For amateurs, does lifting weights cause higher swing speeds?

[milesgiles]

I'm deliberately not taking it to the extreme though. The 600 pound squat is extreme and not likely to be drug free. 405 certainly isn't. Any normal size college athlete who was reasonably serious about a sport like wrestling or football would expect to be there or thereabouts.. and yet I don't see any golf pro's or long drivers, who are lets remember full time professional athletes, anywhere near that level of strength.

 

Well again Zuback won multiple times and for a long time was the face of the LDA (he's the first person I think of when I think long drive champion).

 

This is from the same article:

Some of his best lifts include a 405-pound three-rep max on the bench press, a 714-pound squat, a 680-pound deadlift, a 364-pound clean and jerk, and shoulder presses with 120-pound dumbbells for 12 reps.

 

Cant find any competition records or videos of him, but yes I accept he is abnormally big and strong. It also says that his first love was hitting a golf ball hard and powerlifting came later. Its entirely possible that he is a powerlifter who happens to hit the golf ball a long way. The exception that proves the rule?

 

Ultimately, if powerlifting or Olympic lifting was significantly beneficial to a pro golfer, which are the only types of training I'm really arguing about, wouldn't the pro's do it?

 

The pros do Olympic lifting. The guys who work out on tour are absolutely doing squats, dead lifts, and other Olympic lifts as well as doing plyometrics and more sport specific stuff. KJ Choi was a competitive power lifter when he was younger.

 

Was KJ ever particularly long? No.

 

Who are these pros training heavy on powerlifts or Olympic lifts? Show me one, seriously.

[milesgiles]

If you become a more explosive powerful athlete you are absolutely going to gain club head speed. if this wasn't the case colleges could tear down these 8-9 figure strength and consitioning facilities and head strength and conditioning coach salaries in the low to mid 6 figure range and invest in more "on field sports specific" stuff. I guarantee if you significantly increase your strength to weight ratio in Olympic lifts, deadlifts, squats, and core work while still maintaining similar flexibility you will gain massive distance. The problem is, most people that weight train focus on beach muscles and moving weight slowly instead of functional fast explosive training. Always funny to see the egg on toothpick guys at the gym.

 

strongly disagree..

 

to refer back to myself, I have full squatted 150kg for reps, without being overweight, and my identical twin who takes golf roughly as seriously as I do, who doesn't train, is 10 or 15 yards longer. I certainly used to be as long, or longer, when I was younger and nowhere near that strength.

 

Strength and conditioning works when it is sport specific. Squats and deads have an obvious direct carryover to football or rugby. For golf, core work, flexibility, balance, and explosive RELEVANT movements (downward cable swings, twists) are going to help. Powerlifting movements, hell no, which is why no tour pro does them (apart from the injury risk)

 

You lose credibility when you make statements that "no tour pro is doing them" and Rory has countless pictures on Google images squatting and deadlifting heavy. All things being equal if you are putting more force into the ground with the same golf swing, same flexbility, etc you are going to generate more club head speed. There is a reason an endeavor similar to hitting the ball further such as track and field throwing's entire training training regimen (aside from actual technique work and competitive reps) involves getting more explosive through power lifts, olympic lifts, plyos, flexibility work, etc and reaching peak explosiveness at the optimal time (NCAAs, Olympic Trials, Olympics, etc). Your one off experience with one single lift without having the efficiency of both you and your twins swings measured is irrelevant.

 

The photo you are talking about is, according to Rory, 120kg

 

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/golf/article-3451920/Rory-McIlroy-doesn-t-problem-lifting-weights-helps-better-golfer-is.html

 

For the sake of your argument, lets call that 'heavy'

 

(it's heavy for an untrained average man, but is more what I would call 'decently athletic' than outright strong)

 

He has definitely added muscle over the years, agreed?

 

So he is stronger, bigger, and therefore hits the ball further? Nope

 

2011 driving average 307

2016 driving average 306

 

oops..

