By Tom Stickney, director of coaching at Vidanta Golf Academies in Mexico
The good news is, if 17-handicapper Jack Van Meerbeeck, 58, ever gets sick of playing golf on the weekends, he can probably land a gig on the Las Vegas Strip as a contortionist. His thrill ride of a golf swing has more twists than a theme park rollercoaster – and similar wow factor.
Full disclosure: I’ve never met Jack. The editors at Digest asked me to look at his swing and give my thoughts. I knew something was up. First, he’s wearing two golf gloves. Nobody has ever played any good wearing two gloves, except Tommy Gainey—and, OK, he made it to the tour. So my first impression might have been unfair. Let’s take a closer look.
Jack’s swing actually starts out pretty routine, but when his hands get about chest high, things get nutty. He flips his wrists over his right shoulder, and the shaft goes upside down and dips toward the ball. I have to pause and say, anytime your hands block your view of the ball at the top of the backswing, something very special is happening. He looks more like he’s giving a Charades clue than making a golf swing, but the man finds a way to get back to the ball—and that’s all that matters.
“I took a lesson about eight years ago, and I thought the pro was going to have a heart attack,” says Jack, a native of Belgium who recently shot 80 at his home course, Sedgefield Country Club in Greensboro, N.C., site of the PGA Tour’s Wyndham Championship. “He gave me a few pointers on squaring the clubface at impact and told me to continue to enjoy the game. I love it, every swing I take.”
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