Is there any place in the back swing or forward swing where the hands move parallel with the ground?
For what distance? Maybe for a few inches at take-away but not on the DownStroke.
Since the stroke is a circle- I would say for a one word answer- no. The hands will move out up and in and then down, out and through.
The left arm will be parallel at one point since it is a radius of the circle.
Is there any place in the back swing or forward swing where the hands move parallel with the ground?
They are supposed to move along (and parallel to) the inclined swing plane, I believe.
__________________ Yani Tseng, Go! Go! Go! Yani Tseng Did It Again! YOU load and sustain the "LAG", during which the "LAW" releases it, ideally beyond impact.
"Sustain (Yang/陽) the lag (Yin/陰)" is "the unification of Ying and Yang" (陰陽合一).
The "LAW" creates the "effect", which is the "motion" or "feel", with the "cause", which is the "intent" or "command".
"Lag" is the secret of golf, passion is the secret of life.
Think as a golfer, execute like a robot.
Rotate, twist, spin, turn. Bend the shaft.
Is there any place in the back swing or forward swing where the hands move parallel with the ground?
The Hands are responsible for producing and maintaining the Three-Dimensional, On Plane orbit of the Clubhead throughout the Golf Stroke:
-- Up-In-and-Back from Address to the Top of the Backstroke;
-- Down-Out-and-Forward From the Top to the Low Point the Downstroke;
-- Up-In-and-Forward from Low Point to the Finish.
This Three Dimensional Motion of the Clubhead requires that the Hands describe a similar On Plane orbit. Accordingly, the Motion of the Hands during the Stroke is oriented parallel to the Clubhead's Delivery Line (usually the Plane Line). However, holding the Clubhead (and the Hands) to a level or "parallel to the ground" Path is Steering, (the First Snare / 3-F-7-A). Hence, unless such a Path is employed intentionally to produce a special effect, it should be avoided.
Shouldn't this say:
-- Up-In-and-Forward from Low Point to the Finish.
I like the "wheel rim" (swinger) or "wheel track" (hitter) images for keeping the hands moving along the plane in a simultaneous motion. UP-IN-BACK or DOWN-OUT-FORWARD are ONE motion (on plane), not three different ones.
Incidentally, I have had problems with overactive knees and I have found that the thought of running my hands around the wheel rim keeps my pivot motion from getting out of control. As Ted reminded me last January: "Emphatically, hands are not educated until they control the pivot." I have been incubating on that since January and I think it is starting to sink in.
I got out my dad's old (50's vintage) MacGregor forged irons the other day (the clubs I used when I started playing 25 years ago). I was surprised at how heavy they felt and how they practically swung themselves on the correct plane, if you let them. I hit some plastic balls out in the back yard for a while and found that if I just started the gyroscope on the wheel rim and let it swing, the clubface squared up by itself and impact was solid. If I tried to manipulate my hands at all, CF force went away and impact was very weak. Good lesson.
I like the "wheel rim" (swinger) or "wheel track" (hitter) images for keeping the hands moving along the plane in a simultaneous motion. UP-IN-BACK or DOWN-OUT-FORWARD are ONE motion (on plane), not three different ones.
That is correct: One Three-Dimensional Basic Motion.