[iteachgolf]

I'm deliberately not taking it to the extreme though. The 600 pound squat is extreme and not likely to be drug free. 405 certainly isn't. Any normal size college athlete who was reasonably serious about a sport like wrestling or football would expect to be there or thereabouts.. and yet I don't see any golf pro's or long drivers, who are lets remember full time professional athletes, anywhere near that level of strength.

 

Well again Zuback won multiple times and for a long time was the face of the LDA (he's the first person I think of when I think long drive champion).

 

This is from the same article:

Some of his best lifts include a 405-pound three-rep max on the bench press, a 714-pound squat, a 680-pound deadlift, a 364-pound clean and jerk, and shoulder presses with 120-pound dumbbells for 12 reps.

 

Cant find any competition records or videos of him, but yes I accept he is abnormally big and strong. It also says that his first love was hitting a golf ball hard and powerlifting came later. Its entirely possible that he is a powerlifter who happens to hit the golf ball a long way. The exception that proves the rule?

 

Ultimately, if powerlifting or Olympic lifting was significantly beneficial to a pro golfer, which are the only types of training I'm really arguing about, wouldn't the pro's do it?

 

The pros do Olympic lifting. The guys who work out on tour are absolutely doing squats, dead lifts, and other Olympic lifts as well as doing plyometrics and more sport specific stuff. KJ Choi was a competitive power lifter when he was younger.

 

Was KJ ever particularly long? No.

 

Who are these pros training heavy on powerlifts or Olympic lifts? Show me one, seriously.

 

Where did I say it made them longer? Nobody said they were lifting to be power lifters. You stated that none do Olympic lifts when that is exactly what most of them do. You specifically separated power lifting and Olympic lifting. Olympic lifts are Olympic lifts regardless of weight being lifted. I'm of the opinion working out will do very little for distance for most and for most it's more about injury prevention and stability. But pro's are absolutely doing Olympic lifts

[milesgiles]

again, show me one. Just one.

[iteachgolf]

again, show me one. Just one.

 

you already have been showed them. Your claim is they weren't lifting enough weight or didn't get longer, which was never the argument. You said not a single player does Olympic lifts. Again Olympic lifts are Olympic lifts. Regardless of the weight being lifted. You've been proven painfully wrong. Move on.

[kiteman]

If you become a more explosive powerful athlete you are absolutely going to gain club head speed. if this wasn't the case colleges could tear down these 8-9 figure strength and consitioning facilities and head strength and conditioning coach salaries in the low to mid 6 figure range and invest in more "on field sports specific" stuff. I guarantee if you significantly increase your strength to weight ratio in Olympic lifts, deadlifts, squats, and core work while still maintaining similar flexibility you will gain massive distance. The problem is, most people that weight train focus on beach muscles and moving weight slowly instead of functional fast explosive training. Always funny to see the egg on toothpick guys at the gym.

 

strongly disagree..

 

to refer back to myself, I have full squatted 150kg for reps, without being overweight, and my identical twin who takes golf roughly as seriously as I do, who doesn't train, is 10 or 15 yards longer. I certainly used to be as long, or longer, when I was younger and nowhere near that strength.

 

Strength and conditioning works when it is sport specific. Squats and deads have an obvious direct carryover to football or rugby. For golf, core work, flexibility, balance, and explosive RELEVANT movements (downward cable swings, twists) are going to help. Powerlifting movements, hell no, which is why no tour pro does them (apart from the injury risk)

 

You lose credibility when you make statements that "no tour pro is doing them" and Rory has countless pictures on Google images squatting and deadlifting heavy. All things being equal if you are putting more force into the ground with the same golf swing, same flexbility, etc you are going to generate more club head speed. There is a reason an endeavor similar to hitting the ball further such as track and field throwing's entire training training regimen (aside from actual technique work and competitive reps) involves getting more explosive through power lifts, olympic lifts, plyos, flexibility work, etc and reaching peak explosiveness at the optimal time (NCAAs, Olympic Trials, Olympics, etc). Your one off experience with one single lift without having the efficiency of both you and your twins swings measured is irrelevant.

