| My previous article walked through some of the | | | | worked on his swing in earnest during this time |
| mystery and the history of Ben Hogan's swing, | | | | period, as much if not more so than he did |
| leaving off with an observation from Jim McLean | | | | throughout his life while earning a reputation as a |
| that Hogan's secret was in effect a lot of little | | | | tireless ball striker. |
| things. Many have studied Hogan's swing without | | | | It would be no easy feat to change this basic |
| getting to the bottom line of his hooking problem. | | | | action that had been so ingrained by the time he |
| While it may be intuitively obvious, that is, Hogan | | | | turned professional in 1932. He would struggle with |
| did not hook simply because he was Ben Hogan, it | | | | a hook problem initially through 1938 and then off |
| is not so obvious why he did hook. | | | | and on through the early part of the 1946 |
| Most golfers familiar with his story know that he | | | | campaign, when he finally figured out a way to |
| struggled with a hook and that he spent the | | | | cure the problem once and for all. He revealed |
| better part of his early years battling it. But the | | | | pronation as his "secret" in an article in the 8 |
| question of what Ben Hogan was trying to do | | | | August 1955 Life Magazine. Pronation is what he |
| with his swing that caused him to hook (in the | | | | added to his swing to solve the problem, and a |
| first place) is not often asked and is even less | | | | careful look at his swing reveals that he continued |
| often discussed as part of the analysis of his | | | | to maintain the link between his hips and his arm |
| swing. The subtle or implied issue is that a hook is | | | | swing throughout his career. |
| a symptom of a problem and not something to | | | | But if pronation was his real secret, then why has |
| fix per se, for instance like a faulty grip or an | | | | there been a continuous debate over this issue |
| improper swing path or a faulty weight and | | | | for the past 50 years or more? Hogan often |
| balance distribution. So while it is roundly | | | | implied that he made his swing "hook proof" by |
| acknowledged that Hogan had a hooking problem, | | | | erecting, in effect, a giant wall down the left side |
| it is rare indeed to see that issue decomposed to | | | | of the golf course, beyond which he was |
| assign cause to his action and to also look at why | | | | supremely confident he would not go. He felt that |
| he did not do more about it before 1946. | | | | pronation saved him a stroke a round, although it |
| The reason Hogan hooked the ball is because of | | | | is likely that it was worth quite a bit more than |
| the action he initiated to hit the ball farther when | | | | that in terms of confidence and consistency. |
| he was competing with the other caddy's at Glen | | | | While it is possible that pronation was indeed his |
| Garden Country Club, Fort Worth in the 1920s | | | | secret, there is a bit of an incongruity to resolve |
| (likely 1924-1927). The caddy's played a game | | | | between some of his statements and the facts. |
| where they hit balls toward holes for nickels. | | | | For instance, many believe the combination of little |
| The winner obviously won money but the loser | | | | things that Hogan did represented his actual |
| had to gather all the balls up for the next round. | | | | secret. He used extremely stiff shafts, oversize |
| Hogan was younger and smaller than the other | | | | grips, he weakened the lofts on his clubs, he |
| caddy's and found he could not hit the ball nearly | | | | placed his hands in an extremely weak grip |
| as far. At the time he was doing two things over | | | | position directly on top of the club, and he |
| all others; fighting for his place in the pecking | | | | employed a shortened thumb position with his left |
| order to get choice corners for selling | | | | hand grip. The "Vs" of his grip pointed right at his |
| newspapers, as well as with the other caddy's | | | | chin. |
| because that was the nature of the caddy yard, | | | | When he stated that he used pronation, it was in |
| and he was learning to play golf. He combined the | | | | addition to all these other elements of his setup |
| two to devise a golf action that would enable him | | | | and swing. While that seems to make some |
| to hit the ball farther and farther as he matured. | | | | sense, once he demonstrated that he had indeed |
| The action was similar to throwing a punch, with | | | | found a way to cure his hook, he also stated that |
| the action of the arms keyed to the rotation of | | | | he had actually started to play better golf in 1946 |
| the hips. He likely worked on his timing in order to | | | | because he had stopped trying to do a whole |
| have his right arm launch just as quickly as | | | | bunch of little things perfectly. Hogan had |
| possible to follow the action of the right hip. He | | | | discovered that such over thoroughness and |
| staged it off the hip just like throwing a punch, as | | | | attention to detail was not only impossible, but it |
| he would later relate in his books. | | | | was unnecessary as long as the basic |
| I should add here that this was not the "cartoony | | | | fundamentals of the swing were sound. |
| hay maker", often depicted as being wound up | | | | Hogan's premise that mastery of the |
| behind the head like a baseball pitcher. Hogan's | | | | fundamentals was enough to play top flight golf, |
| action was the punch of someone who knows | | | | put forth in Five Lessons, The Modern |
| how to use his hands, akin to a boxers jab or | | | | Fundamentals of Golf, was met with some |
| short punch that travels a short distance propelled | | | | skepticism. Many who tried his relatively |
| off the hip. While it may not be obvious, timing his | | | | streamlined instruction were unable to prevent |
| action off the hip, all things being equal, means | | | | themselves from slicing the ball badly. Others |
| that everything is rotating powerfully to the left | | | | found that their tendency to hook the ball was |
| through impact. Without some other form of | | | | exacerbated by the inside swing action. Still others |
| swing compensation, the shoulders, arms and | | | | puzzled over the lack of any mention of |
| hands work aggressively left or closing through | | | | pronation, which had been accepted as Hogan's |
| the ball. The obvious problem with this action is | | | | secret. There was also the matter of the plane, |
| that it causes a low running hook, but this type | | | | with a different path for the back swing in |
| shot was ideal for the dry fairway conditions of | | | | comparison with the path followed to hit the ball. |
| the golf courses he played in Texas. Hogan likely | | | | |