WE NOW know the difference between 'swing plane' and 'swing path' (refer to last week's article here).

The plane that a golf club swings on varies for differing lengths of golf club - the loft has no bearing here, just the length of the shaft.  

Just a reminder but the shaft angle to the ground for a pitching wedge is about 65' and for a driver about 50'.

That's quite a significant difference and means that your golf swing will be on a very different plane for each of those clubs. 

 So how do we possibly cope with that?

There are two things that we do to accommodate a longer golf club - we stand further away from the ball and we stand taller.

Standing taller automatically changes the angle of our spine to more upright and when we turn our shoulders around a more upright spine they will naturally turn flatter taking the club further behind us.

In other words, we don't have to change anything - simply acknowledge that the club swings more behind us and let it do it.

A great way to feel this is to take it to extreme.

Stand as if addressing a golf ball, but then lift the club up in front of you until you are stood bolt upright with the club shaft just a little off horizontal. 

This would simulate addressing a really long golf club.

Now relax your hands and arms completely until you are only just preventing the club head from falling.  

From there, make a shoulder turn allowing the club head to swing behind you and your wrists to hinge as they naturally will - don't allow any preconceptions to dictate where you think the club should go (that's what we are trying to get out of here), just notice where the club naturally  goes.  

If you stop the swing when the club is pointing directly away from where it was at the start, you should notice that the shaft is still at its original angle - in other words it has stayed on its original 'plane'.

The club has no desire to change angle and will stay on its original plane unless acted on by another force - the only other force is you.

 If your arms are relaxed throughout, you remove that force.

Now take a seven iron and make a few more normal swings giving the golf club the same freedom (don't think - just do), allowing the golf club to find its own plane and path.  

If you sense the golf club is unnervingly going around behind you both ends and the club-head feels to be 'out of control' then we are getting somewhere - welcome to the land of the golfing 'over-achievers'.

Now put a ball on a tee an inch in air (I want you to make the ball easy to hit as this is not a ball striking exercise) and allow the club to swing freely on its natural plane - not so easy now as all those preconceptions of straight lines make straight shots come flooding back - because there is a ball.

You should notice that your ball mysteriously doesn't slice anymore and may even draw a bit - nice - (it may go a bit left initially - just let it) and for the amount of effort you are putting in (next to nothing) the ball is going a fair distance - now that's cool.

You will be left with an odd feeling - something like 'it's working but I'm not sure how?'

Remember that you have been flying the plane manually when 'autopilot' is the best setting.

If this is starting to ring some bells why not make some time to come see me - it is unlikely that lack of ability is holding you back and very likely that you have been simply barking up the wrong tree - any intelligent person would, the game is counterintuitive - ie. you won't  get it by applying more intellect.

• Tony White is the golf operations manager at Gibraltar Country Club, Bowral.  

He can be contacted on 4862 8615 or you can visit www.gibraltarbowral.com.au