 

The photo you are talking about is, according to Rory, 120kg

 

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/golf/article-3451920/Rory-McIlroy-doesn-t-problem-lifting-weights-helps-better-golfer-is.html

 

For the sake of your argument, lets call that 'heavy'

 

(it's heavy for an untrained average man, but is more what I would call 'decently athletic' than outright strong)

 

He has definitely added muscle over the years, agreed?

 

So he is stronger, bigger, and therefore hits the ball further? Nope

 

2011 driving average 307

2016 driving average 306

 

oops..

 

See this is really fascinating. I'm starting to believe that weight training does not really help MOST golfers.

 

I know DJ is pretty much the longest hitter on Tour and also weight trains. Man,i just want to know how far he would hit it without that training! Further or shorter? Then again he is not a bulky guy, so unlike Tiger and Rory, his muscle mass does not necessarily impede his body rotation.

[iteachgolf]

If you become a more explosive powerful athlete you are absolutely going to gain club head speed. if this wasn't the case colleges could tear down these 8-9 figure strength and consitioning facilities and head strength and conditioning coach salaries in the low to mid 6 figure range and invest in more "on field sports specific" stuff. I guarantee if you significantly increase your strength to weight ratio in Olympic lifts, deadlifts, squats, and core work while still maintaining similar flexibility you will gain massive distance. The problem is, most people that weight train focus on beach muscles and moving weight slowly instead of functional fast explosive training. Always funny to see the egg on toothpick guys at the gym.

 

strongly disagree..

 

to refer back to myself, I have full squatted 150kg for reps, without being overweight, and my identical twin who takes golf roughly as seriously as I do, who doesn't train, is 10 or 15 yards longer. I certainly used to be as long, or longer, when I was younger and nowhere near that strength.

 

Strength and conditioning works when it is sport specific. Squats and deads have an obvious direct carryover to football or rugby. For golf, core work, flexibility, balance, and explosive RELEVANT movements (downward cable swings, twists) are going to help. Powerlifting movements, hell no, which is why no tour pro does them (apart from the injury risk)

 

You lose credibility when you make statements that "no tour pro is doing them" and Rory has countless pictures on Google images squatting and deadlifting heavy. All things being equal if you are putting more force into the ground with the same golf swing, same flexbility, etc you are going to generate more club head speed. There is a reason an endeavor similar to hitting the ball further such as track and field throwing's entire training training regimen (aside from actual technique work and competitive reps) involves getting more explosive through power lifts, olympic lifts, plyos, flexibility work, etc and reaching peak explosiveness at the optimal time (NCAAs, Olympic Trials, Olympics, etc). Your one off experience with one single lift without having the efficiency of both you and your twins swings measured is irrelevant.

 

The photo you are talking about is, according to Rory, 120kg

 

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/golf/article-3451920/Rory-McIlroy-doesn-t-problem-lifting-weights-helps-better-golfer-is.html

 

For the sake of your argument, lets call that 'heavy'

 

(it's heavy for an untrained average man, but is more what I would call 'decently athletic' than outright strong)

 

He has definitely added muscle over the years, agreed?

 

So he is stronger, bigger, and therefore hits the ball further? Nope

 

2011 driving average 307

2016 driving average 306

 

oops..

 

See this is really fascinating. I'm starting to believe that weight training does not really help MOST golfers.

 

I know DJ is pretty much the longest hitter on Tour and also weight trains. Man,i just want to know how far he would hit it without that training! Further or shorter? Then again he is not a bulky guy, so unlike Tiger and Rory, his muscle mass does not necessarily impede his body rotation.

 

Neither Tiger or Rory are anything close to bulky and their rotation absolutely isn't impeded in any way. They both are very flexible

[kiteman]

 

More so than they used to be, unlike DJ who is pretty wirey. Also the guy I quoted said Rory's driving distance has basically remained static before and after working out hard.

