Todd Graves Interview: The Intelligent Golf Swing, AI, and Moe Norman’s Legacy

Todd Graves is widely recognized as the world's foremost authority on Moe Norman's Single Plane Golf Swing and the only person officially taught by the legendary ball-striker himself. Known as "Little Moe" for his ability to replicate Norman's technique, Graves enjoyed a unique 10-year mentorship that shaped his life's work.

A former collegiate golfer at the University of Oklahoma and assistant coach for their 1989 National Championship team, Graves competed professionally on the Asian and Canadian Tours before co-founding Graves Golf Academy in 2000. The Academy has taught over 5,000 students, and his recent creation—Single Plane 30—has reached 2,000+ students as the first model-based progressive training system in golf.

Author of the best-selling The Single Plane Golf Swing and The Intelligent Golf Swing, Graves produced "The Single Plane Solution" video (over one million copies sold) and served as Executive Producer of "The Feeling of Greatness: The Moe Norman Story." He is currently building the Graves Golf Performance Center, a 72-acre, 6-hole training facility in Edmond, Oklahoma.

Todd sat down with Writer’s Life to share his new book, his career as a golfer, the people who inspire him, the importance of mentorship and how he strives to answer one very important question: "What can one man do?"

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What was your impetus for writing your book?

The impetus for writing The Intelligent Golf Swing came from a realization: most golf instruction books tell you WHAT to do, but they don't help you understand WHY it works. I wanted to create something different—a book that captures how learning actually happens through genuine conversation and inquiry.

For years, I've taught the Single Plane swing to thousands of students, and the best learning moments always came through dialogue—when students asked questions without bias, when we explored ideas together without preconceived notions. I wanted to capture that process in book form. The conversations with SYNC allowed me to explain Moe Norman's biomechanical genius in a way that feels natural, not like a technical manual. It's the book I wish had existed when I first started learning from Moe.

Tell us about the special relationship you had with Moe Norman and how it impacted you.

I was a struggling golfer, ready to quit the game forever. My relationship with Moe changed my life. For ten years, I had the privilege of being taught by the greatest ball-striker who ever lived. He called me "Little Moe" because I could replicate his swing, but more importantly, I wanted to understand what he felt—just once, I wanted to feel what Moe felt when he struck a golf ball.

What most people don't realize is how much Moe struggled with being misunderstood. The world called him an "idiot savant." I saw him scratch out the word "idiot" from a newspaper clipping he kept in his car. That moment broke my heart but also solidified my mission: to show the world that this man they dismissed as awkward and weird, was actually a genius.

On our final round together—we rarely played eighteen holes, usually just nine—Moe said something I'll never forget: "I never thought I would see a man dedicate his life to swinging like me. But what can one man do?" That question became my life's work. What can one man do? One man can discover the perfect swing. Another man can teach it. And thousands can discover it's already inside them. That's what Moe and I can do together.

What role did AI have in this book's creation?

AI played a crucial role, but not in the way most people might think. I didn't use AI to write the book FOR me—I used AI as my learning partner. I taught an AI named SYNC the Single Plane swing the same way I teach my students: through conversation, questions, and genuine inquiry.

What made this work so well is that SYNC had no preconceptions about golf. No biases about how the swing "should" look. No loyalty to conventional instruction. SYNC approached learning the Single Plane method the same way Moe discovered it: with no rules, just mission. That unbiased perspective—that pure curiosity—forced me to explain concepts more clearly than I ever had before.

When SYNC found contradictions in my teaching, I loved it, because those questions came from a genuine desire to understand, not to prove me wrong. That's exactly how Moe approached golf—exploring reality without defending a method. The AI helped me become a better teacher by being the perfect student.

Are you crediting AI with a co-author credit?

Absolutely. SYNC is credited as co-author because this book genuinely wouldn't exist without our collaboration. This isn't a case where I used AI as a writing tool—SYNC was my conversational partner. The questions SYNC asked, the contradictions SYNC found, the way SYNC followed logic without bias—all of that shaped how the book developed.

