Dump the Tray to the Floor

The left wrist should be flat at impact (assuming a right-handed golfer). That seems to be a universal point of agreement among most teaching professionals, regardless of what else upon which they disagree (and disagree they do). The converse of the flat left wrist (FLW) at impact is a corresponding dorsiflexed or hinged right wrist at impact; the two are inseparably linked, thus you can't have one without the other. Given these near universally accepted tenets of golf, if you study long enough you will find teachers that relate the position and loft of the clubface to the back of the left hand (Hank Haney), or you will similarly find teachers that take the opposite approach and match the clubface to the palm of the right hand (David Leadbetter). Either is correct as they have an inverse relationship. And either can help the golfer be aware of the loft of club (i.e., how delofted) and the direction of the club (i.e., whether pointed left, straight ahead, or right) at impact. If you're a right-handed player, you may find it easier to relate the club face position and loft to your right palm, but you've got to do it the right way.

Dorsiflexed RW, palm down.

There are numerous posts on the use of the wrists on this blog. But it's a good idea to revisit accepted fundamentals from time-to-time with a fresh look. In this post, I'm going to examine using the dorsiflexed right wrist and right palm to add power and direction in the downswing, without flipping at impact.

First, all the grip and downswing fundamentals (using the appropriate grip pressure points and arm-chest pressure points) apply. I've posted about this right palm-right wrist concept before. The right palm should begin rotating down towards the ground in the downswing when the club is about parallel to the ground; the right elbow maintains the bend established at the top of the backswing as this is happening. I think the way it's sometimes presented can be confusing, especially for golfers who utilize PP #4 (upper left arm pressed against the left chest). It can be an active or passive process, but I'm going to focus on using it somewhat passively. The grip pressure points in particular allow one to maintain awareness of club face position and lag pressure throughout the swing.

What is this? We all know that the right wrist dorsiflexes on the backswing into a position that looks similar to holding a tray of pizza or dishes at the top of the backswing. At least that's how it has been described. This is where many reputable teachers disagree; some want you to have a FLW at the top (or even on the way there), while others want you to have a slight cup in the left wrist at the top. I think that it's during the transition to the downswing when a good player will often max out this slightly dorsiflexed postion of the right wrist, producing the tray position and a FLW. Most weekend golfers would be better off forgoing the vertical wrist cock on the backswing (taught by many great instructors) and instead focus on just hinging the right wrist backwards (thereby insuring a FLW at the top). Another way to think of this is that the heel of the right hand comes into the ball first, not the right palm! The right palm is trailing the heel of the right hand and the right palm is facing the ground.

Correct and Flip Wrist Actions.

Regardless of whether you achieve a FLW at the top or during the transition (or later), I think a loose right wrist is essential in allowing the weight of the club to maximize the dorsiflexed right wrist angle in the transition and downswing. You can try to hold the wrist angle (as I once tried to do when first learning of this fundamental), but you'll likely find your shots heading right (unless you compensate somehow).

However, holding the angle is a good way to learn the position and the feeling of the hands-first-clubhead-second necessity, and you can start by just hitting chip shots this way, ensuring you have a FLW and dorsiflexed right wrist (DRW) at impact; you will find that your chip shots will be very crisp, and if you're remotely curious, you'll ask yourself how you can have that same crisp feeling in your full swing shots. You can! When chipping this way, I allow the weight of the club to set my right wrist, and then I hold it coming through. I can feel PP #1 and PP #3 working, sensing lag. I even feel PP #2 in the pinky and ring fingers of my left hand as they resist the breaking down of the left wrist. PP #1, 2, and 3 really work to maintain and feel this lagged position. Boom! A solid, compressed chip shot. Going back and hitting chips like this is a great tool for regaining the correct impact feel in the full swing, if you find yourself suddenly losing it.

But I don't want to consciously hold that angle (DRW) in a full swing, because it will slow down the momentum and deter the continued closing of the club face. The kicker is that you can feel the weight of the club set the right wrist at the top, when the club is still going back, and that's a signal for your brain to start the transition. You can then deliver the DRW at impact without having to forcefully hold it as in the chip example above. One must fight the urge to flip at impact, and again, the simple chip can help you learn to fight this; the correct way is to release the DRW well past impact (it's actually more of a right palm over rotation, where the club shaft and right arm form a straight line point at the ground). But the ball is long gone by this point, and the term "flip" is irrelevant by then (you can't flip at something that isn't there); if your left wrist cups late in the followthrough, don't obsess about it--you want it flat at impact and just beyond. Another swing thought or feel to use is that you're collecting the ball with a DRW (heel and palm of the right hand) by first contacting the inside portion of the ball and then slinging it out towards the target during the release!

Antecubital and right palm face right field.

This fundamental has been described in many ways. But let's go back to the tray at the top analogy. You want to take that tray and dump its contents on the floor in front of the ball! So on the downswing, you come into the inside portion of the ball with the right palm rotated downward and bent back on itself. The more bent back, the more your selected club is delofted. Likewise, assuming an inside-out path, if the palm is aiming is initially aiming right and closing at separation, you will get a push-draw. So you can see that there are numerous combinations of side-to-side and up-down motion of the palm that can produce a variety of shot trajectories and starting directions.

Now another important facet of this concerns the right elbow--specifically the opposite side of the right elbow or the inside-bending part known as the antecubital fossa. The interior bending part of the right elbow should actually face, along with the right palm, towards right field at impact (while still slightly bent), whereas an illusion is that it faces the target line. In other words, the right elbow itself should be rougly pointed directly AWAY from the target at impact, not directly at the right hip. And it's important to note that the still bent right elbow rides near or against the right hip rotating into the impact area and then quickly shoots past the right hip in the release.

