I love the Titleist Performance Institute. I am a certified Golf Fitness instructor (L.1) and a firm believer in functional movement screening and training. It’s magical stuff. But where does it fit in the context of improving your golf game? At what point should physical training become the focus for your game? Those are tough questions. Here’s the copout answer, that unfortunately also happens to be true: It depends.
The physical capabilities of your body set the ceiling for your ability level in anything you do. No matter how much I train in the water or how good I get in my swimming technique, I will never be able to swim like a seal. At some point in any pursuit, our body becomes the limiting factor. Let’s call this concept Physical Capacity: the point at which your body’s physical capabilities begin to limit your skill development. Consider the following depiction of a club golfer below. Lets call him “Donny.”
Donny’s diagram above represents a LOT of club level golfers. Donny isn’t a star athlete by any means, but he stays fairly active in his daily life and maintains a decent level of stability and mobility in his body. He has a couple of nagging injuries from the past, but nothing that causes him any pain or serious movement dysfunction. However, Donny is new to the game and his skill level is quite mediocre. He has a long way to go before he reaches the point of physical capacity. For Donny, working on his fitness may not be the fastest way to improve his game. His time would be better spent with his PGA of Canada instructor, improving control of ball contact, direction, curve, or speed.
Now, consider the following diagram of a player with an equal physical capacity but much more developed skills. Let’s call this gal “Alex.” 
Alex has dedicated lots of practice time to improving her game, and has had some great direction from her PGA of Canada instructor. However, she lacks a lot of stability, has weak glutes and a weak core, and struggles to generate rotary speed in any sport that she plays (this makes her a perennial late pick at company softball). Alex’s skill level is very close to her physical capacity. This suggests that for her to continue to progress, addressing the issues in her functional movement patterns are going to be very important. Otherwise she is going to hit that physical capacity ceiling and “plateau.”
The reality is that very few golfers ever get to Alex’s position. Most are stuck somewhere between her and Donny, never reaching their physical capacity for skill. And here’s the important part: If you haven’t yet reached your physical capacity, improving your physical capacity can’t lead to an improvement in skill!
It’s been said that “It’s easier to sell ‘em something than to tell ‘em the truth.” Chiropractors (some, anyway) make a darn good living out of assessing your problems for free, then prescribing an expensive course of treatment to fix them. Trainers and golf pros who go overboard on the “golf fitness” bandwagon are no different. For most players (if not all), a full TPI screen will show a great many areas in which physical capacity is lacking. First, keep in mind that these deficiencies are deficiencies by comparison to PGA Tour players, the best of the best. The standard for your game should never be based on what Dustin Johnson can do (very few can live up to that!) unless you’re competing against Dustin Johnson. The standard for your game should be based on what you want to accomplish. Second, in many cases there are technique adjustments that can be made to work with physical limitations. For many golfers, this will be enough to reach an acceptable standard of golf. Third, there is nothing to indicate that if a student improved their fitness until they were able to pass every test, it would make any difference whatsoever on their skill level.
This is NOT to say that golf fitness training is not important. It is. The best golf coaches understand human movement and work with their students (possibly a trainer and medical professional as well) to build a swing that will work for them and the physical capacity of their bodies. Functional movement screening (the basis for the TPI screening protocols) is also important in reducing the likelihood of injury, and in determining movement dysfunction. It is a piece of the puzzle. But it is rarely the whole picture.
This post is largely based on opinion. Please leave your own thoughts on the topic in a comment below, and consider sharing this post via the social media links provided. As a bonus, check out Ben Crane’s amazing gym abilities, honed by a childhood spent in gymnastics.
I recently wrote a post entitled “Your Back vs. Stack and Tilt” which created a ton of discussion. The main point I made in the post was that lumbar extension is bad for your back, regardless of swing style. It was my understanding at the time that the reason the reverse spine characteristic and the reverse C finish were bad for your back was largely due to lumbar extension.
Swing styles and methods are always a hot topic in the golf community. Differences in the characteristics of swings tend to polarize people and strong opinions are formed. By far one of the most polarizing discussions in golf instruction today is the topic of Stack and Tilt. Those that dislike the method tend to write it off as “bad for the back,” and point to the style creating a reverse pivot (which it doesn’t), a pattern proven to be bad for the back. Those that like the method point to the fact that Stack and Tilt suggests a pattern of extending the back, a healthier motion than turning in flexion. Regardless of the swing method, their are certain truths as to what is safe for your back. In fact, its possible to hurt your back or to swing safely, regardless of the swing style.
