Well, I've just spent the weekend watching Saguto golf videos on you tube. I tweaked my back either in a workout or swinging the club "recklessly"... whatever... it made me go back to a very short swing for very short intervals. I realized, I did not take the first rule of Saguto club seriously enough. I'm so ashamed...
I was watching the videos of Tom at the S&T camp and the videos with the PGA pro and for some reason the concept of finding the ground, first and foremost, did not really click. (who am I kidding, it was impatience...) Anyway, I'm back to the future and starting over again with the drills to find the earth, with the club, in front of the ball. What I've noticed is that with the short, easy swing, I can work on the lateral hip movement and actually see the the clubhead pass the imaginary ball location, from the inside and making contact with the mat in front of the ball location. I also feel more acceleration of the club head as it passes the bottom of the arc. Its really hard to hold off from try the full swing but, it's just not really helping to rush the process.
I also noticed I'm keeping my hands too close to my body in the setup from another of the videos that talked about keeping the hands under the chin. Now it feels like I'm almost reaching for the ball a bit but, the mirror and video show the hands under the chin. That does put the hands toward the ball slightly as your shoulders are inside of the chin so the hands have to be a bit toward the outside at the setup, right?
I'm going to stick with this drill for a while, I think, and try to build up speed more slowly. I think its the best way to rid myself of that slightly over the top transition move, for good. It is a different feeling all together.
Danny
Fundamental #1, Danny, straight from the S&T book: "Hitting the ground in the same place every time"!!! If we don't have a consistent low point in our swing how can we possibly expect consistently crispy impact and a predictable ball flight?? I commend you for taking a step back and solidifying this crucial element!
As for the hands under the chin, it may feel like a reach initially but you'll get accustomed to it. If your setup posture is correct the arms should actually be hanging nearly vertically. This neutral address position, along with the hands pushed slightly forward and even with the inside of the front thigh, promotes the stock push draw shot shape of the S&T swing. You'll find that as you get into the finer points this can be tweaked to accommodate different shot shapes. For example, pulling the hands in closer and lowering the butt end of the club would generally be a setup feature if one wished to play a higher, fading shot.
The school is structured in such a way that it is very easy to backtrack and reinforce foundational components and motions from time to time. This is both expected and encouraged!