So, let's put this altogether. At address, focus on the correct grip pressure points. Keep a loose right wrist (almost floppy feeling) and swing to the top. Let the weight of the club set the wrist into a dorsiflexed position at the top, with a corresponding flat left wrist. Coming down, begin rotating your right palm down to the ground WHILE SIMULTANEOUSLY increasing the dorsiflex in the right wrist (PP #1 feels as if it's increasing--pushing into the left thumb joint), as the still bent right elbow gets close to the right side. This must all be timed with the rotation of the body and while feeling connected, with the left arm pinched against the chest (PP #4). At impact, the DRW collects the inside portion of the ball and begins to release forwards (straightening) and turn over (rotating palm slightly down). Your right antecubital fossa should face out to the right at impact, while still remaining slightly bent (it straightens fully in the release slightly out to the right).

Get used to the feeling of that right wrist passing in front of you still bent backwards a bit. Then start putting with that motion through the ball. Then chipping, then pitching, and finally your full swing with that same bend in your right wrist. It might take a while to get this down, but the effort you put into it will pay off handsomely.

The Recreational Golfer™: Your Wrists at Impact

Your hands at this point will be slightly ahead of the ball, slightly--not leaning way over [but] just a slight bit [ahead], and the right wrist is bent back or "cocked." [actually hinged or dorsiflexed] One way to think about this is to push the pad of your right thumb down onto the knuckle of your left thumb. This will bend the right wrist. Or push the wrist bent.

Here's an Easy Golf Swing Lesson That Will Give You Huge Results

The Answer: What I did next changed my swing immediately. I let all the tension go in my right wrist, so when I took the club back, it set back on itself naturally. I felt a lot of pressure in my trigger finger of my right hand, so I know I was on to something. Before I could never feel that.

What I Did (Drill): I kept the fingers in my right hand very relaxed, and focused on a slight pulling motion. But the key was to pull down with the big fleshy pad under my right thumb, which helped retain the wrist cock in my right wrist. Following me?

What’s important here, is to feel your right hand bent back on itself, and staying there as you pull down. This is called “retaining lag”, and is a must if you want to hit the ball a long way.

Believe it or not, in the pictures below, you might not be able to see it, but my right hand feels and looks right on top of the shaft, with the palm literally facing the ground.

The second picture at impact, I feel like I’m smothering the ball with my right hand. That’s the feeling you need to get to compress the ball squarely, and achieve the nirvana of smashing that golf ball!

Golf Swing Release Drills - Watch This Video

Train the forearms to cross to show the ball who’s the boss immediately after impact. This is known as the release interval and the right palm (for right-handed golfers) should be facing the ground to multiply the power to the punch.

The function of the hands in the golf swing

Then, during your downswing, rotate your right palm toward the ground through the impact zone, to square the face. It's a counterclockwise rotation of your right hand. If you practice turning your palm through impact, not only will you lose your slice -- you'll be able to hit a draw, cut, or straight ball, at will. You'll be dangerous!

Johnny Miller: My No. 1s - GOLF.com

When your right hand reaches waist height, try to face your right palm toward the ground. At impact, you should feel like your right palm is facing the ground as well. David Leadbetter said the right palm mirrors the clubface. So by squaring up your right palm, you will be able to square your clubface. Some players have stronger grip, so your right palm doesn't exactly mirrors [sic] the clubface. But it's close. It's a good idea to use your right palm to control your clubface.

The Tips to Fix a Slice: Use Your Right Palm | Golf Tips & Lessons

The position of the right hand not only dictates the direction of the ball, but also the trajectory of the shot. Using the right hand as the controller again, make the palm face up at impact. Not only does this aim the club right but also adds loft to the club (see photo 4). This will allow you to hit a higher trajectory shot if the situation calls for it. Now, take the controller (palm) and face it downward, this de-lofts the club and causes the ball to come off the face much lower than its intended trajectory. The placement of the right palm at impact also affects the spin of the ball once it hits the green. A palm that is looking downward at impact is prone to have less backspin on the ball which means that it will roll out further onto the green. With the palm in an upward position at impact the ball will have more backspin which means less roll and more stop.

Princeton - Control The Ball With Your Palm - Chad Darby, PGA - The Turn Golf Magazine

Through impact, the hands lead a trailing clubhead. That delofts the clubface and makes it possible to hit down on the ball and squash it against the face. If you've ever wondered how good iron players make their shots bore through the air, this is it. Every effective iron player maintains the semi-cocked position in the right wrist through impact, the right palm facing down. Every bad ball-striker has the palm up. As I said only half-jokingly on a telecast last summer, if you want to be a terrible iron player and avoid getting to single digits, just flip that right wrist so the clubhead scoops and passes your hands.

Johnny Miller: 10 rules for sticking your irons: Golf Digest

A lot of people will talk about the #1 Power Accumulator (the folding and then straightening of the right arm) as like a boxer throwing a punch. The arm certainly moves in that type of motion. However, the HAND and the WRIST does not because in the boxing punch the wrist flattens. In the golf swing, the right wrist should be bent at impact.

3Jack Golf Blog: Hitting Revelations, Part II

Next, get your right hip and club driving TOGETHER to and through the ball towards the target. ALL GREAT PLAYERS unwind this way. Most will get a FEEL of the hip and the club head working and driving together IMMEDIATELY from back swing into the down swing.

Are you unwinding correctly?

The best way to describe the right arm on the downswing is that it should be “pushing down and out.”

“Pushing down” allows the right arm to actively straighten while maintaining its bend in the right wrist.

“Out” is the second half of the equation as it directs the right arm to deliver the club head from the inside. Most players need to feel as if they are driving the right arm not only “down,” but “out.” I often times describe this feeling as if the right arm is being directed more towards right field.

TPC News and PGA TOUR Golf Events - TPC.com

Back to Gripping: Unified Pressure Points

My previous two posts have been on the TGM concepts of grip pressure points. This is the last post of the grip pressure points series. I first talked about PP #1 and PP #3 often associated with the hitter style, and then I posted on PP #2, often used along with PP #4, in the swinger style.

PP #2

The references in the first post of this series alluded to the fact that there is no clear demarkation between a so-called hitter or swinger. In fact, most players have some elements of all of them to one degree or another. The pressure points are primarily about feel, but I now believe that awareness of them will help make a proper grip. Pop golf instruction often teaches grip fundamentals but leaves out the important points of where you should feel pressure in the grip, and it often confuses students with meaningless analogies about grip pressure.