[iteachgolf]

 

More so than they used to be, unlike DJ who is pretty wirey. Also the guy I quoted said Rory's driving distance has basically remained static before and after working out hard.

 

That doesn't make them bulky and it certainly doesn't mean they have lost any flexibility. I've commented multiple times I think working out will yield little to no gains distance wise for most people. Rory never had the goal to hit it further. It was always about stamina, injury prevention, and stability

[Nard_S]

More so than they used to be, unlike DJ who is pretty wirey. Also the guy I quoted said Rory's driving distance has basically remained static before and after working out hard.

 

That doesn't make them bulky and it certainly doesn't mean they have lost any flexibility. I've commented multiple times I think working out will yield little to no gains distance wise for most people. Rory never had the goal to hit it further. It was always about stamina, injury prevention, and stability

 

Pro golfers are already golf fit, weight training will add stamina and stability which count for quite a bit considering they have 4 days to grind through for a check. I have not been in the gym for months though I have hit lots of balls and I am feeling the loss of fitness on the last third of 18. I carry my bag so it matters more. Average Joe is not golf fit or gym fit, there is definite benefit to average guy hitting the gym to up his game and swing speed. A middle aged golfer with a soft core stands to gain plenty. Worked for me.

[iteachgolf]

More so than they used to be, unlike DJ who is pretty wirey. Also the guy I quoted said Rory's driving distance has basically remained static before and after working out hard.

 

That doesn't make them bulky and it certainly doesn't mean they have lost any flexibility. I've commented multiple times I think working out will yield little to no gains distance wise for most people. Rory never had the goal to hit it further. It was always about stamina, injury prevention, and stability

 

Pro golfers are already golf fit, weight training will add stamina and stability which count for quite a bit considering they have 4 days to grind through for a check. I have not been in the gym for months though I have hit lots of balls and I am feeling the loss of fitness on the last third of 18. I carry my bag so it matters more. Average Joe is not golf fit or gym fit, there is definite benefit to average guy hitting the gym to up his game and swing speed. A middle aged golfer with a soft core stands to gain plenty. Worked for me.

 

And I've seen a ton where it did nothing. I got down to less than 10% body fat and was way stronger and gained nothing. Actually swinging faster now and I'm in the worst shape I've been in years. Improving technique is the only way I've seen to significantly increase speed.

 

I didn't say it wouldn't help anyone. I said most will see little to no gain. And that's based on seeing thousands of golfers over more than a decade and being at multiple facilities will full time expert trainers on staff and measuring players speed.

[kiteman]

More so than they used to be, unlike DJ who is pretty wirey. Also the guy I quoted said Rory's driving distance has basically remained static before and after working out hard.

 

That doesn't make them bulky and it certainly doesn't mean they have lost any flexibility. I've commented multiple times I think working out will yield little to no gains distance wise for most people. Rory never had the goal to hit it further. It was always about stamina, injury prevention, and stability

 

Pro golfers are already golf fit, weight training will add stamina and stability which count for quite a bit considering they have 4 days to grind through for a check. I have not been in the gym for months though I have hit lots of balls and I am feeling the loss of fitness on the last third of 18. I carry my bag so it matters more. Average Joe is not golf fit or gym fit, there is definite benefit to average guy hitting the gym to up his game and swing speed. A middle aged golfer with a soft core stands to gain plenty. Worked for me.

 

And I've seen a ton where it did nothing. I got down to less than 10% body fat and was way stronger and gained nothing. Actually swinging faster now and I'm in the worst shape I've been in years. Improving technique is the only way I've seen to significantly increase speed.

 

I didn't say it wouldn't help anyone. I said most will see little to no gain. And that's based on seeing thousands of golfers over more than a decade and being at multiple facilities will full time expert trainers on staff and measuring players speed.

