[mrodock]

I too wonder what Mr Hogan would think of all this talk of knowing what his 'secret' was. Especially when the enlightened person stands to make a dollar (books, DVDs, training aids) out of this secret they have mysteriously stumbled upon. If a theory has merit then it should stand up to logic and criticism on its own rather than by reference to a great man who should be given more respect.

I think it is one thing to be able to replicate Mr Hogan's swing and produce a similar appearance, it is another entirely to produce the same results. It is impossible to know what Mr Hogan was doing internally. What was he thinking while swinging? What pressure did he have where and what was active and at what stage? What was he trying to do with the golf club?

In one sense it is great if the idea has merit because it contributes to the knowledge bank on the golf swing and all benefit. However, we all know how much stuff is out there and if you're like me then you tend to take more notice when something involves the great Ben Hogan. I gets kinda expensive. I buy these things in the hope that these people have actual insights into Mr Hogan from what he said to them. They rarely do. When the thesis being put forward comes only from watching him swing on their TV sets it is of little value because all of us have probably come up with aspects of Mr Hogan's swing that we think were crucial and perhaps a 'secret'. All we're really doing is finding out something new about an efficient golf swing that is probably present in many other swings of good ballstrikers.

It is in this respect that Homer Kelley's work is so strong. He did not rely on another person's reputation or skill to advance his own ideas and in the process make money. They stood on their own and gain more and more support every day.

Excellent post!