Daily Video Blog

Authored by: Brady
Posted on: 21 March 2026

Don Trahan's analysis of his own swing with different clubs reveals golf's most misunderstood concept: it's your arms that swing on plane, not the club.

Most golfers focus on getting the club on plane, but Don's demonstration shows this is wrong. At address, your arms start below the plane—especially the trail arm (right arm for righties, left arm for lefties). This is correct and necessary.

During takeaway, Don rotates the clubhead first, moving the toe toward "the catcher's mitt" and "up the tree." This rotation naturally lifts his lead arm onto the plane, where it stays throughout the backswing. At the top, his lead hand and forearm align perfectly on the plane while the clubhead passes through it.

The downswing shows his lead arm maintaining plane contact until just before impact. After impact, physics takes over—the trail arm moves onto the plane while the lead arm comes off it, demonstrating equal and opposite reaction.

Don's vertical swing style... Read More

Authored by: Don Trahan
Posted on: 5 October 2013
Comments: 20
If you want to increase your distance, your muscles need to be actively engaged. Your grip must be firm and your swing speed should be accelerating through impact. One big misconception I always hear... Read More
Authored by: Don Trahan
Posted on: 4 October 2013
Comments: 27
Type in the words "golf instruction" in any online search and you'll see a ton of swing methods claiming they've got the swing that will transform your game. Many of them even say they've got body... Read More
Authored by: Don Trahan
Posted on: 2 October 2013
Comments: 22
Because being a vertical swinger means you're in the minority, you've probably been offered a lot of advice about how to improve your golf game. Have other golfers told you that your backswing needs... Read More
Authored by: Don Trahan
Posted on: 29 September 2013
Comments: 6
Most golf courses aren't exactly flat. That means you're probably going to see your fair share of uneven lies, especially if you're missing the fairway. But, even a lot of fairways are built on hills... Read More
Authored by: Don Trahan
Posted on: 28 September 2013
Comments: 20
Everyone would like to be able to work the ball. Purposely hitting a draw or fade can help you on certain holes as well, but you should only try working the ball if you can already hit the ball... Read More
Authored by: Don Trahan
Posted on: 27 September 2013
Comments: 29
Today, I'm going to issue a challenge to anyone who plays golf with pain. It's just not necessary and it probably inhibits you from playing as much golf as you'd like to. If any Surgites have friends... Read More
Authored by: Don Trahan
Posted on: 26 September 2013
Comments: 13
Butt weighted grips are starting to become fairly popular, in part because Jack Nicklaus has been featured on commercials endorsing them. Ron Kriete is interested in getting a set and asked me to... Read More
Authored by: Don Trahan
Posted on: 24 September 2013
Comments: 9
Ever since I started the blog category "In Your Own Words," more and more Surgites have shared their own success stories with me. I get a lot of joy from reading these messages and the whole idea is... Read More
Authored by: Don Trahan
Posted on: 22 September 2013
Comments: 22
Today's topic stems from two messages I received that were very similar in content. Both gentlemen that wrote in said they are having trouble losing balls to the right. The first thing I would have... Read More
Authored by: Don Trahan
Posted on: 21 September 2013
Comments: 6
One trademark of the Peak Performance Golf Swing is our wide knees with outward pressure. You want to hold your knees and swing your arms with a limited turn, vertical swing. However, there still... Read More