Artificial intelligence is one of the most talked about topics in technology today. Everyone recognises the powerful potential of it, yet there’s an understandable sense of scepticism about what that might entail. Does the technology come in peace? Or is it here to take over.
And more importantly, what does it all mean for my golf game?
To learn more about what AI in golf may look like in the future, I spoke with SportsBox AI chief executive Jeehae Lee. Sportsbox AI is a really fascinating new technology which uses artificial intelligence to impose a 3D model onto your golf swing and measure different parts of your body as you move. Last weekend I got a little hooked on it. Specifically, on one metric that can help you, too.
Why you should care about “pelvis sway”
I have a problem in my golf swing. Like lots of golfers, I struggle to shift my weight over to my lead side on my downswing. I tend to hold too much weight on my right side on my downswing, which causes me to jump and flip on the downswing.
Professional golfers are much better at getting to their left side, but it’s a move the rest of us to find difficult to do, in part because the difference between good and bad is so small, it can be difficult to spot.
Enter AI, and a handy new metric called Pelvis Sway!
“Pelvis sway at impact” is how Sportsbox AI measures this movement, and it does so in inches. Your hips start at zero, but most golfers (like Rory McIlroy) sway their hips towards the target up to six inches by impact.
My hips were in the two-inch range. Similar to a friend of mine’s, who I also measured and whose swing you can see above.
Anyway, it didn’t take long, but a few swings tracking “pelvis sway” helped me get the feeling down.
If you’re wondering about your own pelvis, the key, as Golf Digest Best in State teacher Joe Plecker explains, requires you to move your hips towards the target early in the downswing. It’s a part of a series of moves coaches call sequencing, which you can read more about right here.
Anyway, thanks AI!
