[Jeff]

OB Left

I think that we are in general agreement on this issue.

You wrote-: "To my mind a golfer 's clubshaft can and should be lying flat on a plane (turned shoulder or other) in start down. A very real and ideal thing to my mind. I also believe he should be uncocking along that plane or shifting plane."

I agree that it is useful to think of having the clubshaft lying on a plane during start down and also during the early/mid downswing. However, the reality is that there is no single plane that it can constantly lie on if there is a shift from the turned shoulder plane (at the end-backswing) to the elbow plane (at impact). The true reality is that the clubshaft is changing planes constantly, albeit fractionally, during its downswing passage, and that's why I used the word "imaginary". "Imaginary" doesn't imply that a plane doesn't truly exist - it implies that we are guesstimating (imagining) where the plane is at every fractional moment-of-time during the downswing.

I personally don't have a problem "imagining" the clubshaft plane to be curved - and it doesn't adversely affect my conceptual ability to imagine "being "on plane". I am also aware that my hand arc movement-in-time is slightly curved as the hands move from the top of the swing to the delivery position. From my perspective, it is easier for me to think in "curves" than straight lines, because I think that the true reality is that the body, hands and clubhead always move along a curved path. However, I can also understand the concept of a straight line thrust as utilised by a hitter who applies his thrust to the club along a radial direction (like pushing on the spokes of a wagon wheel, which is stuck in the mud, in a straight line thrust diirection, to get it to start moving).

Jeff.