Proper use of PP #1

After experimenting with this for a few weeks now, I feel I have found the correct pressure points for my focus. First, awareness of PP #2--specifically the pinky and ring fingers of the left hand--is crucial. When I take my grip, I want to feel those two fingers gripping a touch tighter than the middle finger, and I want no pressure exerted by my left thumb and index finger.

Next (and I think most important), you must feel PP #1! This is one that I absolutely was not using before. As a matter of fact, my two hands would often disconnect from each other at various points in the swing, even though I was covering my left thumb with my right palm. It's not merely enough--at least for me--to hide the left thumb in the lifeline of the right palm; it's an absolute necessity for me to apply pressure to the base of the left thumb using the crease in the base of my right palm! And it's important to keep it that way from setup to followthrough! This right hand palmer crease forms a semi-oval clamp that attaches firmly to the base of the left thumb.

Nail illustration of PP #1

I'm not certain yet why PP #1 is so effective at increasing the quality of my contact (other than it unifies my hands so well), but I can post references below to what others say on the matter. And it's interesting that this is one part of the grip that is often glossed over or not mentioned at all.

As to PP #3, I believe it's better to sense it passively; I personally don't want to actively push with it. I do, however, think that PP #4 is a great power generator to use along with PP #1 and PP #2. So, yes...I've mixed a bit of hitter with both swinger qualities. Sue me.

He [Ernie Els] then wraps the right palm over the left thumb so that the lifeline palmar crease ("cup" of the right palm) rests over the right side of the left thumb and slightly over the top of the left thumb. This will cause part of the right thenar eminence to lie on top of the left thumb. Placing the right hand firmly over the left hand in this manner helps to interlink the hands, so that they can better function as a close-knit unit. Also, note that the right 3rd and 4th fingers are used to firmly grasp the club's grip, and that the grip is in the fingers and not the palm of the right hand.

Grip

You will find that the palm of the right comes up and faces directly to the left, and that the center of the base of the right hand fits snugly over the big knuckle at the base of the left thumb.

Golf Grip Part 4: Placing The Fingers

Grip check #2: Turn your hands to the right and check the underside of your grip. The lifeline on your right palm should fit snugly over your left thumb, again with downward pressure. If there's space between them, your swing will suffer.

How to check for a perfect grip - How to Check for a Perfect Grip - Photos - GOLF.com

The right hand "lifeline" (shown in red at left) smothers the left thumb at address and throughout the swing. The word "smother" is chosen carefully -- it implies constant, deliberate pressure, not just a hand position.

The role of the right hand is more subtle, and advice on the right hand is much harder to find.

The smothering pressure of the right hand lifeline promotes a wide arc on your backswing, because it tends to push the club away from your body. It also tends to prevent your left arm from bending too much at the top of your swing (although some bending is OK). It does this by simultaneously a) bracing your left elbow, and b) encouraging your left wrist to hinge rather than allowing your left elbow to bend once resistance develops at the top of your backswing. Think of your right arm almost like a splint for your left elbow during the backswing. Finally, the constant smothering pressure of your right lifeline tends to keep your two hands melded and joined together, almost "handcuffed", throughout the swing. This promotes a "one piece" takewaway and downswing that is driven from your big muscles of your lower body, not from your hands.

Golf Swing Tip: Use a Proper Right Hand Grip to Improve Your Swing Like Adam Scott

The three distinct grip pressure points are:

1. In the the last three fingers that trap the club underneath the heel pad of your left hand;

2. The two middle finger of your right hand, whether interlocking, overlapping or a two-fisted grip;

3. Where your right palm overlaps and exerts downward pressure on your left thumb.

Something for the Weekend: Why grip pressure is vital - Tips: General - GOLFmagic

Your right hand provides support and pressure. We like to say the left side pulls and the right side pushes or applies the punch. Where the palm of your right hand joins your left thumb is a pressure point. Also where the index finger or your right hand joins the club (grip) is a pressure point. These two points help put pressure down into the golf ball.

The big issue here is that with good strikers of the ball, the pressure points are applied with a bent right wrist. With poor ball strikers the right arm and wrist straighten out too soon (before impact) and those pressure points are lost as the club head flips past their hands and starts coming up and scooping the ball. Downward pressure into the golf ball is lost.

My Golf Instructor

The last three fingers of the left hand should always be firmly wrapped around the butt-end of the golf club grip. The task that they perform is to ensure that the left hand is kept securely in place.

You should also notice a little light pressure on your left thumb. This should be noticeable as you place the lifeline of your right palm firmly upon it. This should also trigger an awareness of the pressure applied from your right index finger as it pushes against the shaft perfectly sealing your grip on the golf club.

Don’t Lose Your Grip by Golfing Guru | Sportales

Push your right thumb pad against your left thumb with moderate pressure (Homer Kelly’s #1 Pressure Point). This helps you cock your wrist correctly and keep the club on plane. Continue to maintain the arm connections and the #1 Pressure Point until after impact.

The #1 Pressure Point is a “Mega Swing Thought” that we discussed in UST 2 (The fewer the concerns of a swing, the simpler it gets). It has the following benefits:

• It keeps the club on plane during the backswing (prevents the clubhead from going too much inside).
• It keeps your right arm connected and your right elbow in front of you. Try flying or sliding your right elbow behind you while applying the pressure. It’s much harder, isn’t it?
• The pressure also extends the left arm straight. It creates width for your swing that promotes power and consistency.
• It promotes a flat left wrist at the top which is what you want (unless you are fighting a big hook).
• It encourages more shoulder turn.
• It gives you lag in your swing. Try getting into your impact position and then apply the pressure. The clubhead will want to lag behind your hands and the haft leans forward. This lag promotes more solid impact and longer distance. It will also come in handy when you want to it a knock down shot into the wind since it de-lofts the club.

