Load Wrists for Lag

Search here and you'll find several posts that refer to the wrists in the full golf swing; there's even a previous post on wrist action at the top of the swing, and I wanted to expand on that fundamental quite a bit in this post.

First, it's important to make a few concepts clear. Many wanna-be golf instructors (and some legitimate ones) tend to use "hinge" and "cock" interchangeably when referring to the wrist action in the golf swing. The wrists actually cock up and down in the golf swing (more correctly called radial and ulner deviation), and the right wrist also hinges backwards or dorsiflexes on the backswing. The wrists should up-cock on the backswing (radial deviation) and down-cock on the downswing (ulner deviation); the right wrist should delay straightening from its hinged position; and the left wrist should NEVER dorsiflex or hinge backwards during the downswing (also known as a flip).

It's important to allow the weight of the golf club to cock the wrists vertically at the top of the backswing; this explains why so many golf professionals say that you should learn to feel the club head and use light grip pressure with soft wrists. Doing this effectively sets or cocks the wrists (especially the left wrist) at the top naturally. The feeling of the left wrist setting or loading at the top (due to the weight of the club head) should be felt at the base of the left thumb and the side of the wrist (as the left thumb somewhat supports the shaft) and felt in certain forearm muscles. TGM circles call this using Power Accumulator #2. This feeling of loading the wrists (sometimes called float loading) can be used as a trigger to begin the downswing weight shift; doing it this way will serve to keep the lag well into the downswing and helps provide that whip-like feel at the bottom. When one gets to the top, there's a sense of everything collecting, as the club should be the last thing moving before and during the transition. No conscious effort to hold lag is needed, because you'll be delivering the lag you loaded at the top. Finally, it's not necessary to rush down when you feel that load in the wrists; you should transition smoothly using the lower body to start down.

I feel you can still float load the wrists at the top while setting the wrists earlier in the backswing. You should experiment to find what feels and works best for you.

If your grip pressure is about a 3 on a scale from 1-10, the club head will eventually pass “Top Dead Center”, fall on its own and automatically hinge your wrists correctly. What it looks like, is a flat to bowed out front wrist (a la Paul Azinger, Dustin Johnson, Trevino, or Hogan’s supination just before impact). Now we’re talking. This wrist hinge has the club face square to the plane. You will know it is right if the toe of the club looks about 45 degrees to the plane not in line with it. This correct passive wrist hinge ALLOWS THE BODY TO TURN AS HARD, FAST OR SLOW THROUGH TO THE FINISH without any need for manipulation. There is no need to stop and throw the club head at the ball. In fact that messes everything up.

DUPLESSISGOLF » Active Hinging vs. Passive Hinging of the Wrists

In a word, if there's no "give" at the top of your backswing, you start losing your wrist cock almost immediately. If you have some "give," the club doesn't react immediately. Instead, it absorbs the energy at the change of direction and holds it for a few microseconds while you start down, then gives you a bounce that adds power to your downswing. That "give" comes from several areas, like your overall flexibility, but there are primarily two sources that concern us.

Ruthless Golf: Why Holding Your Wrist Cock Doesn't Work

Set Wrists Earlier: Make the "L" at 9 o'clock

I recently found that I can hit some fairly decent shots with a half swing (i.e., from the 9 o'clock backswing to the 3 o'clock throughswing). I also found that my arms relaxed more on the backswing, because I had to set the wrists EARLIER to get the club in the "L" shape at the 9 o'clock position at chest height. Doing this allowed me to hit my approach wedge MUCH farther and cleaner than my old, full approach wedge swing. This got me asking why.

My tendency has always been to set the wrists late and, sometimes, past 90 degrees, near the top of the swing, and this means the club stays "heavy" well into the backswing, which means it's harder to keep the club on plane (the arms remain more tense as a compensation). Every adjustment to the swing (as Hank Haney says) is "action and reaction": When you make a particular change it can have effects beyond that particular change. In other words, changes to your usual setup or backswing can affect what follows, and vice versa.

In this case, working to set the wrists earlier (at 9 o'clock and at no more than 90 degrees) makes the club lighter going up, because it's balanced when in a vertical position (when the club is straight up and down, its weight on the hands and arms is negated). This makes it easier to keep the club on plane into the backswing and it relieves tension in the arms. And since the body works to make the throughswing a mirror image of the backswing ("L" shape to reversed "L" shape), it helps keep the club on plane coming down and assists with timing and dynamics.

So another benefit is that hitting half shots can be great for reestablishing your rhythm and timing.

Some professionals either set the wrists late, set them beyond 90 degrees, or both. But if you're like me, you're not a pro. You don't have the skills, talent, and timing of a professional golfer. I think any amateur would have more consistent results setting the wrists earlier (no later than the time the hands reach chest height) and only to 90 degrees (the "L" shape).

This line of thinking mirrors the Ernie Els lesson I've posted on earlier about "keeping the box" (another way of looking at the "L" shape). Even though Ernie DEFINITELY sets his wrists early as I'm advocating here (he sets by waist height even with the driver), he was primarily referring to keeping that shape on the downswing--a step critical for power and hitting inside-out. Again, some pros can set the wrists late and keep that box or L-shape coming back down, because they've spent the time honing that skill to maximize distance. I think most of us would do better to copy the backswing motion of Ernie Els, Ian Poulter, or Nick Faldo by setting the wrists early. Most professionals these days set their wrists, at least, by the time their left arm is horizontal to the ground (a mid-backswing set); professionals of bygone eras typically set their wrists late, near the top (a move often associated "float loading" the wrists at the top).

Setting the wrists to 90 degrees earlier doesn't negate a float load feeling in the wrists at the top. You should still let the weight of the club fully cock the wrists at the top to get maximum power.

Like most theories in golf, there are detractors and protractors (i.e., authorities for and against) this line of thinking. Some instructors advocate setting even earlier--right off the ball. You need to try it for yourself to see if it works for you; if you're suddenly hitting the ball better by setting your wrists earlier, who's going to tell you you're wrong for doing it?

My preference is to set the wrists early to 90 degrees when the club is around waist height. The left arm rolls very slightly also (see video below), such that the club is parallel to the target line during the takeaway and the wrists already have their maximum set. Stopping the arms and club at chest height will result in a half swing, which might be all you need for your wedge approaches. From that point onward, any continued movement (from a half swing) is all shoulder movement to the top. The wrists don't need to set or bend any further, as you might see with players like John Daly or Bubba Watson; remember that they're pros--you aren't. Going beyond 90-degrees in a float-loading type of backswing requires impeccable timing and skill to harness the extra power and lag while maintaining consistency.

For the better part of 20 years, ever since the reconstruction of my swing in the mid-1980s, I have focused on this halfway-back position via what's become known as an 'early wrist set'. It's quite simple: I look for my wrists to be fully hinged and the club 'set' up on a good plane by the time my left arm is at horizontal.

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The beauty of working on this halfway-back position is that all the details of a technically sound swing are encapsulated within it: you have a full wrist hinge, the club is swinging up on plane, and you maintain good body angles. Completing your shoulder turn gets you to the top, whereupon unwinding the body invites the hands and arms into the perfect hitting position.

How to plug in a repeating swing - Nick Faldo

One way I help myself get into a better position is to hinge my wrists early in the backswing. I do it as soon as I take the club back, rather than waiting until I'm nearly at the top of the swing like many golfers do. The early hinge gives me a nice feeling that the clubshaft is pointing where it should at the top. It's one less thing to worry about when I have to put it in the fairway.

Ian Poulter: Steal My Feel: Golf Digest