Mindy Blake

[bill reed]

hi
i read Mindy Blake's book "the technique barrier." and here is a sort of review of his system,
for anyone that don't know Blake thought the the open stance swing was the future of the golf swing and in some ways its very like Lee Trevino's swing but the big difference is in the reflex that Blake wanted to get from his swing where Trevino used the left arm to power through the ball.
with Blake the grips very important in the swing as the wrists don't turn over like in the normal swing and his grip is very like hogans and he has a strong grip and the left thumb is more down the right side of the grip and he shows 3 knuckles, the right hand grips mostly with the two middle fingers.
Blake starts his swing with the right knee kicking in towards the ball and moved the weight a little onto the left side and on the backswing the club face is hooded a little as it swings back to keep looking at the target. Blake also set his spine to tilt a little to the right so his right eye was lower than his left and he looked at a point a foot in front off the ball. he controlled his swing with his legs and felt that starting the swing with his right knee moving forward would bring the club back to the ball with the legs controlling the shot, if he started with his hand 's or arms then they would take over in the downswing.
the right elbow was very important in Blake's swing and keeping it close to the body was the basic point of his swing. if he could do that then when he started the downswing with his legs and hips then the shoulders and arms and hands would follow in a reflexed action.
its a very simple way to swing and one that works. i went out and tried it today and only had an hour before it got dark and was hitting a 5 iron about 160 and with very little fade. using my Trevino swing i fade the ball about 15 feet more than with Blake and using the Blake system it did feel effortless and so easy too.
wish i heard of him when he wrote the book back in the 70s and thanks again to cmays for putting me onto him.
there is a Mindy Blake forum if anyone is interested and its at-
Mindy Blake Golf Swing Forum
cheers
bill

[Trad1]

Re: Mindy Blake

The Blake method is pretty old. I remember it and would like to know how in the world you re-discovered it? I do not recall seeing anyone use that method in at least a couple of decades. Is this method making a comeback?

Trad1

[bill reed]

Re: Mindy Blake

hi Trad
cmays put me onto it.
i use Trevino's system and i just got Blair's book and have read it just once so far.
if you want to see if people are using Blake then look up the forum site i put at the bottom of my post, think you will be surprised about the interest in his system.
cheers
bill

[Trad1]

Re: Mindy Blake

Well I was sure surprised to see a web site devoted to this system. Even though I never make changes to my own swing style, other than little maintenance tweaks, I do love to examine various methods. Do you know when it started to make a come back?

Trad1

[bill reed]

Re: Mindy Blake

hi trad
no sorry i don't! i only found out about Blake a few weeks ago thanks to cmays as he was giving me some help with my Trevino swing. when i found out about Blake i ordered his two book and so far i have read the seconds book and still waiting on the first book to be delivered.
i tried out his way of swinging tonight for a hour before it got to dark to see the ball flight. i was impressed and will spend more time trying and studying his system as it does work.
the thing is it feels so effortless, that what really suprised me, again i have been playing with an open stance for years.
cheers
bill

[Trad1]

Re: Mindy Blake

I also play from an open stance, but the thought of turning both feet to the left (especially the right one) would just kill my golf swing. I'm not making fun of this method since some have charged me with having a somewhat dated swing style (long and upright), but at my age (50) I'm in no hurry to shorten my swing, which that stance would certainly do.

Trad1

[bill reed]

Re: Mindy Blake

hi Trad
as i already play with a very open stance this system did seem to be very like the way i already played and i will give it a try and see how it compares to my Trevino swing, i will post later how i get on and try and put a few pictures of me using the Blake swing when i feel i have it working fully.
have a look at Claude Pesant. on the Blake forum photo album.
i found the no-club pictures very interesting, the ones at the bottom of the first row of pictures.
i not trying to get people to change there swing only to inform them that there are many different ways to play golf and playing golf to a high standard.
i have been told that you cant play with my type of swing and I'm sure you have been told something like that too but i have been doing it on and off for over 25 years. i was once told by a pro that i would never be a Lee Trevino and then in the same sentence he said i should copy Jack Nicklaus implying that i could be like Jack.
sometimes you cant win.
cheers
bill

