HOGAN

The Fundamentals of Ben Hogan

1912 - 1997
Turned Pro 1930
Retired 1971
PGA Tour Wins 64
Major Championship Wins - 9
Instruction
- Concepts
- Implementing the skill
- Transferring the skill to the
ball
- Playing
Hogans Performance
128 Events 40 Events 15 Events 8 Events

42 Wins 13 Wins 9 wins 5 wins

33% 33% 60% 63%

+ 4 HDCP 0 HDCP 4 HDCP

Median Median Median

1942 - 1948 1950 - 1956 1951 - 1953 1953

 Interviewer poses question to Nicklaus- Is Tiger the best

Ball Striker you have ever seen?

Nicklaus No. No. Ben Hogan easily.

Mr. Hogan Left Us With Two
Books..
 .along with
A Secret And Thousands of Swings
We will be covering Mr. Hogans concepts
in Five Lessons & looking back at Power
Golf
The Grip
Fundamental 1
Hogans Fundamental Grip
" In Five Lessons Hogan
gave us a modern grip.

" And a few hints.

 Grip
" The Grip is essentially club face control.

" The club face controls the starting point of the ball.

" Any extension of the club away from us will be felt in

the hands.

" Wrist Release Patterns are autonomic responses and

because of this the grip is fundamentally important.
Grip
Hogans placement of his hands
on the club really created the
same alignments we look for in a
neutral swing today: The Leading
Edge of The Club and Lead Arm
Matching Up
And Hints of Extension (aka
width or extensor action)
 Five Lessons Page 29
" This union of left thumb and right thumb pad
strengthens the welding together of the two hands and
it serves to add real reinforcement to your grip,
particular at the top of the backswing where poor grips
are most likely to deteriorate. Ben Hogan

" The greatest pressure in the right hand is in the two

middle fingers. Power Golf, page 5
Top of Swing Change
Extension or Width
Affects Needed Clubface Closure- Affects Release Position of Wrist-
Affects Lag of Club Shaft- Affects Stability of Club Face-
Affects Power- Functional Shoulders are needed -
 SUMMARY Lesson 1 The Grip
" The Grip

" The Pressure Points in

The Grip

" The Golfing Machine

" AMM 3-D

" Mac OGrady

" Mark Blackburn

" Rob Noel

" James Letitz

Lesson 2
Stance and Posture
Stance and Posture
" 8 Major Joints Stacked

" Neck Between The Feet

" Advocated The Feet Being

as Wide as The Shoulders
Mr. Hogan and The Feet
" Advocated Trail Foot
Perpendicular (Power Golf
advocated both toes pointing
out a bit
" Advocated Lead Foot
Slightly Open (22 degrees)
" Hogan- It is an automatic
governor for hip turn and
It makes it easier to feel the
muscles that should initiate
the hip turn.

" Power Golf- Toes should

point out slightly
Medicine Calls It This
Which ONE Is Better For The Back Foot in
Golf?
Medicine Calls It This
Which ONE is Better For The Rear Foot In The
Golf Swing?
With a Little Help From The Feet, Ankles and Knees- The Bulk of
Rotation is Put On This Structure Of Course With Accompanying
Muscles
Mr. Hogan was Setting Up Internal
Rotation into The Rear Hip.
..With His Feet
 Power Golf 1948
" About 85% of my weight is on the right foot and leg.
Page 42

" Nothing of This Sort is noted in Five Lessons. 1957

" THERE IS A DIFFERENCE BETWEEN LOADING

THE HIP VIA MUSCLES LENGTH TENSION
RELATIONSHIPS AND LOADING THE RIGHT
FOOT.
Power Golf-Left
Five Lessons- Right
He gave us foot position and a Hint of Loading
The Hip
The Arms
The Upper Part of The Arm
should be pressed very tightly
against the side of the chest.
Page 48
 A Famous Image..
" Elbows pointing toward
hip bones (also
mentioned in Power Golf)

" Press them as close

together as you can. Page
48

" Video evidence suggest

Mr. Hogan didnt do this
to an extreme though
Talking Connection?
" This Swing, you will feel
more and more surely, is is
bound to go away from the
ball and back through the
ball very nearly the same way
every time. Five Lessons
Page 50
Demonstrating Connection
Medicine Calls
It External
Rotation of
The Shoulder
In my case, I consciously work to
build up so strong an adhesion
between the upper arms and the
chest that a person would have to
exert a really terrific amount of
force to wedge them apart. Five
Lessons 48
Demonstrating
External
Rotation at
Top and Finish
As it folds close to the body, the
elbow should always be pointing
toward the ground. It helps, you
will find, if the upper part of the
right arm adheres as closely as
possible to the side of the chest.
Five Lessons page 48
Stance and Posture
Hogans Posture &
Modern Day Posture
IMO The ulna deviation and
slightly taller body was due to
shortness of clubs and lie angle as
a general rule.