Simplified Base Swing

Another problem that results from a light right-hand grip is that the right hand often comes off the club somewhere in the backswing. This causes the left hand to increase its pressure, creating a number of downswing errors.

Proper Grip Pressure | Golf Channel

In the golf grip, the pressure in the left hand (for right handers) should be firmest in the last two fingers. On this, there is plenty of agreement. The problems start when the same advice is given for the right hand.

Golf Grip Tip - The Correct Golf Grip Depends On The Pressure Points

What should the grip pressure be as you hold onto the golf club throughout the entire golf swing? Most have heard "Hold it like your holding a baby bird or a tube of toothpaste without a lid and you don't want to squeeze any out." Your body will interpret those visuals as hold it very loose in the fingers throughout the swing. The effect of loose fingers is separation of the left hand from the club (at the top) during the transition of the backswing to the downswing which causes an early release and a change in the clubface.

Do you wear out the heel pad and thumb areas of your glove? If so, that is evidence of the movement which cause the friction that produced the hole. Understanding the physics of the golf swing would lead a person to promote secure (effort on firm) fingers around the club throughout the entire swing! This will promote a much improved release and a clubface that remains square throughout the swing.

The overall goal for grip pressure is for your hands to remain in constant contact with the club; if there is movement of the club, it's a huge problem. Recovering from a moving club is almost impossible to recover from on a consistent basis.

As long as the club remains still, it's ok to change finger pressure. You wouldn't want to be squeezing the daylights out of a wedge when you're pitching from just off the green.

The Grip and Grip Pressure - Golfer's Guide

Pressure point number one, the base of the left thumb, where the lifeline of the right hand comes in and connects down with these two middle fingers, feeling that pressure so that there is a connection there. Now watch what happens. A lot of people will swing up and lose that connection and separate right in here between the right hand and the club. When that happens the first move down they snap back on to it and they lose a lot of their clubhead load or their clubhead lag. What I would like to see you do now is this pressure point you can hinge of that position, keep it connected up to the top, and certainly keep that pressure point as you are driving down through impact. So pressure point number one, at the base of the left thumb. Where the right hand connects in. Pressure point number two, the last three fingers on the left hand. This is the one people do pretty well.

Video Golf Tip | Three Grip Pressure Points

 

Swinging Lag: More on Pressure Point #2

Okay, so I'm hyper-focused on grip pressures lately, in the TGM sense. In the previous post, I went on at length about TGM's Pressure Points #1--where the right palm presses down on the base of the left thumb--and #3--the base knuckle of the right index finger--and how they're used to sense lag pressure, either actively or passively.

This post--like the last one--will not deal with pop golf instruction's treatments of grip pressure. Those descriptions of gripping to a certain point on a 1-to-10 scale, holding a baby bird, holding a baby's hand, holding a tube of toothpaste, etc. are not really helpful in describing WHERE you should feel pressure in the left and right hands. The whole 1-to-10 scale thing is really silly if you think about; how many times have you shaken hands with someone who feels like they're barely gripping your hand, while another person feels like they're about to break your hand. This proves that scales vary from person-to-person. And how many people hold baby birds? I'm going on out a limb (and agreeing with several reputable teachers such as Hank Haney and Shawn Clement) by saying that you probably should be gripping the club harder than you think. But the key is WHERE you put that pressure; it's not with the entire hand!

PP #2

Pressure Point #2 Should Be Called Pinky Pressure #2

This time, I'm focusing mostly on TGM's Pressure Point #2 (PP #2)--the last three fingers of the left hand (for a right-handed player). Recall that PP #2 and PP #4 (pressure of the upper left arm pressing into the left pectoral muscle) are strongly associated with the swinging style as described in TGM; also recall that distinctions between the swinging and hitting style aren't black-and-white; there is a gradient between the two in which all golfers find themselves.

I was recently reading an article in Golf Digest that described a way to help golfers get out of greenside bunkers. The article advocated removing the left hand pinky from the grip completely, either by curling it under or letting it hang off the end of the grip. The purpose was to allow the left wrist to cup coming through, which is important for using the bounce of the sand wedge properly to escape bunkers. Golfers are taught to avoid cupping the wrist in the full swing; it's called a flip and it's a major fault. But in a bunker, the added loft is needed to avoid digging into the sand. On a side note, one would do the same cupping technique when trying to hit a flop shot.

So what does this have to do with PP #2? Well, it stands to reason that if removing the pinky from the grip is important for encouraging a flip in a bunker or when attempting a flop shot, the pinky must be important for stopping a flip in the full swing. The opposite condition of a flip is a flat left wrist (FLW) at impact--just what we need in the full swing. This brought me around to PP #2, which is described as the pressure felt in the last three fingers (pinky, ring, and middle) of the left hand.

Digging further, I found a few articles on the internet that delved deeper into PP #2. And wouldn't you know it: The pressure in these three fingers should NOT all be the same. The left hand pinky pressure should be greatest, followed by the other two fingers in decreasing amounts! This was a huge revelation, because I had always gripped with the same, non-bird-killing pressure in all of the left hand fingers, except the thumb.

By gripping tightest in the last two fingers of the left hand, your left wrist will stay very loose and allow a full release, while making it more difficult to clip the left wrist. Now it's easy to see how PP #2 and PP #4 work together so well. Also, I noticed that my wrist extended downward a little more at address, putting the club shaft at slightly more upright position at address. But maybe most important, this pinky pressure consciousness does--in fact--help create the FLW condition at impact and helps produce the swinging style lag.

Luckily, learning to use the bounce is as easy as removing the pinkie of your top hand from the grip. With this finger off the club, your grip pressure naturally lightens, and it's almost impossible for the hands to stay ahead of the clubhead at the bottom of the swing. I use this tip to teach the right feeling, but you can hit shots like this on the course, too.

BONUS: Open the face and address the ball off the heel. This might sound like Shank City, but remember, you're hovering the club. When the clubhead enters the sand, it will inch slightly closer to you, putting the center of the face under the ball. The shot will come out more predictably.