[bill reed]

Re: Mindy Blake

hi cmays
the thing i found out to be the most interesting about Blake was the push of the hips to the left at the start of the swing. keeping the left hips pushed out during the backswing, felt weird but one you did it a few times it felt so natural and easy to do, it kept your head behind the ball and your weight balanced too.
Blake also talked about Hogan, Trevino and Billy Caspers grip and use of the left thumb and he said must the same as you said in some recent posts.
bill

[Trad1]

Re: Mindy Blake

Bill,

I learned to play Jack Nicklaus style. I think my central nervous system is hard wired to play with this style. I have modernized my swing a little bit over the years in that I no longer have the lower body sliding action during the downswing or reverse-C finish, but other than that I relate to Jack's view of the swing and I guess I always will.

I've been reading golf magazines and golf instruction books since I started playing the game. It seems to me the shallow swing plane now dominates the game on tour and especially in golf instruction. I think the Blake swing method results in a pretty shallow swing plane so I guess you'll be more up to date than I am.

With recent methods such as the one plane swing and stack & tilt getting so much attention, it seems that I don't get nearly as excited when the golf magazines show up each month. I also find that I am buying fewer and fewer golf instruction books. Most instruction books are method style and it's been years since I came across one that was a comfy fit for the upright player. For that reason when I do read a golf instruction book it's an old book.

Recently I purchased Bobby Clampett's book because it was supposed to be about swing dynamics. Well I guess it is, but it seems like dynamics for the shallow swinging player.

Trad1

[bill reed]

Re: Mindy Blake

hi Trad
i think we have a lot in common as i have read lots off book and tried lots of systems over the years but keep going back to Trevino as i play best using that system and am comfortable using it and its only that Blake has so many things in common with Trevino that i am giving it a try.
i have searched for years to find more instructions about Trevino swing but only ever found his book" swing my way" any help and i have had that book since 1976 and i think i have only read hogans book more over the years and must know them both off by heart by now.
cheers
bill

[kbp]

Re: Mindy Blake

The back swing is way overrated. Move the right elbow way away from the body, arms out and the 1st move is to return the right arm and elbow to the body by gravity.

Hogan did the back leg brace, his swing was not that long in the back swing, I teach the concave right leg and I see more people gaining distance from the solid right leg then trying to make the big back swing arch and they have more control of the club.

They are playing inside their selves.

The 2 Plane Swing is where you want the extra extension because it is more of a lateral upward movement.

Please explain the "concave right leg", if you would.

[Trad1]

Re: Mindy Blake

Bill & CMays,

I am a huge fan of Hogan. I've read his book at least 50 times and I'm not kidding.

From all the video of Hogan I've seen he had a long swing. It was not short even when he was 50 years old. I would say the position of his hands was compact, but as for the position of the club at the top it was always beyond parallel.

I love the braced position of his right leg and the dynamic flow of his golf swing. I could watch that swing all day long, but I cannot and do not want to try to copy it. I'm a lot taller than Hogan.

I am not advocating a long and/or upright golf swing. I guess what I'm trying to say is that after zillions of practice shots and countless rounds of golf, the short, shallow plane or compact golf swing wrecks havoc with my timing. I can sometime shorten my swing on the practice tee, but under pressure there is no way I can trust a move so different from what has become my personal norm.

I think what is so timeless about Hogan's book is that a guy like me can make it his own just like players who swing more like he did.

Trad1

[bill reed]

Re: Mindy Blake

hi Trad
i think thats the the great thing with Hogan that the basics of his 5 fundamentals can work for all kinds of swing, your upright style or my flat style but the basics work for all.
bill

[bampot]

Re: Mindy Blake

I think the renewed interest in Blake's method could be that his swing trainer Swingrite is now readibly available.

[bill reed]

Re: Mindy Blake

you could be right bampot as there does seem to be a lot of people now trying his system going by his forum.
cheers
bill