 

I guess this makes sense, however i wonder what makes someone swing faster...is it muscles, hip rotation, etc. Do we actually know? There are many golfers that only take a three quarter swing and yet hit the ball further than those who take a full swing, which sort of goes against logic to power distribution.

[iteachgolf]

A ton ha to do with what you did as a kid. Your ceiling is going be set by genetics and how you developed speed in your youth. From there it's all about efficient mechanics.

[Petunia Sprinkle]

I think a lot of people don't swing faster because they won't swing faster, for whatever reason (afraid to miss the ball, fear in general, rigid adherence to orthodoxy, etc.). Swinging fast, in my casual amateur point of view, is not swinging slowly speeded up. It's a different animal with different problems. Caution is the enemy of speed.

[Stryker]

I've gained 5 mph minimum with weight training. Most people just do not understand how to train speed with strength properly.

[kiteman]

I've gained 5 mph minimum with weight training. Most people just do not understand how to train speed with strength properly.

 

This is bound to be somewhat true, as just doing any ole weight lifting may not affect golf muscles.

 

I also agree some people choose not to swing fast, as pointed out maybe some people are prone to muscle, joint or bone issues and need to swing slower too.

[doublepar93]

I went from super out of shape, to completely changing my whole life routine, and getting in some of the best shape I've ever been in. Definitely noticed an increase in distance and shot height. As an added bonus, I'm not completely gassed when I walk the course anymore.

[MK7Golf21]

again, show me one. Just one.

 

I just read an article from Dustin johnsons trainer. He works out 6 days a week with 3 of those days as power training, Olympic style lifts like deadlifts rows and cleans. Starts out light and progressively gets heavier. There was a lot of info in article but he said clubhead speed has gone up 2mph and smash factor 5 percent, not bad for someone who's already way up there. Most of all he can swing as free as he wants without worrying about getting hurt, which is the goal.

[sailfishchris]

I just want to see a video of John Daly or Bubba Watson doing Olympic lifts.....then it will all make sense to me!

[PureStrikes54]

again, show me one. Just one.

 

How about 3 on video. This took all of 2 minutes to find. Case closed.

 

 

 

[milesgiles]

^ neither are doing any Olympic lifts or power lifts. Editors is trying to do a snatch but obviously hasn't done it before and it ends up as some c and j / snatch hybrid. It's also not more than 60k, probably 50.

 

Trigale is using even less, just some very light deadlifts.

 

I didn't say pro's don't workout, most do. But its like light and golf specific, with a focus on the core and flexibility, as I said in my first post.

 

My argument was that they don't train heavy on powerlifting and Olympic lifting because it isn't going to increase your distance. Thanks.

[PepsiDuck]

^ neither are doing any Olympic lifts or power lifts. Editors is trying to do a snatch but obviously hasn't done it before and it ends up as some c and j / snatch hybrid. It's also not more than 60k, probably 50.

 

Trigale is using even less, just some very light deadlifts.

 

I didn't say pro's don't workout, most do. But its like light and golf specific, with a focus on the core and flexibility, as I said in my first post.

 

My argument was that they don't train heavy on powerlifting and Olympic lifting because it isn't going to increase your distance. Thanks.

 

I apologize for my late entry into this thread with no context of where we're at in the discussion.

 

My argument is that they don't train heavy on powerlifting because they are too physically weak to lift more. I recall seeing Cameron in person at a tournament and he is a twig. Most tour players could fit both their arms in a single shirt sleeve...

[Petunia Sprinkle]

Tringale looks more like he's doing physical therapy than weight training (which may actually be more useful to a golfer). The other two, Edfors and whoever that is, look like physical therapy is in their future (why would a professional golfer risk doing behind-the-neck push presses?).

 

Here are some links to deadlift and power clean standards from exrx.net.

 

Deadlift - http://www.exrx.net/Testing/WeightLifting/DeadliftStandards.html

 

Power Clean - http://www.exrx.net/Testing/WeightLifting/CleanStandards.html

 

It looks like Tringale is using 65lbs. for all three lifts (deadlift, power clean & push press and row). According to Wikipedia, he weighs 185lbs. at 6'2".