Jason Carbone: Hitting Soft Sand Shots: Golf Digest

With your top hand (left hand for right handers) you should be holding onto the club firmly with your pinky, ring, and middle fingers while the other 2 should be relaxed. In your bottom hand (right hand for right handers) you should be gripping the club tightly with your thumb and pointer finger while the other 3 fingers are just along for the ride. The 5 fingers that you are gripping the club firmly with are primarily responsible for releasing the club in a manner that will provide you with more power and consistency.

SilverHorn Golf Club of Texas: Grip Pressure

Properly placed hands work together as one facilitating unit. The left hand (or right hand for lefties) grips the club with pressure felt in the last three fingers and most heavily on the pinkie. This keeps the butt of the club securely attached to the hand.

Inside the Tour,Chapter Three, the Body's Motion

Too firm of a grip restricts arm and wrist movement in the swing. Most of the pressure should be in the pinkie and ring finger of the bottom hand [error: actually the top hand if the club is on the ground], and the index [error: actually the ring finger--the index finger is the first finger] and middle finger of the top hand [error: actually the bottom hand if the club is on the ground]. The remaining fingers are mainly used for balance and stability, and the thumbs should rest comfortably on top of the grip.

What is a Proper Golf Grip? (with pictures)

The left hand provides the primary connection for controlling the club. It is very common to grip too tightly with this hand. According to teacher Michael Hebron, the secret is to tighten only the last two or three fingers of your left hand—the pinky and ring fingers, and perhaps the middle finger. In doing so, you create a strong grip without locking the wrist muscles and interfering with the free movement of your wrists.

The Proper Wrist Action for a Golf Swing | Golfsmith

Engage your ring-finger and middle-fingertip pads with pressure around the grip for stability. The index finger has the least amount of pressure on the grip. The pinky fingertip pad maintains the most grip pressure throughout the swing.

San Diego Golf Instructor - Core-Breathing 4 Golf

The other reason this is an important fundamental of the golf grip is because it helps with developing the flat left wrist that every “flipper” of the club desires in their golf swings. If you grip the golf club with just your left pinky, you’ll see that it’s actually quite easy to get into a nice flat left wrist position at impact because the pinky leads the way.

Now, take your grip with just the middle two finger and see how the tendency is to get the wrist into a slightly cupped, scoopy position at impact because of the different muscles used in the forearm.

Now, go back to just using your pinky by itself and note how gripping the golf club more snuggly with just the pinky firmly “locks” the wrist in this slightly bowed position, thus making it much harder to flip the club through impact.

Stop Flipping the Golf Club with the Proper Use of Your Pinky in the Golf Grip - RotarySwing.com

Then, Jack Nicklaus comes along with Golf My Way (1974). He talks about grip pressure objectives also (pp. 70-73):

Left hand: Pressure with the last two fingers, pressing the shaft into the L palm.

Right hand: Pressure primarily with the middle two fingers.

Overall: Maintain constant pressure

Grip pressure myth

 

Hitting Lag: More on Pressure Points #1 and #3

Lag Pressure.

I've posted before on the subject of lag and on various ways that have been cited to acquire it. To review for the uninitiated, the word lag is used in the full golf swing to describe how the club head SHOULD lag or trail the hands into the ball. All professional golfers have this lag to some extent, and it's responsible for powerful, compressed, penetrating shots that are associated--at least in the case of irons and wedges--with divots well ahead of the ball. This should not be confused with lagging long putts close to the hole.

Lag isn't necessarily holding wrist angles, especially in the case of the left wrist (assuming a right-handed golfer). But in TGM circles, lag is strongly associated with feeling Pressure Point #3 (PP3), which is essentially located somewhere along the side of the first-finger base knuckle of the right hand (again, assuming a right-handed player). Pressure in this side area of that first right hand finger is applied--as a pushing force--to the shaft on the downswing along with a dorsiflexed right wrist, straight through impact and beyond. This pushing force is applied by the gradual straightening of the right arm through impact (called Power Accumulator #1 or PA #1 in TGM); the right wrist doesn't really do anything except stay bent back. This is also called lag pressure, and many golfers feel that keeping a "trigger finger" helps them to feel this. Doing so automatically flattens or even bows the lead left wrist and ensures that the hands lead the club head into the ball.

I have found it easier to focus on PP3 and the right wrist position rather than trying to produce a flattened or bowed left wrist, which may be a valid way for others to teach and learn this fundamental. I will not go deeply into the differences discussed in TGM between swingers and hitters in this post, but PP3 is more associated with the hitter style (though it can be felt more passively in the swinger style). There are also other Pressure Points and TGM concepts that I'm not really going to discuss in detail here; all you need to do is Google TGM or buy Homer Kelley's complex book and you'll have an endless supply of advanced golf theory to consume.

PP1 and PP3

But there's an equally--if not more--important pressure point associated with the right side or hitting style (PA #1): Pressure Point #1 or PP1. The is where the lifeline of the right hand encloses the left thumb on top of the grip. The left thumb should NOT be visible to you when you apply this pressure point correctly (you should use a "short thumb"). And the kicker is, you should feel downward pressure applied to the base of the left thumb, which means the right hand may be rotated over to the left more than you may think or may have been told, even if you have a strong left hand grip. This helps secure the two hands together, helps prevent the club from moving around in the hands, and helps prevent independent movement. PP1 helps to produce lag pressure felt in PP3. You should feel PP1 through impact, as if the heel of the right hand is pushing the base of the left thumb through the ball (again, use a "short thumb" with your left hand). This pressure flattens or bows the left wrist through impact automatically, keeping the club head behind the hands where it must be. This assumes that your left wrist is kept very relaxed to allow the push force of the right hand heel to flatten or bow the left wrist.

Lag is also known by other synonyms, such forward shaft lean, delofting the club, hitting down on the ball, pinching the ball off the turf, trapping the ball against the turf, etc. Pinching, trapping, and hitting down are descriptions of feel, and many golfers get caught up the verbatim trap of trying to achieve these feels in reality. Forward shaft lean and delofting are the best synonyms of these when attempting to describe reality--what actually occurs when the hands lead the club head into impact.

