impact bag and left thumb placement?
 

when doing the impact bag drills (and regular swings for that matter), in the grip, where should my left thumb be placed? normally i'm just right of on top, but from the impact video, it seems as if he says to have it in back of the shaft. can you clarify this? thanks.

Try this. Hit the bag. Flat left wrist at impact. Hold everything there. Take off your right hand. Put pressure down into the bag. Now change positions of your Left Thumb. At what thumb placement do you get the MOST STABLE SUPPORT?

Report back . . .

still unsure. seems my left thumb sits roughly 45 degrees from center to the right. actually i feel a more powerful strike with the base of my left hand to impact. yikes...
guess i need to work more of a downward action of the left hand?

Your figuring it out. The Golfing Machine prescribes a Left Thumb that is on the aft side of the shaft, not on top and not underneath. Take your club press it into a door frame. See what left thumb placement allows you to get the most bend in the shaft. The aft placement is recommended to get the most support through impact.

Great post 12!!!!

I'm not worthy!
 

Thanks! Can't take credit for this one though. This was part of a great post by Mike O on another forum. His post is even better for a "Pressure Point Fitting Session." Check this out . . .

What you want is to have the pressure points on the aft side of the shaft- including pressure point #4 on the aft side of the upper arm. In regards to your grip- and impact fix- I would recommend taking a 5 iron- put the clubhead against a solid post or edge of a wall- now push/pull forward towards the target- bending the shaft as much as possible. Can you change something to more fully support impact and bend the shaft more? Left thumb pad on aft side? I don't care what change it is- adjust your hands and body so that you find the most support and easiest position to bend the shaft- that's impact support. Then before each shot - practice bend the shaft- it will verify your pressure points for impact.

Personally, if you've got lag and are hitting down- I wouldn't worry about "the wedges" etc- should take care of itself. Although, you definitely should not hold back the right wrist- You should have the amount of weight that you loaded on the pressure points- maintained past impact- via constant acceleration - dictated by your awareness of that constant weight.
MIKE O

Good stuff by Mike O.

For me, placing my left thumb truly on the aft side of the shaft (directly behind the shaft), even though it may give me maximum support, also gives me nasty blisters and even a light bruse on the left side of my left thumb. Hence I currently place it in between the true aft and the centerline.

Question.. Wouldn't the blisters and brusing be an indication that something else may be out or alignment or being applied incorrectly when you place your thunb in that position?

I am not advocating you do it different, I asking more to understand how it works per-se.

When you look at a golfers golf glove and discover they have wear spots in unusual places, does this give cause to wonder why they are getting them there and could that be an indication of something out of whack or opposing that leads to an abnormal condition? Kind of like if you look at a golfer clubface and see it worn on the upper toe, this indicates something is not as it should be.