The WeekEnd Golfer

stack and tilt swing, Andy Plummer, Mike Bennett

The June issue of Golf Digest features a lengthy description of the so-called "Stack and Tilt" swing being promoted by golf coaches Andy Plummer and Mike Bennett.

In a classic overstatement, the author of the article, Peter Morrice, says "Their secret...contradicts almost everything being taught in the game today." But is it really that different?

The most significant difference (as far as I can tell) with the "Stack and Tilt" swing is that it advocates keeping your weight on your front foot in the backswing. In other words it does not encourage the "weight shift" that almost everybody talks about when taking the club back.

The result is what almost looks like a "reverse pivot" at the top with the head and spine tilted much more towards the target than in the typical modern swing (TMS).

The differences are subtle. For one thing with the STS (Stack and Tilt Swing) the back leg does not remain flexed as in the TMS. If you look at the photos featured in the article you can see that when the club is at the top of the swing (p.122), there is almost a straight line running thru the back leg along the torso neck and head. And this line is angled about 10 degrees towards the target.

In other words, the front sided of the body is "stacked" above the front foot, and the back side of the body is "tilted" towards the target.

For a comparison look at the photo of V.J. Singh's swing on page 43 of the same issue (Golf Digest.) At the top of his swing his weight is "stacked" (more or less) over his back leg, and his torso is (more or less) perpendicular to the ground.

While this may sound radical if you have been listening to the constant self-assured chatter from most of today's golf coaches, teachers, magazines and television channels, the fact is, there has always been an alternative school of thought that has questioned the simplistic "weight shift" idea. Look at these photos, for instance, of John Anselmo (one of Tiger's early teachers,) Jack Nicklaus, Ben Hogan and Tiger Woods. Hogan clearly does not "post up" over his back leg.

Or look closely at this video of the 1930s swing of Bobby Jones. He does not shift his weight to the back. Nor does he shift it to the front. He remains centered over the ball.

Still, there are some aspects to the STS that are of special interest to me, since I have experimented with all of them in the past.

The first is the idea of keeping your weight forward, on your front foot, and pressing into the front foot as you take the club back. To me this has always seemed like a good way to force a steeper approach to the ball and a way to eliminate topping the ball. It also results in a lower trajectory since you are effectively de-lofting the club face. Unfortunately I have found it puts more strain on the front knee, and in my case usually results in aggravating an old knee injury.

The second has to do with the position of the back elbow and the flatter swing advocated by Plummer and Bennett. I'm not sure why a flatter, rounder (less vertical) swing is part and parcel of the STS, but I suspect it has to do with the relative difficulty of getting the club going when you have your weight forward. So the idea is to maximize club head speed by taking advantage of the rotation of the torso.

And third there is the intriguing idea of the "pelvic thrust" which the STS guys claim is necessary for a couple of interesting mechanical reasons. The most important reason is that since one's weight and shoulder position are forward, the approach to the ball will be significantly steeper than normal. In order to "shallow out" the swing you have to whip your hips around and thrust your lead hip up and towards the target. This makes you feel like you are almost jumping up and striking the ball while on your toes. Have you seen those photos of Natalie Golbus or Sergio, or a younger Gary Player? That's what they're talking about.

Like I said, for most of us these will seem like very subtle differences. But if you actually try this swing you should find that it feels quite different. The biggest difference in your game will probably be fewer thin hits. But for me it tends to result in pushes, especially with the longer clubs. I also find it more physically taxing - requiring more body contortions - and I don't think that can be a good thing.