Padraig Harrington and Rory McIlroy may be the stars but Dr. Paul Hurrion has helped both from behind the scenes. By Roger Valberg
Malaysian Golf Digest : November 2009

f you have never heard of Dr. Paul Hurrion, it is no surprise. He is rarely in Asia and even then his work is strictly in the background of the many professionals he helps at his Quintic Labs. If the old maxim of ‘drive for show and putt for dough’ has any truth in it, then this is the man you’d want in your corner. But calling him merely a putting guru is like saying Bill Gates is merely a rich man. There is so much more going on in that head that has shored up Padraig Harrington’s putting so much so that he won three majors and helped Rory McIlroy take his maiden win this year.
It takes a certain kind of human being to not only be able to be an authority on putting, a dark art if there ever was one, but to also establish a company that rolls out putters based on his research. Dr. Hurrion has also ventured into the realms of training aides to help the average golfer. To top it all off, he also advises and assists other athletes in sports other than golf. The base of his work centres around bio-mechanics.
“Sports biomechanics uses the scientific methods of mechanics to study the effects of various forces on the sports performer. Therefore, in short it tells you why something has happened. It is part of the overall picture of sports performance,” explained Dr. Hurrion.
“Biomechanics focuses on the forces that act on the human neuro-musculoskeletal system, velocities, accelerations, torque, momentum, and inertia. It also considers aspects of the behavior of sports implements, footwear and surfaces where these affect athletic performance or injury prevention,” he added.
The subject though is wide and it can be divided up into two sections: Performance Improvement & Injury Prevention. His Quintic Labs work on research for questions that an athlete may ask. “What is the best run-up for a high jumper? How should the knee angle be modified for the delivery stride of a fast bowler in cricket? What is the velocity of the swimmer after the tumble turn?
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