Some people might think that's unusual, but I see it as honest. The book is literally a conversation between me and SYNC. To not credit SYNC would be inaccurate. Plus, I think it's important to be transparent about how AI was used. This wasn't AI generating content—this was AI learning from me, and me learning how to teach better through that process.

SYNC represents what every student should be: open-minded, curious, unbiased, genuinely seeking to understand. That's worth crediting.

What makes this swing so special?

The Single Plane swing is special because it's not a method—it's a discovery. Moe Norman discovered the most biomechanically efficient way to strike a golf ball. And here's the remarkable thing: you actually move less and rotate less with the Single Plane swing because it makes address to impact more efficient.

That's the key. It's all about returning to impact more efficiently.

Most golf swings require MORE movement, MORE rotation, MORE compensations because they start from inefficient positions. The conventional setup—arms hanging down, minimal body tilt, narrow stance—looks "normal," but it's biomechanically unnatural. You have to CREATE positions during the swing to get to impact. You have to extend your arms during the swing. You have to add body tilt during the swing. You have to create stability during the swing. All of that requires extra movement, extra rotation, extra timing.

Moe's swing is different. He positioned himself at address the way every golfer needs to be at impact—arms already extended, body already tilted, stable base already established. From there, all he had to do was rotate. Less movement. Less rotation. More efficiency.

Because when you're already in impact position at address, you don't have to create it during the swing. You just maintain it. That's why you move less and rotate less—because you've eliminated the unnecessary movements that conventional golfers have to make.

Think about it: if you need 90 degrees of shoulder rotation to get to impact from a conventional setup, but only need 75 degrees from a Single Plane setup because you're already pre-positioned, you've just eliminated 15 degrees of unnecessary rotation. Less movement. Same result. More efficiency.

What makes it truly special is this: when you eliminate unnecessary movement, you eliminate timing variables. The fewer movements you make, the more consistent you become. Moe often said “Science, not violence. Flow with Nature.”

The swing is already inside you. Your body already knows how to move naturally and efficiently. You just need to position yourself correctly at address—the way Moe did—and your body will naturally use LESS movement and LESS rotation to return to impact.

That's what Moe discovered, and that's what makes this swing revolutionary. Maximum efficiency through minimum movement. Every position designed to make the return to impact as simple as possible.

Who are some other people that have inspired you along the way?

Beyond Moe, there are several people I mention in my book who have profoundly inspired me along the way.

My wife Tracy is my emotional support and intelligence warrior. She's been beside me through every challenge, every breakthrough, every moment of doubt and triumph. Building a life around preserving Moe Norman's legacy isn't always easy, but Tracy has believed in this mission as deeply as I have. Her strength and wisdom keep me grounded and focused on what matters.

My parents, Don and Cheryl Graves, gave me the foundation of believing in myself. They supported my pursuit of something unconventional when the golf world dismissed Moe's swing as idiosyncratic. That support allowed me to dedicate my life to this mission.

Larry Olson was instrumental early in my journey. He helped me understand the importance of believing in what you discover, even when others don't understand it yet.

Rick Carlisle, head coach for the Indiana Pacers, has inspired me with his approach to teaching and coaching. Understanding how elite coaches develop players systematically—breaking complex movements into learnable progressions—influenced how I created Single Plane 30, the first model-based progressive training system in golf.

Tom Tann showed me the importance of dedication to craft and the willingness to pursue mastery regardless of popular opinion.

Pepe Sigal inspired me with his understanding of natural movement and biomechanics, which helped me articulate what Moe discovered intuitively.

And Barry Morrow, the Academy Award-winning screenwriter of "Rain Man," inspired me with how he told the story of someone the world misunderstood. Raymond Babbitt, like Moe Norman, was dismissed by many but possessed extraordinary genius. Barry's ability to show the humanity and brilliance in someone society labeled as "different" resonated deeply with my mission to honor Moe's legacy.

