PGA professionals have known for a long time that proper technique within the golf swing is critical to ball speed. No matter the size or the strength of the golfer, a swing without solid technical elements will lose much of its force. Even at the age of 61, five-time British Open winner Tom Watson can hit a ball with more power, and farther, than fit competitors half his age.

In a high-tech analysis of golfers, a research team identified several key biomechanical factors that produce power, separating the elite professionals from the duffers. At the university’s Motion and Gait Analysis Lab, 10 pros used a 5 iron to swing at ping-pong balls on a linoleum floor, wearing only shorts and dozens of tiny silver light-reflecting balls. The volunteers were all Stanford alumni and included Will Yanagisawa, a Hawaii Pearl Open winner, and former pro Notah Begay, who is now an analyst with the Golf Channel.

Eight cameras made a digital record of their bodies during the golf swing, then compared the data to less reformed swings of amateurs. The team found that professionals’ swings are highly consistent, virtually indistinguishable from each other. And the pros, unlike the five amateurs who also volunteered in the study, always initiated their downswing
by rotating their hips.

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How Science Is Improving The Golf Swing

Tom Watson – Lessons of a Lifetime costs $7 for a 48-hour rental and is available via Time Warner, Cox, InDemand PPV, DirecTV, Echostar, Cablevision, Verizon, TVN, Charter and AT&T. The DVD version of this compilation sold over 10,000 copies in the first six weeks of release.

“When I was 6 years old, my father, Ray Watson, cut down a hickory-shafted 5-iron, then proceeded to teach me the grip, and how to hook and slice the ball—all the basic fundamentals of the game. It’s all this knowledge I’ve accumulated that I’d like to share with golfers in ‘Lessons of a Lifetime,’ ” said Watson.

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Tom Watson Golf Instruction Now Available on Demand

After all, it was Ray Watson, an accomplished amateur, who cut down a hickory-shafted 5-iron and handed it to his 6-year-old son Tom, then showed Tom the grip, and how to hook and slice the ball-all the game’s basic fundamentals. Tom Watson would grow up to win eight major championships, including the 1982 U.S. Open at Pebble Beach, when he improbably chipped in for birdie from behind the 71st green to key his victory over Jack Nicklaus, a shot many historians consider to be the shot of the 20th century.

In fact, a recreated video and play-by-play of that famous chip-in welcomes visitors to tomwatson.com, and a “Teeing Off” blog gives visitors Watson’s take on the most memorable victory of his career, which will undoubtedly surprise everyone since it’s not one of his eight major championship wins.

Visitors are then invited to view everything else on the website, which will be continually updated with Watson’s personal thoughts, golf instruction, photo and video galleries, and other interesting content. Watson’s intent is both to help golfers with their games and to help them get to know him a little better behind the scenes.

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Tom Watson Launches New Instructional Website

His ability to disregard age makes studying Tom Watson an exceptionally worthwhile endeavor. If success leaves clues, Watson’s career puzzle should be quite easy to solve.

In his new two-disc DVD set, Lessons for a Lifetime, Watson sticks to what made him great. His strict adherence to the fundamentals many not be entirely engaging, but its definitely honest.

“When Ben Hogan wrote his book,” Watson said Monday, “it was a small book. He basically said, ‘This is how you do it. You have to start with the fundamentals.’ ”

Hogan’s book, Five Lessons, was published 53 years ago, but it was one source of information that Watson used to build a golf swing that won eight major championships and made him a premiere player on the PGA Tour in the 1980s.

Watson cites some of the great names in golf for his progress, but the man who gave him his introduction to the game was his father, Ray, an amateur and club champion.

“He taught me two fundamentals,” Watson said. “The grip, or how you hold the club, and the stance, or how you stand to the ball.”

Watson was just a child when he got those lessons but as he progressed through junior golf, college golf and the pro tour, he got more lessons from Jack Nicklaus, Byron Nelson, Lee Trevino and many more players.

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Tom Watson’s Secret to Golf Success

Although it didn’t work out in 2009, we do have some good news from Tom Watson in 2010 with the release of his 2010 golf DVD series titled “Tom Watson: Lessons of a Lifetime.” The 2 DVD instructional series, which contains 44 different lessons from Tom, starting with the grip and setup through how to control or stop slicing and hooking, will go on sale April 26th.

Watson recently spoke about the DVD project and said, “I am very humbled at the chance to give back to the fans and golfers of all levels the many lessons I have learned in my 50 years of playing this great game. Golf is much more than wins and losses, it is a special game that brings friends, families and countries together. If each person who watches these DVDs learns one thing to make the game more enjoyable, it will make me very happy.”

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Tom Watson Heals Wounds of 2009 with DVD Series

Barry Bonifield demonstrates the simple components of an effective golf downswing.

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Develop a Consistent Downswing Like Tom Watson