That’s got to be what happened, because the only other explanation for showing a Rory McIlroy drive carrying 365 yards on Wednesday at the range would be that there’s some fraudulent representation going on somewhere.
I will admit that my initial thought when I saw a 365 yard carry with 181 mph ball launch speed was, “My God, the balls are going way too far!”
Of course, that would be anyone’s initial thought if you figured everything was on the up and up, right? But then… I thought a bit and…
**Update At Bottom
If the Modern Golf Swing doesn’t…
I heard all of the uproar about Rory McIlroy’s drive at the PGA Championship venue Quail Hollow this week – a 365 yard carry with the driver is impressive!
I couldn’t wait to get a look at his numbers – I mean, the winning long drive distances from the 90’s were in the 360-380 yard range, and these guys had 135 mph club and 195-200 mph ball speed to get those distances in total, meaning carry and roll, not just carry.
I unfortunately missed the window on a possible shot at competing in the Masters (Senior) class at the upcoming World Long Drive Championship in Oklahoma next month, due to the delays with the “E = MCS” video.
The weather wreaked havoc on my shooting schedule and delayed release nearly a month, and that month, if I had been able to complete the video in late June, would have given me the time to work out on the swing and gauge whether it would be feasible to give it a whirl.
I slipped out to the range today for an hour to hit some balls, to see how things would go after having practiced my setup procedure for a few days.
I had just gone out to get some exercise and make some full swings, but I predicted late last winter that I’d be increasing my numbers with the tighter pivot that I had worked on.
I always like to get a rough indicator of hang time when I launch them especially high and long (and only ever when on line, because who cares low long it flies if it’s going OB?).
So I knew something was going on today when I got home with video.
You all know that one of my pet peeves on golf swing analysis is the ridiculous “using the ground” excuse the analysts use when they simply have no clue what’s going on and still want to sound knowledgeable about what you’re seeing on your screen.
Simply, launching one or both feet into the air while swinging a golf club does nothing to add speed or power, rather it is an anti-injury move because the swinger is either not using a proper weight shift to the leading foot and/or doesn’t want to damage the leading leg or hip.
OK, you can probably tell I’m having some fun working out the last little details on my long drive swing action, but today was extra fun when I got home to look at the video.
I hit some awesome balls today after struggling through the first half of the bucket, all because I got sloppy with my posture – but when I realized what I was doing and straightened back up to a taller address, it was game, set and match.
I shot a quick video clip of the right-dominant swing action I’ve been working on for the last while, and I can’t believe how much more compact it is than what I used to consider my best action.
As you’ll see and hear, this adjustment for me has dramatically increased my speed and power as I use the SwingRite stick for feedback, and today was the first day swinging after having determined what I was doing to get to the speed setting I’m on right now.
It boggles my mind that Zuback, in the early 2000’s, was around 200 mph in ball speed (Ryan Winther now holds the official record in ball speed at around 227 mph and an unofficial mark of 237 mph).
That’s because I have actually gotten into the mid-190’s without having to live in the gym because of technique over muscle power, but one thing I can tell you – the clip below puts the Modern Golf Swing industry to shame.
It looks like Rory McIlroy is finally getting some proper equipment (I mean, who really plays Nike clubs without being paid to do it?), and the results are spectacular.
Rory Mac is one of the longest drivers on the PGA Tour, and he’ll be moving up on that list, if these numbers below carry out… and if you want to know how he’s doing it – athletic talent counts for a lot, but if you haven’t noticed this, you haven’t been paying attention!
