The Sprint to the Middle

This is the fifth part of a regular series in which Maggie Ewen, one of America’s top putters, will break down her technique step by step.

Up until this point in the throw, I have been very lower body dominant. The upper body was simply along for the ride while my hips, legs and feet moved me through the ring. Now it is time for the upper body to get involved. As we move into this section, remember that I am detailing my ideal goal of these positions. As is clear from the photos provided, we don’t always hit our ideal positions. I am my biggest critic, so I constantly see all the discrepancies between the goal and the execution. I like to think about that as all the ways I can improve and eventually throw further! Anyways, let’s get to it.

As I continue to squeeze the adductors together, I am looking to land in the middle with my right toe, knee, hips, shoulders (literally everything) facing 9 o’clock or, as I call it, 270º. While my shoulders are facing 270º, I want my left arm reaching straight ahead of me also towards 270º (in an ideal world). This is where the separation begins.

As my feet continue to turn, they will start to rotate my hips around towards a stand throw position.

While this happens, I am actively trying to keep the left arm reaching back. Initially it reaches toward 270º, but as the hips continue to turn the left arm will reach more towards 0º or the back of the ring. It is tricky to explain; however, the overall goal of the left arm reach is to land in the stand throw position with the left arm reaching back towards 0º and the shoulders square to 0º. So the left arm is still straight ahead of the body and not wrapping across the chest.

Once the left arm is reaching towards 0º, the left foot should be coming down at the front of the ring (in an ideal world). I want it down as early as possible so I can get the legs and hips involved in my finish for as long as possible. If the left foot comes down late, the right foot/hip has nothing to work into. This means the hips are simply turning and not actually generating more speed and power.

Through this entire phase, I am
balanced over my right foot and it has been actively pivoting.

Once it touches the ground in the middle, the right foot will never stop turning until the hips are square to the throw and the ball is coming out of my hand.

This is a phase of the throw where patience is the key. Since I am in single support I cannot add speed or power. I simply have to be patient and give the legs/system time to turn through this phase. While I am being patient with the lower body, I am focused on holding back the shoulders and creating separation. It is a very important phase of the throw since this is the last step before I actually deliver the ball. In my opinion, outside of the strike itself, this is the most important phase of the throw.  

Tune in next month to learn about the finish!

The Sprint to the Middle

This is the fourth part of a regular series in which Maggie Ewen, one of America’s top putters, will break down her technique step by step.

Let’s talk about zero support! 

I’ll be the first to admit that not a lot happens through this phase. When we are not in contact with ground, there is little we can do to actually add to the throw. So the main focus of this phase tends to be controlling the left arm (keeping it from over-rotating) and being patient until the right foot comes down in the middle. But as you’ll see in the upcoming paragraphs, there is more going on than meets the eye. Let’s get into it!

As I sweep out of the entry, I am still hinged at the waist. The right leg is now in front of my body and driving into the direction of the sector. As it continues to sweep forward, I want my torso to move forward with the right leg.

Essentially, the right leg is leading my center of mass across the ring.

This allows my weight to move off my left foot sooner which in turn allows me to pick up the left foot earlier.

With my left up early, I can keep my knees tight as I move into the middle. Initially, the knees are not tight to each other, but they are tight to my midline axis (the axis that splits the right and left sides of the body). My left leg is clearly behind me but since the left knee is still tight to my midline, I am not dragging. Dragging is when the knees start drifting apart, causing the left leg to float wide and lag behind the rest of the system.

Once it begins dragging, it spends the rest of the throw trying to catch up to the midline/right leg, causing a slower rotation through the middle and often leads to the left foot coming down late in the front of the ring. It’s like the example of a spinning figure skater. Wide arms (dragging left leg) causes slower rotation. Arms tight to the body (knees tight to the midline axis) causes faster rotation.

I do not push or flick off my left foot (at least not consciously). I am pulled off of my left by the center of mass and right leg moving across the ring. Once the left is off the ground, I am squeezing the adductors together to reduce the distance between the knees even more.

Through all of this, the torso position should remain as neutral as possible.

I will start to be active with the upper body and begin to create the separation between the hips and the shoulders. 

Tune in next month to learn about the landing position and initiating separation between the hips and shoulders!

The Sweep

This is the third part of a regular series in which Maggie Ewen, one of America’s top putters, will break down her technique step by step.

Time to talk sweep!

I’ve included 3 pictures because the sweep is a long movement. In my entry, though it may not look like it, I feel two distinctly different moments during my sweep:

• In the initial phase I am working to get the right leg high and out over the back of the ring.
  
• In the second phase I am initiating the forward movement or drive into the ring.

It should also be noted that through the sweep phase of the throw the left foot and torso basically do nothing. I’ve already set up the torso and left leg in previous positions. Therefore, the sweep phase is all about being patient and letting my right leg go from being stretched out behind me to leading me into the middle. With that disclaimer in place, let’s get into it!

As I explained in my last post, in the position you see above, I have turned the left foot/ hip as far as it will go without picking up the right. As I continue to turn the left foot (dragging the torso with it), the right leg will get to a point that it cannot stay grounded any longer. I do not think of flicking or pushing off the ground to initiate the right leg. It happens naturally because of the stretch reflex I have created across the hips. This begins the first phase of the sweep.

My initial goal with the
right leg is to get it high opposite
the direction of the sector.

If I do it right, you’ll see above that I find a position resembling a South African drill with an elevated right leg. At this point my left toes will be pointed in the direction of the sector and that is where I want that foot to stay planted for the rest of the sweep. Since the left foot is what encourages the torso to rotate, the torso should also stop rotating.

This is where we begin the second phase of the sweep. Now that I have a high right leg, planted left foot and a torso that is no longer rotating, I squeeze the right adductor. This causes the right leg to go from straight out to the side to moving in front of me. This is the drive. It’s letting the right leg go from dragging to leading. As the inside of the leg drives into the direction of the sector, I want to keep it high so it can naturally arc down to its low point aka the middle of the ring. 

The upper body has not changed.
I am still hinged at the waist.

Some techniques say the athlete should be tall as they come around the corner and drive into the ring. My technique does not. I want to stay bent at the waist through the entry so my center of mass is pitched forward slightly. 

Tune in next time to find out why that’s important!