 

Maybe this is extremely cynical, but I wonder if he might get the same, or more benefit from a cheaper, less equipment dependent yoga class.

[sailfishchris]

we need these guys!

 

[PureStrikes54]

As piss poor as their form is and lack of massive weight on the bar they are still doing 'olympic lifts'. Tringales trainer Joey D (who trains a number of other tour guys) even specifically says tour players are doing olympic lifts. Mile's comment was no one is doing them and demanded to be shown just one.

[Nard_S]

A ton ha to do with what you did as a kid. Your ceiling is going be set by genetics and how you developed speed in your youth. From there it's all about efficient mechanics.

 

And how many people past 35 are in the condition they were below 35, maybe 15% and of them they probably still have dropped off due to Father Time. My greater point is that conditioning can be well worth it's benefit on a amateur golfer. Technique holds the trump card to faster club speed but a good body can do a lot to facilitate good technique and raise the bar on what a "comfortable" swing on the course can be.

 

The only guy I played with in the last 5 years who jaw dropping with his power was a 40 year old Korean who is a 5th degree Karate Master.Yeah, he was textbook on mechanics but his body could execute to perfection. I'm fairly certain his life long conditioning has something to do with his effortless looking 300 yard drives.

[chris975d]

I can share my experience, but I feel my case will be on the extreme end. 38 years old now, been athletic/competed in sports virtually my entire life. Started playing golf around 7 years old, but played football as my "serious" sport middle school and high school, with the requisite weight training our coaches gave us. Once out of high school and starting college, I got into cross country running, lost most of the bulk I had accumulated over the years of weight training and was running 5 and 10Ks at around 145-150 lbs bodyweight. Most conditioned period of my life, and was the longest I've ever been as far as golf distance is concerned. I did do some relatively light weight training during this time as well, but nothing (as far as max lifts go) like during high school for football. About the time I graduated college I got back into weight training, focusing on competitive bodybuilding before moving to competitive powerlifting. By 25 years old my 3 competitive lifts (bench, squat, dead) were 405 bench, high 500s on the other two, and bodyweight was approx 190-200 lbs at sub-10% bodyfat. I've continued to train in a powerlifting oriented style since, competing off and on when I can stay healthy (injury free), with my strongest/most muscle mass point probably being about 2.5 years ago with bench/squat/dead lifts of 540/675/655 and 230 lbs bodyweight at 13% bodyfat.

 

I give all that info to say that despite playing golf that entire time (and being in the golf industry since 16 years old, general manager of a course for the past 12 years), my greatest distance came at a time of my lowest bodyweight/muscle mass. During all the time I was adding significant muscle mass and strength, I lost a pretty significant amount of distance. At 35-36 years old I was at the strongest/most muscle mass of my life, but was shorter off the tee than when I was 18 years old, a lot smaller, and literally almost half as strong. Now again, I know that my example isn't the norm as most people aren't gaining 70 lbs of relatively lean body mass from 23 years old to their mid-30s, but I can say that adding strength and muscle does not always equate to increased distance. I have customers all the time making comments like "I'll bet you can hit it a mile!", and I'm always telling them that all of "this" (pointing to my arms and chest) does little to hit a golf ball. Gets in the way more than anything.

[Largechris1]

Bit surprised at these continuous claims about pros specifically "Olympic Lifting". As Milesgiles and others have pointed out ITT, the examples given are a million miles from "Olympic Lifting".

Edfors has clearly never done it before, Tringale is lifting even less, and the Sadlowski "deadlifts" (not Olympic Lifts) are horrendous, he will have continuous crooked neck problems if he carries on like that.

 

McIlroys weightlifting videos (again, NOT Olympic Lifting, sorry to keep making the point) show very average form as well, and he is a good example of a player very slightly bulked up who has not added any clubhead speed in five years of such training.

