Should your lead arm be straight or bent at the fourth parallel.

The fourth parallel being when the shaft is parallel to the ground just after the follow through.

I don’t think that there is any rule about the lead arm being bent/straight at the 4th parallel. It is likely to be straight with driver swings where the momentum of the clubshaft is so great that it carries both arms to a straight position beyond the end-followthrough.

Example – Tiger Woods.

Tiger Woods

By contrast, the lead arm is likely to be slightly bent at the elbow in short iron swings at that same 4th parallel point.

Jeff.

Jeff, you have to concede thats an old photo of Tiger from his book “How I play golf”. His swing has changed since then.

Should your lead arm be straight or bent at the fourth parallel.

The fourth parallel being when the shaft is parallel to the ground just after the follow through.

If it was not straight, with the club shaft in line, it would not qualify for its title of being the fourth parallel.

Each parallel is based on its relationship to the ground, which for that purpose is accepted to be straight also.

Its hard to imagine circumstances where the arm is not straight, and in line with the club shaft, without violation of the principle of the fourth parallel.

Chicken wings notwithstanding!

IMO, and in TGMers’ teaching, both arms are straight before then, with clubhead still below hands and therefore pointing at the plane line. The left wrist is still flat, the right wrist is still bent.

By the time you get to parallel the clubhead is starting to overtake the hands and the left elbow needs to be down and left forearm swiveling like “thumbing a ride” to keep that left wrist flat into finish. Parallel is not a place to be checking things, it’s a position for transitioning through. The swivel to maintain flat left wrist is a check that something didn’t break down through impact.

That said, there is at least one TGM instructor who skips the follow-through both-arms-straight alignment altogether and immediately goes to that left forearm finish swivel, retaining the flat left wrist and bent right up into finish, both elbows down. A motion like a forehand top spin tennis drive.
Edit: Correction: A CPGA instructor trained in TGM.

“Parallel is not a place to be checking things, it’s a position for transitioning through.”

Loren, everyone should be thanking you for the above statement in your post. A very important point to come to terms with if you want to eliminate confusion, compensation and injury.

As Homer said…..”Alignment Golf simply smothers Position Golf.”

:)

That said, there is at least one TGM instructor who skips the follow-through both-arms-straight alignment altogether and immediately goes to that left forearm finish swivel, retaining the flat left wrist and bent right up into finish, both elbows down. A motion like a forehand top spin tennis drive.
Edit: Correction: A CPGA instructor trained in TGM.

Loren-

I think I have seen video of Ben Doyle in the sand trap teaching the finish swivel right after teaching the flat left wrist (skipping teaching both arms straight). Who are you referring to, Mark Evershed?

Oui, Mr. finster.
He was taught the hands by Tom Tomasello in ‘85 or ‘86.
Interesting that the start down is just a vertical drop, a la TT’s swinging procedure.
Very little body contribution, a reaction to the requirements of the hands.
“Pay attention to the hands and you get the body for free.”
Long Drive Champ Bobby Wilson is a decorated graduate. He “float loads”, accumulating power on the way down, with its associated snap release. (Release Types is an article in The Golf School area.)

Ben’s got very little momentum left to finish, it seems. All dumped into the ball. It’s like a pop. Automatic snap release (aiming point) with hip action. Finish is almost like an afterthought.
Good observation from you.