Science & Motion Sports, the makers of the SAM Puttlab also have an instrument called the SAM BalanceLab which measures where your weight is during the golf swing. The pic above shows a sample of what the readout looks like. They also have the same style of reports that the SAM Puttlab has.
I think this is really a great idea and I would love to get a practice session. Furthermore, if I was an instructor, I'd love to get the BalanceLab and do studies on every golfer I could find on exactly where their weight is in different parts of the swing. I think it would be really interesting to get some definitive answers in order to solve more mysteries about the lifeblood of the golf swing....the pivot.
One of the questions I hear a lot about is golfers 'losing their spine angle.' I believe one of the big reasons why they do is that they get too much weight on their toes. Like Shawn Clement likes to say, imagine the arches of your feet to be suction cups to the ground. Or as Ben Hogan stated in '5 Lessons', simply lift the toes upward out of your shoes.
It's sort of like trying to see over a wall that is a few inches taller than you are. What you do is you get up on your tippy toes to make yourself taller to see over the wall. Same thing with the golf swing. If you get up on your toes, you get taller and 'lose your spine angle.'
As we know, Mike Maves is a huge proponent of footwork and having the weight on the correct part of the feet in the golf swing. Particularly not having the weight on the toes. And it's no coincidence that Maves perfectly maintains his spine throughout his swing.
But there's other parts of the SAM BalanceLab that I think would be extremely helpful. Not just for the golfer, BUT FOR THE TEACHER. It's often hard for an instructor to tell exactly where the golfer has their weight...well, now they would know.
Plus, I think it would give the instructor a better idea of where good players tend to have their weight at different points in the swing.
I'm trying to find somebody who has one in Georgia, but if you can find one in your area (just google it), I'd try it out.
3JAK
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I believe my instructor mentioned to me that there were plans in the making to implement this at his facility in Santa Rosa Beach, Fl.
Cool. The BalanceLab and the Puttlab cost $8K a piece. I found a place that has one in Atlanta. Just waiting to hear back on what the price of a lesson would be.
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