The Tour Pro Whose Trainer Is ChatGPT (And Why His "Flaw" Is Actually a Superpower)

When Dylan Menante visited TPI last winter, we asked him the same question we ask every player: who is on your team?

His answer: "Literally, just my dad."

A self-described "absolute nerd for golf," Dylan's prep is largely self-directed with the exception of his father: no trainer and no physio. 

Now in his first full season on the Korn Ferry Tour, the San Diego native and University of North Carolina works out in his home gym with a bench, a bar, and a squat rack. When he needs new training ideas, he asks ChatGPT.

"Give me some leg variations to make myself explosive," he explained, describing his prompts. "It'll come up with two good ones, and the third one I'm doing myself."

This was a first for us. We've never had a player tell us that AI was helping manage their training, though we suspect it will not be the last.

Dylan's resourcefulness is a testament to the drive required to be great.  The best players in the world don't need an invitation to work.  They are committed and accountable.  Additionally, ChatGPT hasn't been Dylan's only resource when it comes to training.  While at UNC, Dylan had the benefit of participating in an elite strength and conditioning program, led by TPI Certified Erik Hernandez.  That experience gave him a strong foundation that he's built on since turning pro.

That said, one of our goals is to show Dylan how our assessment and the expertise of a fitness and rehab professional might be able to elevate his program.  

 

Three Wishes

We always ask players: if we are your genie today, what are your three wishes? Dylan's were clear.

More distance. Less lag. A stronger, healthier lower back.

The second wish was the most interesting. Dylan has one of the most extreme lag positions we have ever measured. The shaft nearly bounces off his right shoulder in transition. He was concerned it was costing him speed, making his swing timing-dependent and inconsistent, and was considering trying to reduce it over the offseason.

 

What the Screen and the Lab Revealed

Dylan's TPI screen was solid: a slightly tight lead hip, a stiff right ankle, and a mild S-posture.  Nothing alarming, though these are findings we often see in players complaining of lower back pain.  Anything that inhibits rotation (tight ankle and hip) or may encourage excessive extension (s-posture) is something we want to address, especially in golfers with a history of low back pain. 

The power testing was more revealing, however. His lower body tested well, but there was a clear power deficit in his core and upper body. In our terms, the engine was not as big as it needed to be to create elite speed consistently.

The force plates and 3D motion capture completed the picture.

His ground reaction forces were excellent, with vertical force at 229% of body weight against a PGA Tour average of roughly 202%. His body rotation speeds (pelvis, trunk, and arms) were all below tour average. His club, however, was rotating at 2,537 degrees per second, well above the tour average of roughly 2,200 to 2,300.

He was creating power (kinetics), but not transferring it efficiently up the chain (kinematic sequence).

The conclusion: the lag and late release Dylan was considering eliminating is likely a major contributor to his speed. It is not necessarily a flaw. It is compensating for an engine that is not yet big enough. Removing the lag without improving his strength and power would probably make him significantly slower.

 

The Real Problem: Trunk Rotation

3D data did reveal a break in Dylan's kinematic chain, but maybe not the one he expected. Dylan's arm speed peaks before his trunk speed, which is normally the pattern we see in players who cast the club. Dylan is pretty much the opposite of a caster, which makes his case unusually instructive.

Dylan's trunk rotation at impact measured about 18 degrees open, where typical tour values are closer to 35. There's a good chance that the stalled trunk could help nearly everything on his wish list: the power leak, the timing-dependent feel he dislikes, and the left miss with his irons that appears when his hands release late to square the face.

 

The Prescription

Rather than eliminating his lag, the plan was to encourage him to get more out of his trunk.  In addition to the program generated by the TPI Pro app, Dr. Rose experimented with a drill and exercise:

Kneeling swings. Hitting balls from the knees forces the trunk to rotate around a quiet lower body, which is the exact movement Dylan's swing is missing. His first attempts were a struggle, which is precisely why it is the right drill.  Sometimes a drill a golfer needs the most feels like torture when they first try it.

Medicine ball slams. Overhead and half-kneeling slams teach ground-up energy transfer and train the trunk to fire before the arms.

A bigger engine. In the TPI Pro app, we outlined a dedicated power program - emphasizing core and upper body work - which will not only build a bigger engine, but could also help protect his lower back. As the trunk becomes more active and the engine grows, the lag could naturally reduce on its own, the left miss should disappear, and the speed should climb.

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Dylan took the findings in stride, including our closing advice: the best players in the world surround themselves with a team, including a trainer and medical professional, all working from the same plan. Training himself has taken him remarkably far, but as we told him:

"If you want to play like the best in the world, you have to act like the best in the world."

As of this writing, Dylan has a win and three top-10 finishes in 2026, and sits 7th on the Korn Ferry Tour points list, well positioned to earn his PGA TOUR card. We are excited to continue following his progress this season.

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If you're a golfer interested in a physical assessment, you can connect with a TPI Certified expert via our Find an Expert page.