Impact or speed?

‘Power is nothing without control‘, read the famous advertisement for tires with Carl Lewis, to highlight the importance of the grip with respect to the power of a car engine. As powerful as the engine is, if it is not properly transmitted to the ground, the car will not run.

In long game shots and especially with the driver, the power of the car engine is assimilated with the force applied in the swing. For its part, the strength of the swing is associated with the speed that is printed at the head of the club and finally, this speed of the club head is related to the distance of the ball: the more strength, the more speed and the more speed the further the ball will go.

But it’s not like that. No matter how fast the head of the club reaches the ball, if the impact is not good, the ball will not fly as desired. Or it’ll fly really badly. Or it just won’t fly. If the speed of the club head is not properly transmitted, the ball will not meet expectations. And if we don’t live up to expectations, frustration arises. Does that ring a bell?

In fact, it’s not about increasing speed, it’s about improving impact conditions. Rather than hitting very fast you have to hit very well, in very good condition to be able to transfer the maximum energy from the head of the club to the ball.

And we already know these ideal conditions: the head of the club moves in a path directed towards the target, an alignment of the face of the club straight or sparsely open/closed according to the intended effect and above all a very horizontal or slightly descending impact if the ball rests on the grass, either horizontally or slightly ascending if the ball is on the tee.

These are too subtle conditions even for professionals. And for weekend players nothing easy to get and much less to play. But the fact is that improve the impact influences the distance much more than the speed of the club. Why?

Thinking about strength destroys the swing because it causes excess strain on the muscles (which is actually a contraction of too many muscles) and normally leads to a rigid swing and very imperfect impacts, so that no matter how fast it carries the head of the club, it will not be reflected over long distances; but probably in large lateral deviations or low height. That is to say: failed shots.

Interestingly all amateur playes are able to print a reasonable speed to the head of the club more than enough to drive the ball far away and very straight, but nevertheless we strive ‘to hit the ball hard’, instead of ‘ swing through the ball’

If our mental image were not to hit the ball with a lot of speed, but to transfer as best as possible that speed from the head of the club to the ball, things would change for the better. By forgetting the speed our swing would be much less tense and much more fluid.

And with lower speed and a more fluid swing, the chances of a good impact are much higher. The ball will fly more and better.

As proof, it is enough to observe a medium-level woman amateur with a wood in their hands.

Women can get great distances and most importantly, very accurate shots, with lower club speeds. They develop a fluid, natural swing and focus on hitting the ball very well, not hitting it very hard.

We have a lot to learn from the delicacy of the impact of women’s swing.

And remember, in golf: ‘Speed is nothing without impact’.