But.
But Mr. Hogan did move deep (Power Golf) into the line
from this posture just as many of the modern players on
the PGA Tour.but later he couldnt stay there.
 SUMMARY Lesson 2 Stance and Posture
" Lots of Connection!

" Emphasis put on Loading

Rear Hip!

" Utilizing Address Feels " Egoscue

That Re-Enforce Swing
" TPI
Feels
" Books and Resources of
Human Anatomy
 Lesson 3 The First Part Of
The Swing
" Waggle
" A Bridge " ..preventing the leg from
" The Sequence Of The
Backswing
" ..for the novice is to know
they dont start back so
closely together that their
action is unified.
" The Trail Leg
sagging and swaying out to
the right and carrying the
body along with it.
" Introduction To The
Plane!
" ..the plane serves the
golfer as sort of a three-
dimensional road map.
Waggle
A Bridge Between Committing To The Shot and
Hitting The Shot- As you waggle so you shall swing.
-
" During the waggle, as he
previews his shot and
attempts to telegraph his
mental picture from his
brain to his muscles,.

" .the golfer makes the

little adjustments
necessary to be perfectly
in balance for hitting that
particular shot from that
particular lie.
Hogan didnt take practice
swings on the course
" Mr. Hogans waggle was his practice
swing

" Mr. Hogan gives advice not to groove the

waggle because it takes instinct to plan
and play a golf shot, and your
preparation for each shot must be done
instinctive. Page 67

" The waggle was obviously also his way

from freeing up the mind for the shot at
hand. Today we referred to it as a
routines or preshot routines.

" What it amounts to is that you address

the ball with some movement, or waggle
as the tournament professionals call it,
and then go smoothly from the waggle
into the backswing via the recoil from the
forward press. Power Golf, page 33
During The Waggle The Shoulders
Dont Turn. Page 69
" Mr. Hogan again using
address feels to convey his
next point which is

" ..the sequence of the

backswing

" ..and the amount of turn

of the upper body over the
lower body
Science calls it Kinematic Sequence and Mr.
Hogan would get peer approval for his
efforts to explain it years ago.
 When the hips are turned back to the left, this tightens the muscles
between the hip and the shoulders just a notch more. Page 74

" The tighter the tension
in these muscles, the
faster the upper part of
the body will unwind (as
the hips turn) and transfer
its speed to the arms and
the hands. Page 74
" As regards the right leg, it
should maintain the same
position it had at address,
the same angle in relation
to the ground, throughout
the backswing. Page 75
" So Far Five Lessons is
Screaming Connection-
Tightness- Utilizing the
Length/Tension
relationships of muscles!
The Right Leg
Maintain the Same Relationship during
backswing. Not quite
 If he executes his backswing properly, as his arms
are approaching hip level, they should be parallel
with the plane and.
..they should remain parallel
with the plane, just beneath
the glass, till they reach the
top of the backswing. Page
77
 Tour Players today arent too far away from Mr. Hogans
images of the backswing planeHowever Mr. Hogan was
flatter than most. Most assuredly due to his emphasis on
connection.
 SUMMARY Lesson 3 The First Part of the Swing
" The Waggle as a bridge " The sequence of the
and independent for every backswing that grows from
shot. his previous lesson.
" Concept of Connection
still very prevalent.

" Building from the foot " Introduction of the

positions Mr. Hogan backswing plane
keeps the right leg in a
position that it prevents " Concept of Connection
sagging and swaying still very prevalent
 Lesson 4 The Second Part of
the Swing
" The Downswing Plane " Pronation and Supination

" The Role of The Hips

The Downswing Plane
" The golfer gets on the
downswing plane when he
turns his hips to the left to
initiate the downswing. The
plane for the downswing in
inclined at a shallower angle
than the plane of the
backswing, and its lateral axis
points slightly to the right of
the golfers target. Page 88

" The inside out phase of the

swing is important at all times
during the swing, but
particularly when you are
playing irons. Power Golf
Page 35
I was expecting to see arms
swinging out to the right!
Instead he was just feeling like he would approach from the inside.
 ADDRESS
cog cog

cog HALF WAY BACK cog

cog
cog TOP

cog cog

impact
By moving the bottom of the swing
forward Mr. Hogan
..was sensing the plane being flatter and
shifted more to the right!
It was the biggest difference in his swing from Power Golf
To Five Lessons.
Hogan addressed the importance of hitting the ball from the inside in both
Power Golf and Five Lessons.
The Hips
" THE HIPS INITIATE
THE DOWNSWING.