 

My thoughts, which I have posted before, is that I've seen some men and women who are true couch potatoes who are really, really, weak the first time they go to a gym. Like struggling with an empty bar weak. Yes I believe that many of them, if they play golf, would really struggle to swing briskly, even from the point of view of wrist / grip strength.

 

For true, completely untrained, couch potatoes like the above, I can believe there will be swing speed benefits from a few months weight training. Neuromuscular efficiency, stamina benefits to be able to hit more balls etc.

 

But I see no evidence that anyone who has had even a passing aquaitance with school sport, a moderately active lifestyle etc. has ever added more swing speed from weight training.

 

Jason Zuback is the guy I'm trying to be open minded about, maybe the exception, but again, are there any real swing speed stats for him pre and post weightlifting ? Or was he learning and improving his swing efficiency at the same time as improving his weightlifting stats and one has not much to do with the other?

 

[drewtaylor21]

My argument was that they don't train heavy on powerlifting and Olympic lifting because it isn't going to increase your distance. Thanks.

 

First off, your argument seems to have changed a bit in the last page or two. Originally it was that no tour pros do powerlifting or Oly lifting, because they don't have a carryover to golf. From post #41:

 

Strength and conditioning works when it is sport specific. Squats and deads have an obvious direct carryover to football or rugby. For golf, core work, flexibility, balance, and explosive RELEVANT movements (downward cable swings, twists) are going to help. Powerlifting movements, hell no, which is why no tour pro does them (apart from the injury risk)

 

Then, when you were shown multiple examples of golfers doing powerlifting movements, your argument changed to "they aren't lifting heavy."

 

I'm sure you understand that "heavy" is relative. 95% 1RM is 95%1RM, whether it's a 200lb deadlift or a 700lb deadlift. It's specific to the individual. With that in mind, are you really arguing that if powerlifting and Olympic lifting were beneficial to golf, that we would see golfers with the highest swing speed putting up elite numbers in the gym? (or vice versa)

 

You yourself said that powerlifts and Oly lifts are great for power sports like football and rugby. So by your logic, shouldn't we be seeing NFL linemen competing at the highest levels of powerlifting?

 

The reason we don't see that is that there is no direct link between being elite at lifting and being elite at ANY sport. There are similarities (powerful hip extension in PL/OL and football for example), but they are still very different motor patterns. In many instances, the best lifters on an NFL football team are on the practice squad. Several top strength coaches (Joe DeFranco, Mike Boyle to name 2 off the top of my head) have made very good arguments for why they don't rely on olympic lifts for their athletes. The learning curve for the technique required simply takes too long for an athlete whose technical concerns MUST be on the field (see Edfors, Tringale, and Noren above LOL....good grief). The point of the movement is explosive hip and knee extension, to be applied against an opponent, not to become the best lifter in the gym, so why not use a less technical movement that accomplishes the same thing? (good arguments on both sides of that one, and getting away from the point here....sorry!)

 

Dan made a good point when he said that the two issues that determine speed in the golf swing are technique and (essentially) muscle fiber type/genetics. I'd agree completely. However, I'd also argue that just as with any sport, the guy who lost the genetic lottery can absolutely improve his abilities through proper training and getting STRONGER. That doesn't mean he has to become a world-class lifter, but increasing strength and the ability to express power/speed can definitely occur in the weight room, even with loads that appear average to many.

 

Wrapping things back up to the original point of the OP, can training improve swing speed? We can all argue about personal experience and what we've found to be true for ourselves, but research says yes, albeit a small amount, even in high level golfers: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/7273349_Effects_of_Physical_Conditioning_on_Intercollegiate_Golfer_Performance

 

Whether Tour pros are increasing swing speed using Oly or PL movements, none of us can accurately say. We don't have the data to make that statement. However, the existing evidence indicates that the potential is certainly there.

[Petunia Sprinkle]

The real key to speed is to imagine the ball is the back of my ex-wife's mother's head. If you knew her, you'd never worry about distance ever again.