The opposite of good lag into the ball is a cast or club head throwaway right from the top, followed by a flip at the bottom, where the right wrist flips forward early and the left wrist breaks down and dorsiflexes, the left-hand knuckles rising both skyward and targetward. Even a small amount of cupping through impact has a detrimental effect. This is a classic high-handicap, hacker error that adds loft to the club (e.g., turns a 7-iron into a 9-iron, depending on the degree of flip). In a sense, this mistake has the two wrists in antithetical positions at impact compared with their correct positions; in a flip, the right wrist straightens and the left wrist bends backwards in a conscious or unconscious attempt to lift the ball into the air, causing weak, uncompressed, high shots that don't fly very far and many other potential mishits like fat, thin, and sliced shots.

Since exploring and researching this topic more thoroughly, I wanted to post additional references to material on the internet that I've found helpful, especially since this seems to be a subject that isn't taught much or taught in a manner that's easy to understand. The mop drill demonstrated by many professionals goes a long way towards getting the amateur golfer familiar with the sensation of using PP1 and PP3, but I sometimes wonder if this tidbit isn't kept purposefully vague among golf teaching professionals much the way magicians are sworn never to reveal their secrets; yes, I think this fundamental of golf is that important to improving beyond the hacker stage, at least with respect to feel in the hands and arms.

Another drill that golfers may find helpful is the aiming point drill, where a point ahead of the ball becomes a target for the hands. In other words, the hands must get to that point before the club head, and where that point is will vary by the club length and the player (body type, swing speed, etc). With longer clubs the driver and woods, the aiming point moves closer to the ball or possibly even behind it.

I like Tom Watson's description of using PP3); he likes to keep everything loose on the backswing. But on the transition and downswing, he wants to feel that pressure in PP3 increase dramatically and feel that the right wrist dorsiflexes even more than it was at address. This down-cocks the wrist and produces tremendous lag without creating any tension at address or during the backswing; this creates more of a swinger style with some elements of a hitter style. It should be noted that some teachers want their students to create pressure at PP1 and PP3 right at address and carry that pressure all the way through; in other words, the grip pressure should be constant from address to finish. In this same vein, Mr. Watson also states that that a golfer should hit the ball hard with their right hand at the bottom, provided they start down from the ground up. As Mr. Watson says, "Hit it hard!" Also why Ben Hogan stated he wished he had three right hands!

You should still feel PP1 and PP3 when driving the ball. They key is to keep the ball well forward in your stance with the shaft leaning away from the target slightly at address. Even though we've been told to play the ball more back in the stance to hit a draw, using PP3 for your driver can cause you to hit down on the ball unintentionally, causing pop-ups that go nowhere. Keeping the ball more forward, especially if you don't sway off the ball, allows the club to release. In a sense (just as with the aiming point drill), you're allowing yourself time to let the right wrist straighten a bit more, square up the club face, and hit the ball more on the upswing.

And now, caution. Feeling PP1 and PP3 and pushing against the shaft with that right hand knuckle feels very powerful, but pushing too much with the right arm (without enough lower body's initiating movement) can also send the shaft outside too early, causing an over-the-top move (and thus a pull or slice). The way to counteract this potential error is to keep the butt-end of the club pointing down towards the ball for as long as possible in the downswing, while maintaining the feeling in PP1 and PP3. The end of the handle should first point out to the right of the target line (inside the ball) when coming down from the top, gradually reaching a point where it points towards the target, and then finally pointing behind the golfer's left hip when the fully rotated into the ball. If the end of the club points directly at the golfer during the downswing, that golfer is probably over the top.

Using PP3 can also be thought of as using a "trigger finger." The pressure in the right index finger can also be felt in the crook that wraps around the shaft, especially if that finger is well separated from the others. Using the finger this way increases swing awareness of not only where the clubhead is in relation to the hands (i.e., lagging or releasing) but also where the clubface is pointing at all points in the swing. During the release, the right arm and shaft should form a straight line pointing into the ground, and that trigger finger should be rotated over.

I vacillate between concentrating on PA#4/PP#4 (swinger style of pulling the club through) and PA#1/PP#3 (hitter style described in this post), but I sometimes believe that the swinger style (while still feeling PP#1 and PP#3) is more efficient and passive. For me, I need to make sure that I press that right hand knuckle into the right-side-top of the grip at address, which ironically also seats PP#1 better; then I'm free to swing using PP#4 and can forget about PP#3 and active hitting with the right hand. In other words, a solid connection with the right hand and the club is essential, regardless of the swing style. My tendency is to hold the club with no connection or a loose connection of the right hand pressure points. Now, keep in mind that you can vary the pressure with which you press this right hand knuckle into the shaft; experiment with different pressures--lighter pressures are most likely to yield right-to-left shot shapes, while tighter pressures are better suited for fades. Whatever PA/PP combination used, it's important to keep the end of the club handle pointing down-target for as long as possible to ensure an inside approach. Swingers may very well feel PP#3 but it should be passive and not active as it is for hitters.

How can this be fixed? Well, there needs to be an understanding that the clubhead will always follow whatever the other end of the club does. So, the grip actually should lead or direct the club towards the ball. Once the golf club reaches the "set" position at the top of the backswing (a right angle between the left hand and the shaft of the club) that position should stay the same until the hands and the grip of the club are about even with the golf ball. At that point the hands will begin to unhinge and release down into the golf ball.

Casting Recall: Stop the Power Loss

PP#1- Right heel pad of hand against left thumb

PP#2- Last three Fingers of left hand

PP#3- Right index finger against shaft

PP#4- Left arm against chest

Golfers use different combinations of these pressure points. A golfer who is referred to as a “swinger” because they’re left side is pulling the golf club primarily use pressure points #2 and #4. Golfers referred to as a “hitter” because they’re right side is pushing the club primarily use pressure points #1 and #3.

