel are good at any decibel level. Crank it up and skin it back. However, the same level that displays expertise in professionals can destroy morale in un-practiced types. With the amplifier on 10, we should probably just laugh at our own hilarity rather than risk ego damage… at least until we smooth out our chops.

Here is a video on how to smooth out your putting chops in a hurry. Go practice it for an hour a day for a week. Use it to get ready for a round at a new course with fast greens. Hope for lower back aches, initially. All that means is that you are working hard. They go away before you know it.

Now, I want to cover the technical aspects of greater amplification on the greens. First, Kudos to https://www.openstanceacademy.com/golf/BaazMann, Gurbaaz Mann, for the terminology assist. Baaz has a more accurate green speed measuring device based on ballistics rather than zero friction start. I will post another conversation with Baaz soon. In the meantime….

With the same velocity in our putter head, our ball goes further on faster greens, where the amplifier effect is higher. We know that. Ball speed is directly related to the force applied by our swinging putter mass. We have a ballistic event at impact that launches the ball at the same speed on any surface. However, as we also know, the ball is airborne for a short time when struck. Therefore, how far our ball travels over the same surface differs dramatically – exponentially even – according to factors related to green speed. Whether firm or soft, low or high cutting, rolling, grain, soil and grass moisture, or humidity, firmer, faster greens allow more roll than softer, slower greens.

Open your stance, and play golf.

John Wright – Founder
The Open Stance Academy

Our Mind Moves

“Two monks were arguing about a flag. One said: ‘The flag is moving.’ The other said: ‘The wind is moving.’ The sixth patriarch happened to be passing by. He told them: ‘Not the wind, not the flag; mind is moving.’” The moral of the movement story is that once we focus on movement, we become distracted from the truth. We don’t move. Our mind moves… or does it?

’The wind, the flag, and their minds move.
They each have the same understanding.
However, when their mouths open
All are wrong.’

Each monk focused on movement as if it was the dominant characteristic of their query. Even the Mind-is-moving monk was wrong, because he played their movement ‘game’. He was correct, right up and until the point he spoke. Then, he too, was immediately wrong.

Once subjectivity is spoken, it nullifies the speaker. Which, is why I stopped teaching movement long ago. We do have a consensus. There is an objective ‘first thing’. However, if shared, it becomes invalid. That thing is Adaptation.

Therefore, any discussion of a commonality post-thought is folly, because thought is the commonality. Hence, our only pure, objective expression of the divine, individual, golf swing thought-to-action is silent, subjective adaptation to a common set-up philosophy.

Open your stance, and play golf.

John Wright – Founder
The Open Stance Academy

No Amount of Ambition Can Make Up For a Lack of Knowledge

Instruction Exit Distractions

Steepen Impact/Flatten Swing With an Open Stance

So much good comes from learning something new. For example, upon viewing a documentary of Jeff Beck, I once again realized the importance of learning new things. Mr. Beck is a seeker of new sounds, textures, and colors. As a result, his music evolves, expands, and yet consolidates into an unmistakably unique voice, which is the common thread in all his music.

Only in the last few years have I become a Jeff Beck fan. As a lover of the guitar and virtuosos like Jimi Hendrix, Stevie Ray Vaughan, and Derek Trucks, I realize Jeff Beck’s genius will endure. Because he is always learning, he can operate with complete freedom from then rules and corners most others obey to remain relevant.

I used to think Eric Clapton was the best. Then I heard SRV. That changed the way I looked at playing. Eric Johnson certainly had all the technical and genre chops to claim virtuosic supremacy. Yngwe Malmsteen, certainly a virtuoso in his own right, was the fastest I ever heard. However, in each of these other greats, I noticed some degree of signature, high-speed riffs. High-speed riffs are okay. However, riffs speak to a rehashing of older ideas in order to obey an underlying discipline.

Blues is the thread that rules the voices of Clapton, SRV, BB King, etc. Jazz rules Metheny, DiMeola, etc. In other words, a voice can dominate a discipline, or a discipline can dominate a voice. Freedom means a relative lack of discipline, which is what only Jeff Beck displays. Moreover, his desire to constantly learn and evolve free of genre-driven rules is the celebration of his voice… his common thread… his freedom.

To be fair, I believe Jimi Hendrix would have evolved in much the same way as Jeff had he lived as long. These two stand out to me because they are sonic geniuses. Even Carlos Santana admitted Jimi was unique in his genius. Hence, the best in any area of life learn the rules, get bored with the rules, and change the rules with their singular voice. RIP, Jimi.

Jeff Beck stands alone. Therefore…

Open your stance, and play golf.

John Wright – Founder The Open Stance Academy

https://www.openstanceacademy.com/golf/couples-therapy/https://www.openstanceacademy.com/golf/dechambeau-ancer/https://www.openstanceacademy.com/golf/open-stance-wide-swing/

I was recently considering the connection between String Theory and our golf swing. String Theory has to do with gravity, forces, as well as movement and collisions. Then, I got tired of reading, because we have been discussing the same dynamic in our golf swings. Need, mind, body, motion, swing, and collisions also make up a string of a different kind – a progression.

A progression describes a process rather than a (String Theory) particle. However, pursuing String Theory and perfect impact do involve the same mental processes – although in reverse order. Golfers take a Need, turn it into motion, and then prove it with science. String Theorists take science, assume motion, then try to prove their conclusions. Ha, ha, ha… silly scientists!

For fifty years, golfers have ascribed greater human good from pursuing art than science. Science proves action. Art is more abstract and subjective and, therefore, easier to sell. After all, profits increase when we create maximum combinations and permutations of one idea. Proofs and cures are bo-ring.

Homer Kelley was in position to separate golfers from one another using scientific dogmatism in order to create maximum, artistic commerce. Consequently, we were sold on the idea that we are all different in every way. And, therefore, any old way we wanted to set up and swing was fine, as long as we express our individualism. Once we believed our way was as good as any other, an industry emerged.

Advertising created Need and dissatisfaction by showing us what we didn’t have yet. Our misdirection created more niches, tastes, and subcultures – all with different modes, mores, and proclivities. The issue, in my lifetime, is that we started using science as a paper hammer to eliminate further discussion or consideration of truth.

Before you think this is getting too deep, consider what you do for a living. Ask yourself if basic human Need or the Need of consumerism supports your income. I freely admit that what I do for a living is based on consumerism.

Mr. Kelley started our tailspin. The Golfing Machine is the golfers’ ‘String Theory’. T.G.M. was so complicated that we stopped questioning Kelley’s precepts, or assumptions. Instead, we took his explanation as a given, and beyond our willingness to question. We were essentially intimidated into instruction.  We have witnessed innumerable swing explanations with different images, names, and catch-phrases. You could say, thanks to him, ‘Swing Theory’ was born.

Today, by emphasizing a simple set-up bias, I am teaching our way out of the abyss. My recommended bias develops efficient movement by engendering swing change using our individual, ‘artistic’ differences. Our mind-body relationship determines our adaptive art-form. Therefore, I confidently recommend employing the same, scientifically-explained vehicle to every able-bodied golfer.

My work assumes golfers want to reach the same, precise goal of pure and powerful impact. So….

Open your stance, and play golf.

John Wright –  Founder                                                                                                 The Open Stance Academy

Why An Open Stance Wins The Set-Up Debate

Why “Hitting Down On The Ball” Is So Important

Concentrating On Set-Up Is Difficult At First, But Pays Off Big Time