Felt heaviness for 1st time . . . Want more!
 

I'm 61 years old, been playing for 50 years, still shoot in the 70's, never had instruction, ball flight is straight, always tried to feel the clubhead and get the clubhead to the ball, and have been lurking here for over a year trying to learn how to strike the ball correctly.

Friday, as another experiment with my driver, took the club away very briskly with what felt like a 1/3 backstroke, then changed direction very fast and proceeded as usual. The club then felt very heavy and it felt as though I had to strain to get the clubhead (my feel) to the ball. This drive outdistanced my buddy by 20 yards (normally he is 20 yards longer).

Did I fee the elusive heaviness? Is that deliberate, quick change of direction important? Any further suggestions for someone who has always thrown and probably flipped the clubhead?

With the swing you described you almost certainly loaded the shaft more than you normally do.
That in combination with the fact that a longer swing doesn't automatically mean greater club head speed (compare a long jumper that starts from 60 m or 200 m away- you can only run THAT fast), might be the answer to why you hit it longer?

Although the heavy feel certainly goes well with TGM, the quickness that your post implies does not. From my own lurking I think the only time some quickness is called upon is the start down of the swinging procedure (right shoulder flywheel that spins- throws out the clubhead).

Going back to lurking mode now if that's ok with everyone... =)

Congratulations! That's one way of "loading the lag", "interrupt it in the middle of the backswing with the downswing". You'll do it more elegantly, instead of "very fast", once you getting used to it.

Congratulations, again! You successfully "sustain the lag", by keeping accelerating (straining) it, which also keeps bending/stressing/strengthening the shaft.

Sure it did! You not only increased the "effective weight" of the clubhead (or the strength of the shaft), but also make it smoothly fast by "sustaining/accelerating that weight (or shaft flex)" through impact.

It's not elusive.

As long as you can harvest it and try to keep it, again, you'll do it more deliberately, yet less "in a hurry" (that heaviness/resistance keeps you from being in a hurry), once you get more familiar with it.

BTW, take a shot of your swing next time, you'll find all those "imperatives and essentials" in it (with merely the intent of "loading it and sustaining it").

Dawg Gone
 

I was all hot and bothered when I read the title of this here thread. I thought it was going to be about your significant other.