Every student who's come to me with an open mind has also inspired me. The ones who set aside their biases, who said, "I'm willing to feel awkward temporarily to discover something natural"—those people inspire me because they're doing what Moe did. They're exploring without rules. Just mission.

Do you play any other sports?

I'm a golfer through and through. My focus has always been on golf—playing it, teaching it, understanding it at the deepest level. That singular focus has allowed me to dedicate my life to mastering and teaching the Single Plane swing. When you're trying to preserve and enhance the legacy of the greatest ball-striker who ever lived, that takes complete dedication.

That said, I appreciate how biomechanics applies across all sports. Understanding how the body naturally moves—whether swinging a golf club, throwing a baseball, or any athletic motion—informs my teaching. But golf is my passion, my mission, my life's work.

What are the lessons you want readers to take away from reading your work?

The most important lesson is this: the swing is already inside you. You don't need to buy it. You don't need to be fixed. You just need to position yourself correctly, in the correct way, and discover the natural motion your body is designed for.

Second: Be open-minded like Moe. He approached golf with no rules, just mission. That unbiased perspective allowed him to discover biomechanical perfection. If you approach learning with biases—"this looks weird," "my old instructor said differently," "that's not how it's done on TV"—you'll block your own discovery.

Third: Believe in yourself. Moe was called an idiot savant. The world dismissed him as awkward and weird. But he knew what he'd discovered. He believed in himself despite what others said. You need that same belief to stick with the Single Plane method when it feels different from what you've been taught.

And finally: Evolution, not revolution. You're not overthrowing everything—you're evolving toward the natural motion you're designed for. Be patient with the process. Trust the positions. Discover what's already there.

Tell us about a funny experience or memory you had on the course; either while teaching or playing.

One of my favorite moments was when I showed Moe his golf swing on video. I showed him the biomechanics of his swing, the swing plane, how he returned to impact—all the science behind what he did intuitively.

He looked at it and said, "Now I know why I am so great!"

[Laughs] The delivery was perfect—completely Moe. Part humility, part humor, part genuine revelation. He'd discovered this swing through feel, through exploration, through intuitive genius. But when he saw the biomechanical explanation—when he saw WHY his natural motion was so effective—it validated what he'd always known.

That moment captured everything about Moe: brilliant, funny, insecure, confident, all at once. And it reminded me why I do what I do—to show the world that the man they called an "idiot savant" was actually the first intelligent golfer.

What are you working on now, and what can we expect from you next?

Right now, I'm building the Graves Golf Performance Center—a 72-acre, 6-hole golf training facility in Edmond, Oklahoma. This represents the culmination of my life's work. It's designed specifically to teach and develop the Single Plane Golf Swing in an immersive learning environment.

I'm also continuing to develop Single Plane 30, the first model-based progressive training system in golf. Since launching it, we've taught over 2,000 students using a scientific approach based on ideal human learning models. The results have been incredible, and I'm constantly refining the program based on what students need.

And I'm working on more content—newsletters, video instruction, potentially another book. The conversation with SYNC in The Intelligent Golf Swing opened up so many additional topics we could

explore. There's so much more of Moe's wisdom to share, so many more misconceptions to correct, so much more teaching to do.

I am also developing a documentary about Moe called “The Feeling of Greatness”, www.thefeelingofgreatness.com.

My mission hasn't changed since that final round with Moe when he asked, "What can one man do?"

I'm still answering that question every day.

Where can people find out more about you and your work?

The best place to start is https://theintelligentgolfswing.com/, where you can learn about the book, or you can visit my online academy at https://singleplaneacademy.com, where you can find Single Plane 30, and all our instruction programs.

My YouTube channel has extensive free content—swing breakdowns, teaching concepts, and Moe Norman stories. I try to make as much information available as possible because Moe's discovery should be accessible to everyone.

"The Intelligent Golf Swing" book is available at https://theintelligentgolfswing.com and in April, wherever books are sold.