JR 137
Grandmaster
Sure some teachers want something done exactly as taught. But more often than not, that is due to the rank/experience of the student. You shouldn’t start changing things too much until you’ve got a good understanding of it.
As far as why should that guy change what he’s doing even though it’s completely the opposite of what he should do (I don’t know HEMA, so it’s an assumption)? He may very well be getting away with it against lesser opponents and will pay the price against better opponents. I had a baseball player at a college I worked at who was the best hitter I’ve seen. Set all kinds of HR and hitting records. Actually, he buried every record. Despite this and the fact that he was a Div 1 player, he didn’t get drafted. According to a scout that used to come around often, he refused to change his swing. He was obviously too good at the level he was playing at, but the scout said he wouldn’t touch the ball at the next level if he kept swinging like he was. Sure enough he was signed to an independent league team and went 0 for however many dozen at bats. Other than a couple walks, he didn’t reach first base in the 2 months or so he was playing before he was cut. The only reason he lasted that long was he was a very good outfielder.
Perhaps that’s the case with that guy. Or he’s so good at everything else that he can afford to do that. Or it really works for him and no one else.
