This is interesting, and it would be great if someone could verify at least some of the scoring claims. The fact that Lag saw him in person, and was impressed carries some clout. They say there is often some basis for fairy tales and fables.
From my view ( a 7-8 handicapper/ hacker), here’s what I see in the two videos posted.
His demeanor is not what I would expect of someone who had been homeless…he seems upbeat, positive, charming, even noble.
He has a precise, maybe even obsessive routine.
The pre-impact lines on his training mat remind me a little of the 4:30 line, though not quite 4:30.
The post -impact lines go straight to the target…reminiscent of Trevino’s intention to keep the clubface on line as long as possible. Also, module 3 comes to mind.
These gave him the very imporatnt square clubface at impact.
His precise pre-shot routine incorporates him saying “STOP”, making me think he is switching gears, going from pre-shot to execution. Similar to what Carey Mumford describes in his Clear Key process.
His swing looks very good to my eyes, with admirable pivot, and leg action. His right elbow is in close at impact.
In the video he says "perfect…and later bodily perfect "( even though he was slightly off balance). This reminds me of Moe. Apparently Moe said he was perfect even if the shot wasn’t…sort of a self-hypnosis or postive self-talk.
What John(Lag) saw in person tells me that the Count must have had great skill, at least good-great golf fundamentals, and seeing these videos says he had developed his skills into habits that he could reliably turn on at will to produce great shots and “stunts.” He also seems to have a personality (noble, charming, showman) to capitalize on his skill.
No problem…and with a name like “astro” - I figured you probably were watching from outside the Van Allen radiation belt.
It is a great place, isn’t it? A lot of experiences from all quarters of the globe, all walks of life, and meted out in a respectful manner. Unparalleled on the internet IMHO.
From what I have been able to ascertain, Count Yogi was not big on mechanics. He taught his students that the most important thing was to remain “boneless and muscleless”, and to swing as gracefully as possible in perfect balance. He advocated a subconscious approach to the golf swing, stating that he controlled the clubhead with his mind. He also advocated a very light grip, stating that you just touch the grip with your fingers, not squeeze it.
One day I was struggling with my game during a round, and it was so hopeless I decided to scrap every thought in my mind and just focus on being boneless, muscleless, and as graceful as possible. A few holes later I hit one of the top 5 longest drives I’ve ever hit. There’s surely something to what he’s saying.
Neat video, thanks for posting. What amazes me about that drive is how little time he takes between addressing the ball and pulling the trigger to swing. It’s almost like his swing has started before he has even stepped forwared into his stance. I mean his foot is barely planted and the club is going back. Truly no time for negative thoughts. Good find.
Yes, one of his big points was what he called his “infallible mental routine”. He had the same preshot routine on every shot and as soon as he settled his right foot the swing started. It was something he did to help his subconscious control the swing instead of freezing over the ball with conscious swing thoughts.
Nice video natep. As Two said…he looks nicely attired( hard to understand that he became homeless), and has good action. As Lipout said, I’ve never seen such a uninterrupted takeway from set-up. Was Moe this fast? I agree, this must have keep his conscious mind from interfering with his swing.
Where did you find this video…I had not seen it on youtube. What else do you know about Count Yogi?
Thanks/eagle
“Swing with Balance and Grace”… wasn’t that his trademark phrase?
Why do I suspect Count Yogi was a classic case of the “duck on the water”? An effortless looking motion from the surface while underneath he’s paddling like crazy!!! I bet if he were wearing shorts you’d see some really powerful leg action.
I dont know a great deal about Count Yogi. What I learned I got from a guy who played a lot with Yogi during his later years in CA. There’s also a chapter about him in George Peper’s book “The Secret of Golf”.
What I do know is that he stressed the mental side of the game, and not so much the mechanical side.
Fred Couples is a current day swing that most embodies his style.
Dave Stockton teaches subconscious putting. He says a person signs his name without thinking about it and if he did he would have a hard time dublicating it. Stockton says the same thing is true in golf.
What a wonderful find - thanks so much for posting. The light grip and the boneless, muscleless all point to a swinging protocol in the ABS playbook I guess No less wonderful to watch and learn from for all that.
Yogi didnt believe in taking divots. He basically swept the ball off the turf. He claimed that he was hitting everything on the “up arc”.
He has a list in one of his books that shows his distances with each club. His short irons are average distance but as he gets into the long irons and woods his distances are way longer than average.
There’s an audio interview on youtube with Moe where he talks a lot about the need for playing subconscious golf if you’re playing at a high level.
Here’s a link to the Moe interviews. It’s two parts. If you’ve never heard them check them out they’re great.
I watched this video posted by natep many times. It was very impressive to me, and I am still amazed at what I saw. Unfortunately, it has now been removed. I have a Mac, is there a way I could have saved this video? ( I have it on my mental hard drive…but it can be unreliable )
Thanks
I like your avatar natep…lots of good things associated with that image that hit home with me a while ago: revealing the tip of the spear through opposing forces.
One of the reasons we created “The Vault” here for the advanced students is for this very reason. Having to rely upon youtube posters to keep their stuff on there can be quit fickle.
Everything we have in there is in our own controlled database.
that’s a great action…unfortunately if the Count played the PGA today he would pull his hair out having to wait around so long- it looks like he liked to play quick…I would have liked a quick 9 holes with him as twilight was closing in, …good stuff nate
Thanks very much.
He “pulls the trigger” faster than anyone I’ve seen. And it did not seem to negatively affect his performance.
The Vault is a real treasure. I wonder if this and the other video can find their way into it.
There is no doubt from watching that vid that he could a) drive the ball fairly long and b) could play. He actually looks Hogan’ish a bit with the big hip slide to start the downswing.
One thing I notice having seen all the Yogi vids is that he has a pretty predominate “chicken wing” left arm at impact. I would bet this is a big reason he never took divots, as it is, for lack of a better description, a high handicapper trait, and is considered a no-no from any modern teaching “pro” with a high speed camera. Count obviously developed his swing out of feel and much practice (and without aid like a camera and all the preconceived notions of what a swing should look like) so he made this work.
No less wonderful to watch and learn from for all that.
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