New Post #3 Feature Friday

Hi Friends

Any Engineers out there? If so I’m sure you know all about Osborne Reynolds (pictured below) or at least Reynolds number.

So, in 1883 Osborne Reynolds published an account of his brilliant experiments on the flow of water along a pipe. He found that the speed of water is increased if there is a transition from smooth to turbulent flow. He managed to distill all the variances of the fluids having different densities, viscosities and speeds and also flowing in pipes with different diameters into a single pure number - Reynolds number, defined by the equation below,

density x speed x diameter

Reynolds number = ———————————--

viscosity

The expression for the Reynolds number can be further simplified by using the so-called kinematic viscosity which is the viscosity divided by the density, we then have,

speed x diameter

Reynolds number = -—————————-

kinematic viscosity

What does this have to do with golf Jerry??????

Well it turns out that Reynolds number is also a fundamental factor in the movement of a sphere through a fluid, such as a golf ball through air. In this case the speed and diameter on the above equation are the spheres speed and diameter.

So in a way old Osbourne helped in developing your golf ball as all ball manufacturers will be well aware of the Reynolds number and use it in the development of their balls and the dimples in particular.

I learned about this from a book called “The Science of golf” a very kind gift (thank you very much Cengiz 😀)

One of my big goals this year was to “sort” out my pivot. There a few ways you can go about this,

• Don’t do anything and hope it fixes itself

• Book a lesson with your PGA Pro

• Watch Youtube and listen to podcasts

Well it can’t be option 1, as I’ve already said ‘Do what you’ve always done get what you’ve always got”

And yes Option 2 would make the most sense but of course……………… I’ve taken option 3 😀 

And I think I’m really on to something and may have solved that “big miss” of mine (the reverse pivot)

I’ve worked out that I was very mixed up on what I was trying to do with my pivot and weight shift - Something I talked about in my 2025 nest golfing year newsletter.

Thankfully I came across a guy called Mike Adams and his friend Terry Rowles.

Mike has been elected to the World Golf Hall of Fame, National PGA teacher of the year in the US, been on every golf digest and golf magazine list of top teachers that has ever been published, his players have won over 150 times on tour including 13 majors and he written over 25 golf instruction books - so he knows a thing or two about the golf swing.

What they have found and measured are that there are 3 main ways to pivot (or post as they call it) and guess what, I have been doing a mix of all 3 and had no idea.

A recipe for mixed results if ever there was one but you don’t know what you don’t know.

So what are the 3 posting (pivot) methods?

1. Front post:

   Front post golfers like Bryson DeChambeau, Ben Hogan or Scottie Scheffler prefer to stay more left on the backswing. This will result in the left knee staying more on top of the left foot.

   Players who have this style will use more launch/verticals, so they need to work on their side bend to swing up on the ball. By doing so, this will help create their power while still incorporating lateral and rotation in the golf swing.

   Many think that staying on your front leg is bad, but it’s not (yes I was one)

2. Center post:

   Players like Tiger Woods and Nelly Korda are two examples of center-post players — who glide a moderate amount onto their trail leg in the backswing. By doing this, it will result in the left knee moving more toward the inside of the left foot. This is a very common pivot style, and will be very traditional.

   Players that use this pivot style will utilize rotation as their main power source, so the hips become extra important both in the backswing and full swing. They’ll also be using the lateral and vertical forces in their golf swing, so timing is critical — if they shift too little or too much, their timing will be thrown off.

3. Rear post:

   Players like Gary Woodland and Luke Donald are both rear-post golfers, which are players who like to shift 75 percent of their weight to their trail leg in the backswing. They then use lots of lateral force on the downswing to get back to center and into position at impact.

   When done properly, this will result in the left knee moving more toward the right in the backswing, with glide being their main power source. These players will use lateral force on the downswing in order to get back into position at impact. These types of players also use rotation and vertical forces for increased power.

    

This is also the reason why something like Stack and Tilt works for some but is terrible for others. If you are a rear post golfer trying to Stack and Tilt then that’s not going to work.

The good news is the pivot can be measured in about 10 seconds and you can do this at home - right now if you want. I’ll tell you how shortly.

I was always trying to transfer my pressure to right leg/foot on the backswing, as that’s what I thought you were meant to do.

Turns I’m a front post golfer and I don’t need that pressure shift, in fact I can get the pressure back on the lead foot at early as P2 (recap of P positions in edition #4 of this newsletter)

Since working this out, Its been a bit of a revelation for me, striking the ball a lot better and a more consistent solid contact.

And a per the title as Mike Adams says, getting the right pivot for you plugs power leaks within the swing.

(However, note of caution (for me more then you!), I haven’t played much golf so its still very much a work in progress I was training with the Surrey county A team at the weekend and it worked great - still more work to do and I’m still not fully fit)

So how to see which one you are? watch this short video (2 mins)

Its funny the more I research into the golf swing and how I could be or should be swinging it (there is always “a” way that will work for everyone BUT - and this is key - no one method that works for all) I am amazed I managed to get my handicap down to 0.9 index (Lowest I’ve been, circa 2023).

I have match this week with a +2 and Scratch golfer and my partner is off 3 - so let’s see how my front post swing performs under a bit of pressure.

There is promise of some warmth to these cold lands by the end of week - Bring it on.

Hope you all manage get out and play a few holes and “post” the right way plugging those power leaks,

Cheers