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Build Your Custom Base — To Flare Or Not To Flare

Build Your Custom Base — To Flare Or Not To Flare

CODE

MASTER TRACK

Beginner

duration

02:24

publish date

what you'll learn

Stance Calibration

Practice Station Awareness

Structure | Solid Foundations

Balance Integration

Lesson details

There is no perfect stance — only the one that matches your body.


In this Master Track, Jonathan Craddock shows you how to engineer your stance using mobility, stability, and club-specific requirements. You’ll learn how to map your natural ranges, find your ideal width for every club, and use foot flare to unlock hinge freedom and protect your back. Discover how the Mobility–Stability chain dictates whether your swing flows or fights itself, and why personalising your base instantly improves balance, strike, and sequencing.


Stop copying stances. Start building your own blueprint.

Read More for the 0.01% Only.


🚨 FOR REAL GOLF ANORAKS ONLY — DO NOT READ UNLESS YOU'RE IN THE 0.01% CLUB.

Most golfers assume stance is a static position.
Elite players know it is a structure — built, tested, and refined around the body you actually have… not the one you imagine.

This Master Track gives you the upgrade:
structure without stiffness, freedom without collapse.

The Mobility–Stability Chain (Pete’s movement law)

Your stance determines whether this chain works — or breaks.

  • Ankles → Mobility

  • Knees → Stability

  • Hips → Mobility

  • Thoracic Spine → Control

Too wide?
You lock the hips and kill your arc.

Too narrow?
You sway, lose timing, and collapse pressure.

Get the stance calibrated — and the whole chain fires in sequence.

The 3 Constants of Elite Stance Engineering

These are the non-negotiables that keep movement efficient:

  1. Club Across Hips
    Reveals your natural joint line so you build width from anatomy, not opinion.

  2. Shoulders Inside Feet
    Creates space for the engine to fire underneath, keeping the spiral free.

  3. Pressure Calibration
    Weight centered through arches and balls of the feet — glutes active, knees soft.

Foot Flare: The Hidden Power Lever

Foot flare isn’t style — it’s joint protection and hinge access.

  • Lead Foot (10–20°)
    Frees the pelvis, protects lower back, and encourages clean rotation.

  • Trail Foot (Neutral–Slight)
    Helps load the hip and build a stable coil.

Just adjusting flare can unlock immediate freedom in transition.

Club-Specific Basebuilding (Your New Blueprint)

Wedges → Hip-width: precision, control, short arc.
Mid-Irons → Shoulder-width: optimal blend of mobility + structure.
Driver → Slightly wider: load, push, and generate pressure-driven speed.

Film your stance from face-on and down-the-line, compare width to your coil freedom, and you’ll feel your blueprint forming.

The Spiral Code Principle

“When the base fits the body, the body can finally do its job.”

This lesson doesn’t give you a stance to copy.
It gives you the tools to build a stance that belongs to you — a base that unlocks balance, protects your spine, and fires the spiral with zero resistance.

This is stance… engineered, not guessed.
This is movement… built from the ground up.
This is the Spiral Code.

Read More

There is no perfect stance — only the one that matches your body.


In this Master Track, Jonathan Craddock shows you how to engineer your stance using mobility, stability, and club-specific requirements. You’ll learn how to map your natural ranges, find your ideal width for every club, and use foot flare to unlock hinge freedom and protect your back. Discover how the Mobility–Stability chain dictates whether your swing flows or fights itself, and why personalising your base instantly improves balance, strike, and sequencing.


Stop copying stances. Start building your own blueprint.

Read More for the 0.01% Only.


🚨 FOR REAL GOLF ANORAKS ONLY — DO NOT READ UNLESS YOU'RE IN THE 0.01% CLUB.

Most golfers assume stance is a static position.
Elite players know it is a structure — built, tested, and refined around the body you actually have… not the one you imagine.

This Master Track gives you the upgrade:
structure without stiffness, freedom without collapse.

The Mobility–Stability Chain (Pete’s movement law)

Your stance determines whether this chain works — or breaks.

  • Ankles → Mobility

  • Knees → Stability

  • Hips → Mobility

  • Thoracic Spine → Control

Too wide?
You lock the hips and kill your arc.

Too narrow?
You sway, lose timing, and collapse pressure.

Get the stance calibrated — and the whole chain fires in sequence.

The 3 Constants of Elite Stance Engineering

These are the non-negotiables that keep movement efficient:

  1. Club Across Hips
    Reveals your natural joint line so you build width from anatomy, not opinion.

  2. Shoulders Inside Feet
    Creates space for the engine to fire underneath, keeping the spiral free.

  3. Pressure Calibration
    Weight centered through arches and balls of the feet — glutes active, knees soft.

Foot Flare: The Hidden Power Lever

Foot flare isn’t style — it’s joint protection and hinge access.

  • Lead Foot (10–20°)
    Frees the pelvis, protects lower back, and encourages clean rotation.

  • Trail Foot (Neutral–Slight)
    Helps load the hip and build a stable coil.

Just adjusting flare can unlock immediate freedom in transition.

Club-Specific Basebuilding (Your New Blueprint)

Wedges → Hip-width: precision, control, short arc.
Mid-Irons → Shoulder-width: optimal blend of mobility + structure.
Driver → Slightly wider: load, push, and generate pressure-driven speed.

Film your stance from face-on and down-the-line, compare width to your coil freedom, and you’ll feel your blueprint forming.

The Spiral Code Principle

“When the base fits the body, the body can finally do its job.”

This lesson doesn’t give you a stance to copy.
It gives you the tools to build a stance that belongs to you — a base that unlocks balance, protects your spine, and fires the spiral with zero resistance.

This is stance… engineered, not guessed.
This is movement… built from the ground up.
This is the Spiral Code.

Read More

About Author

Jonathan Craddock

The Spiral Code Director of Instruction & Peter Cowen Master Coach

Jonathan Craddock is an elite performance coach with The Spiral Code, teaching globally through personal tuition and golf schools. Jonathan brings over two decades of experience to his role. He specializes in designing tailored programs for golfers of all levels, from junior elites to aspiring professionals.


Jonathan began his career under the mentorship of David Dunk, a retired UK tour player whose dedication and ethos left a lasting impact. His commitment to continuous learning was further inspired by Peter Cowen's own pursuit of improvement, even amidst success. Jonathan embraces this philosophy, striving to help his students reach new heights in their game.
Throughout his career, Jonathan has created and implemented golf development programs for schools, colleges, and federations.  One of his notable initiatives, The Peter Cowen Junior Development Program, will be available to you soon inside of the members area.


Qualifications
With 20 years of teaching experience, Jonathan Craddock is a Master Peter Cowen Professional and an Advanced PGA Qualified Instructor. He is a Level 3 member of the Club Managers Association of Europe, demonstrating his extensive knowledge of golf coaching and club management.


Jonathan's qualifications include a comprehensive range of specialized certifications, ensuring a well-rounded approach to golf instruction.

Level 3 Qualified Personal Trainer
Level 2 Golfing Machine Instructor
Titleist Performance Institute (TPI) certified in Junior, Golf Mechanics, Power, and Fitness
Dr. Kwon Biomechanics Level 2 certified
Paul Chek Biomechanics certified
K-Motion Biomechanics certified
BodiTrak Ground Force Mechanics certified
Trackman University Level 2 certified
GravityFit qualified

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