" To begin the downswing,

TURN YOUR HIPS
BACK TO THE LEFT.
" THERE MUST BE
ENOUGH LATERAL
MOTION FORWARD
TO TRANSFER THE
WEIGHT TO THE LEFT
FOOT.
 Power Golf vs Five Lessons
" The first movement in the
downswing is turning the left
hip to the left.
" When your hips are turned
to the left there will be
enough lateral movement to
put your weight on your left
foot..
" Power Golf Page 34
" TURN YOUR HIPS
BACK TO THE LEFT.
THERE MUST BE
ENOUGH LATERAL
MOTION FORWARD TO
TRANSFER THE WEIGHT
TO THE LEFT FOOT.
" The path the hips take on
the downswing is not the
exact same path they traveled
as they were turned on the
backswing.their arc
should be trifle wider..
" Five Lessons page 90
Mr. Hogan did in fact turn his hipsjust not from the same place as
the pictures in Five Lessons described.
Hogan described it to John
Schlee as a Turning Point.
Schlees getting to his turning point.
Once you are on the turning pointonce you are fully loaded this deep into
the swing, there is little chance that you can go wrong. With the target turn,
you feel an aggressive spinning motion of the left knee, left hip and left
shoulder level left and out of the way. Maximum Golf page 133
Turning Point and Level Left

" Hogan held true to the hips

turning back to the left to
start the downswing before
and after the wreck.

" After the wreck he was on a

turning point and turning
level left.

" These two modifications

would have increased the
angle of attack and shifted
the horizontal swing plane
more left or less right
Supination
Hit the ball as hard as you can with
both hands. Page 99
" The left wrist begins to
supinate at impact. The
raised wristbone points to
the target. Page 103
By pronating his left wrist just before impact, a golfer expends his
clubhead speed before he strikes the ball. Page 103

" It helps the player

develop a properly wide
forward arc.

" The wider his arc, the

more room he has in
which to build up
clubhead speed.

" It helps you to strike the

ball absolutely clean,
before the club takes
turf. Page 104
 Dont be afraid of swing too hard. Many golfer are, you know. They
figure that unless they restrain their power, theyll magnify their errors.
I see it just the other way. Page 108

My advice to the beginning golfer is to go ahead and hit the ball as

hard as he can right from the start. Power Golf page 53
 Cohesive Chain Action
" On the downswing the
correct order of
movement is hips,
shoulders, arms, and
hands. As each
component part enters
the swing, it adds it
contribution to the
multiplying speed
generated by this cohesive
chain action movement to
the left.
 SUMMARY Lesson 4 The Second Part Of The Swing
" Getting on the downswing " Hogans weight shift
plane by turning the hips
back to the left. moving the ball back,
increasing the angle of
" Having enough lateral attack.
weight shift to get to a
turning point.

" Supination during the " Hitting The Ball Hard!

impact interval.
" Downswing sequence
Chain Action
 Lesson 5 Summary and
Review
" 25 years in golf " On the winter circuitI
would be up in my hotel
" In golf, you know, you room night after night
learn some things very studying my backswing
early and other things plane in the full-length
surprisingly late. mirror page 113
 " A no. 5, is used in these
pictures and the ball is
played from a line which is
extended back would run
two inches inside the left
heel. Power golf page 23

" I spot it a half inch to an inch

inside the left heel toward the " -SAME FOOT
right foot. You can, to be sure, ALIGNMENTS IN
play the ball a shade farther
forward or back it varies from BOTH BOOKSa little
individual to individual, D-PLANE!
depending on the spot that is the
lowest point in his swing.
 I believe it comes to eight
" He must initiate the " Starts back with his hands,
downswing by turning the arms, and shoulders and lets
hips to the left. his shoulders turn his hips..

" He must hit through to the " Stays on his plane

finish of his swing in one throughout his backswing..
cohesive movement
" Provided a correct stance
" He must start to supinate and posture and a correct
his left wrist just before grip.
impact.

" Waggles Properly.

 SADLY THIS IS WHERE IT
FELL APART FOR MANY..
" Put in 30 minutes of daily practice on the grip. page 33

" ..let me recommend using a full-length mirror as the best means of checking your
moves. page 60

" In fact, the more I think about it, the best way to learn golf is a great deal like learning
to play the piano: you practice a few things daily, you arrive at a solid foundation, and
then you go on to practice more advanced things daily, continually increasing your skill.
page 57

" a half hour a day for a week to practicing the backswing. page 81

" Practice the waggle perhaps 10 minutes a day. page 81

" Page 82 Training Exercise

" Devote perhaps a half hour daily to the hip turn and the hit-through movements. page
108
I am hopeful that these lessons will accomplish two things. First, I trust they will great
increase the average players enjoyment of this incredibly fascinating game by enabling
him to become a real golfer with a sound, powerful, repeating swing. Page 109

" And second I hope that

these lessons will serve as
a body of knowledge that
will lead to further
advances in our
understanding of the golf
swing.: Page 109
Mr. Hogan achieved his
second hope for sure
" He gave us a great
description of Kinematic
Sequence

" He introduced
connection in a big way

" He grew the notion of

planes
HE TOOK THE SLACK
OUT OF THE SWING!
Each new chunk of valid information paves the

way to greater knowledge. Page 109

The End