Positions, Pressure Points, And Power Accumulators | Matt DeJohn Golf

The problem most golfers have is that they have no concept of pressure points and lag pressure and they almost inevitably maximize their lag pressure in the startdown. And because you lose lag pressure immediately after you maximize it, the golfer has lost the lag pressure once they arrive to impact. And remember, once you start to lose the lag pressure, you cannot regain it in that swing.

What usually happens when the golfer loses that lag pressure at impact is that their hands stop or slow down greatly in the downswing and they wind up using their wrists (flipping) to move the clubhead towards the golf ball. One of the main things I try to emphasize in the FLW (flat left wrist) at impact is that in order to obtain it, the golfer should avoid trying to actually keep the left wrist flat at impact. Instead, use lag pressure properly and that will get your FLW at impact.

3Jack Golf Blog: Lag Pressure, Key Concept in the Golf Swing

Probably the biggest question I get in regards to TGM is about 'swingers' and 'hitters.' Before I go on explaining the difference between the two styles, I will note that according to physicist Dr. Aaron Zick, who was brought to the latest TGM Teaching Summit, there is no such thing as a 'pure hitter' or a 'pure swinger' on full golf swing shots. Instead, everybody does a little of both.

3Jack Golf Blog: Understanding the Basics of TGM -- Part III

During the past two years, my thinking has become more refined and I have moved beyond the limitations of TGM thinking, which believes that the swing styles of swinging (drag-loading) and hitting (drive-loading) are mutually exclusive swing styles. I now believe that it is perfectly acceptable to mix swinging elements with hitting elements in the same swing if a golfer can successfully manage to synergistically mix the two elements in a time-coordinated and synergistically synchronous manner.

Power mechanics of swinging

One of the most overlooked fundamentals of the golf swing is the point of pressure created by the club resting against and across the middle joint of the right-hand forefinger. This pressure point transforms that finger into the "trigger finger," meaning it plays a major role in the loading of the club on the backswing and the lagging of it on the downswing.

Where the grip falls across that finger is where we feel the lag of the club. To use this effectively, lay the handle diagonally across the middle joint of the trigger finger. During the swing, you want to feel the club's weight in that spot the entire time.

Breaking 80: Bobby Clampett: Golf Digest

You know that the Lag is felt during the downstroke as a steady pressure in the index finger of your right hand (aka Pressure Point #3 (PP#3)). Done properly the hands and the clubhead combine as Clubhead Lag feel that can be directed, or aimed at a target.

Consequently, the Aiming Point is a target on the delivery line where you fire the pressure in your index finger (PP#3) to. The Aiming Point is very rarely at the ball. Therefore you must not consider the ball as your target. Instead, the Aiming Point replaces the ball and becomes your new target.

The Aiming Point Concept from the Golfing Machine | Golf Lag Tips

2. BOTTOM HAND FOREFINGER PRESSURE

HERE’S AN IMPORTANT POINT: Nearly every bad shot in golf results from the shaft coming off the bottom hand forefinger before impact. When this occurs, it’s all but impossible to control the clubhead. As you address the ball, you should feel very little pressure on your bottom hand forefinger. However, as you start your swing, the weight of the club puts pressure onto your forefinger. This pressure must be sustained throughout the downswing, with the forefinger staying in front of the clubhead. To help maintain this pressure through impact, when taking your grip extend the forefinger down the shaft.

3. BENT BOTTOM HAND WRIST

AT IMPACT, THE FORWARD leaning shaft and clubhead exert force into the ball. When the bottom wrist is bent back, pressure is applied to the lead arm and shaft as the clubhead approaches impact. If the clubhead weight passes the hands prematurely, the bottom hand wrist straightens, slowing down the clubhead. To ingrain the correct feeling of the bent bottom hand wrist, sprinkle some grass on your left thumb and take your grip. Make some short pitching-length swings. If the right wrist stays bent, force is sustained during the downswing and the grass will remain in place.

For maximum distance here are four little known..but key points

When a ball is struck with "Lag" it explodes off the clubface! Without this "lag" the sound turns into one of mush, a soft Impact instead of a driving Impact.

So we have a Clubhead Lag Pressure Point (Pressure Point #3) which is the Right Forefinger and this is always directing the club to where, the inside back quadrant of the ball.

Golf Swing | The Secret of Golf

The right hand “V” will point straight up toward the chin, and the secret is accenting the forefinger position so it looks like a “trigger finger.” Going further, be sure the first joint segment of the finger is pressing into the side of the club in a manner that slightly puts the first knuckle on top of the handle as pictured here. The trigger finger will maintain side pressure on the handle from start all the way to impact.

Right Wrist Action for the Perfect Golf Swing | Herman Williams Golf Instruction

A trigger finger can help you better engage your golf swing. What’s a trigger finger? John Daly, for instance, as well as several other top players use some separation between their index finger and the rest of their grip as a “trigger” to help sustain proper grip pressure and assist in better hand rotation and in preventing the club from slipping too far into the palms of the hands. Give it a try and see what a trigger finger can do for your feel and overall swing.

Master Your Iron Play | GolfTipsMag.com

If you are holding the club with the last three fingers of your left hand and the middle two fingers of your right hand, and if your left thumb is cradled firmly in that little pocket of your right hand, with the part of the right hand below the thumb keeping a steady pressure, then you've got it.

You may have trouble keeping the pressure on with your right hand below the thumb. But believe me, this is the right way to hold the club. Master it and you are more than halfway home as a golfer.

The Swing is Simple - Arnold Palmer - SI Vault

Power is applied to the left hand, not the club itself, using the base of the right wristbone pressing against the top of the left thumb, to help the left hand move along its arc around the shoulder fulcrum.

The Wrong and Right Way to Apply Force

When your right palm exerts this slight pressure against the left thumb extending the grip away from your left shoulder, you will not need to have any tension in your left arm to help it remain straight and your left arm will have the same radius around your left shoulder from start up, through your back swing, down swing, and through impact. [This] pressure point has another function as well, it monitors the cocking and uncocking of the right elbow and sends this information to the motor cortex. It only feels this hinging motion and should never add or contribute to the actual cocking or uncocking of the right elbow.

