#130 Tiger Woods: A Biomechanical Swing Analysis

The Podcast analyzes Tiger Woods' golf swing using data from Sportsbox Sports Science. His exceptional performance is attributed to excellent vertical and horizontal movements, particularly his pelvic motion and the efficient transfer of speed from his arm to the club. The analysis quantifies Woods' abilities with percentile rankings compared to current PGA professionals.

The results highlight his strengths across various aspects of his swing, which contribute to his high clubhead speed and overall success.

Tiger Woods' extraordinary body rotation positively impacts his golf swing by generating high clubhead speed. Although his lead arm's maximum swing speed is relatively low, he excels in speed transfer from the arm to the shaft. This is reflected in a high wrist speed gain factor of 2.55, which results in an impressive shaft swing speed of 2353 d/s, translating to a clubhead speed of 119 mph.

His chest rotation is relatively low at 96°, placing him in the 19th percentile compared to other golfers. Similarly, his pelvic rotation is modest at 43°, ranking in the 42nd percentile. The X-Factor, which measures the difference between shoulder and hip rotation, is 62°, placing him in the 36th percentile. The limited rotation of his upper body compared to his lower body allows him to store energy and release it during the downswing, generating more power and speed.

Tiger Woods' vertical strengths in his golf swing lie in his pelvic movements. Both his pelvic drop and pelvic lift during the downswing are exceptional.

- His pelvic drop is measured at 3.6 inches and is defined as the maximum downward motion of the pelvis during the downswing from its address position. With a 90th percentile ranking, he surpasses 90% of his PGA Tour peers in this category.

- His pelvic lift during the downswing is measured at 3.7 inches and refers to the vertical rise of the pelvis from its lowest point during the downswing. In this category, Woods achieves a 79th percentile ranking, meaning he performs better than 79% of his peers.

Tiger Woods' pelvic lateral movement, also known as "Slide in Transition," ranks in the 89th percentile compared to other PGA Tour golfers. This means his lateral pelvic movement is better than 89% of his peers, with only 11% demonstrating superior movement. Pelvic lateral movement is measured from the pelvis's maximum sway position during the backswing to its position at the top of the swing. Tiger Woods' lateral pelvic movement measures 2.5 inches.

These strong vertical and lateral movements contribute significantly to his overall power and consistency in his golf swing.