Continuing our series on looking at the main principals of the golf swing, we now turn our attention to the swing plane, which is the tilt and direction of travel of the invisible incline plane made by the club shaft.The swing plane is a most important principal of the golf swing as it has much to do with the direction of a shot. The ability of the player to swing the club on the desired plane is a major contributing factor to developing a consistent, repeatable ball strike with compression on the correct starting path.The swing plane is determined by the angle of the club shaft relative to the ball and the ground. The swing is on plane when during the swing a line extending from the club shaft points to, or is parallel to, the target line, which is an imaginary line that runs through the ball in both directions on line with the target. Think of your club as having two laser pointers attached, pointing out of the shaft in both directions. One of the laser lights would always be pointing to the target line, or would be parallel to the target line.The position of the club shaft in the address and impact positions is a major concern of PGA Professionals when conducting club fittings, as it determines the desired swing plane. If the club does not fit the player, the angle of the shaft in relation to the ground will be off plane, and the starting direction of every shot will be affected. That's why it's imperative that your irons have the lie angle set to match your physical characteristics and your swing.Developing and maintaining your most effective swing plane is a critical job of both the player and the coach. There is no one best way to swing the club, as the variety of variations on the professional tours prove. Your PGA Professional will help you to determine the best swing plane for you and develop a training program to keep your swing on plane.To locate a PGA pro near you, visit www.PlayGolfAmerica.com, click on the PGA Free Lesson Month icon, then put in your zip code. He or she should be able to check your setup and determine whether or not your swing is on plane in a matter of minutes.(Rick Martino is director of instruction at the PGA Learning Center in Port St. Lucie, Fla. Contact him at pgalearningcenter<a>pgahq.com or at (800) 800-GOLF.)(Distributed by Scripps Howard News Service, http://www.scrippsnews.com)
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