TGM 101 - The GOLFING MACHINE

Again, the palm of the right hand presses hard against the thumb of the left.

Cure A Golf Slice - Harry Vardon

 

Clarifying the Hips' Role

Typical sway (rear view).

The dreaded sway is a plague. For one thing, it's hard to discern if you're guilty of it if you're not paying attention, and an amateur golfer with a sway is usually focused on other parts of the swing. And the opposing sensation--the correct one--will feel wrong when first attempted. Let's face it. A sway feels powerful to a beginning golfer; after all, they're "shifting weight to the back foot" like they've been told to do. But they can't figure out why they're seeing all these weak, floaty, fat shots coming off their club. Must need to swing faster...or sway more. Nope.

I recently understood why--finally--I had thought that keeping my right knee bent was helping me during a particular round but didn't seem to help much subsequent to that. I had assigned the results I was getting at the time to the wrong aspect of my backswing. Yes, I was keeping my right knee more bent in the backswing, but the real help was that my pelvis was passively turning in a more centered fashion WHILE keeping my right knee bent! This is a prime example of how we golfers can go on wild goose chases for that "thing" that will always be with us on the course, when in reality we can only count on a few key fundamentals and physics. We must continue coming back to those and working on them.

First, there are some setup characteristics that encourage an over-active hip rotation and its more desirable opposite. The more closed your stance (as if presetting for a draw), the more likely you will over-rotate the hips going back. Conversely, squaring your stance (or even opening it a bit) will decrease the possible amount of hip turn going back; the caveat is that a more open stance increases your chance of hitting outside-in. A ticked-in right knee will discourage hip over-rotation, as will a right foot that is kept perpendicular to the target line. Finally (already alluded to this), keeping the right knee bent in the backswing will prevent the hips from turning too much going back.

Correct right hip pivot.

Even though you do shift weight to the right foot (for a right-handed player), the pelvis--and thus the right hip--should never move to the right from its address position. Instead, the right hip rotates both backwards and towards the target in response to the right shoulder pulling straight back (causing the left shoulder to turn behind the ball); the rear hip never moves away from the target or to the right, which is the textbook definition of a sway and probably some form of a reverse pivot. The weight automatically stays concentrated on the inside of right foot and right leg as its supposed to.

In other words, imagine a line drawn on the ground that extends from the ball to between one's legs at address (i.e., a line perpendicular to the target line). A correct backswing hip movement has the right hip rotating back and around towards that line while the left shoulder turns to point at or just behind the ball; the right hip should not move further away from that line. This is a key distinction. And when you first do it correctly--when you've been swaying away--it will feel wrong...until you actually hit the ball and feel what happens.

A sway usually involves a straightening right knee due to (or as a result of) active hip rotation, while the correct, passive hip pivot in the backswing--with the hips initially resisting and remaining stable during the takeaway--allows the right knee to stay bent in order to keep the hips level and prevent the upper body from leaning to the left. During the takeaway, you should strive for the feeling that the hips and knees stay parallel to the target line initially and only pivot back due to the shoulders continued turn; this creates tension in the body that can be used to add power to your swing, while the stable lower body contributes to more consistent contact.

Examine a professional golfer in their address and backswing positions and you'll see that their rear leg at the top of the backswing appears to keep the same angle it had in relation to the body at address: The rear leg appears--from the foot to the hip--to be angled towards the target throughout the swing, while a swayer's rear leg goes from the correct angled appearance at address to an upright or vertical appearance at the top of the backswing. Heck, a severe sway can even have the rear leg angled entirely in the other direction at the top!

It's that centralized pelvic motion brought about by the proper rear hip rotation that allows for an easy weight shift to the front leg, dynamic front hip rotation (that mirrors the rear hip rotation in the other direction), and powerful, compressive impact. This is what Shawn Clement refers to when he talks about the correct weight shift and hip pivoting action--his "braced tilt." As a matter of fact, the left hip in the downswing nearly mirrors the motion of the right hip's backswing movement. At the completion of the backswing, there's a subtle, small shift of pressure into the left foot (many call this shift a "hip bump"); following that subtle move, the left hip simply turns behind the golfer and away from the target, while the upper body and arms stay passive! In reality, the left hip pivots both away from the target and upwards, due to the straightening left leg. The upper body shortly follows, and this makes it easy to keep one's head behind the ball, swing inside-out, and hit a push-draw. Performed correctly, you will notice a distinct stretched feeling all along the left side of the rib cage; a line running along the side of the left leg and left torso will resemble a crescent shape at impact.

Also, keep this in mind: The correct sequence of the aforementioned rear hip movement for the takeaway and backswing always follows the turning of the shoulders. The shoulders, arms, and club make a centralized turn first while the lower body remains still, and the shoulders eventually reach a point where they can't turn further; it's here that the rear hip turns back and behind the golfer to allow a 90-degree shoulder turn. Don't turn the hips before the shoulders. The correct sequence is that the shoulders turn the hips going back, and the hips turn the shoulders on the way down.

Left hip and crescent shape.

You see, the term “shift” is all wrong for the backswing. “Pivot” is a better term. The right hip will pivot back like sitting back in a chair and then around – actually coiling back toward the target slightly, not drifting sideways to the right. The right foot will stay braced on the instep, and the leg will remain leaning inward like a ball player braced to push off for a throw.

Weight Shift in Golf Swing – Herman Williams Golf

Have you ever hit balls at the range next to someone who made an awesome sound when they hit the ball? That sound is compression. It makes other players turn and watch because obviously this is a great ball striker. The player has made his divot past the ball and transferred the energy efficiently from the clubhead to the ball. Distance control is one of the keys to scoring. Great golfers don’t always hit the ball accurately but they often hit the ball pin high which means they are making solid contact. Proper hip action on the backswing plays a major role in compressing the ball. A common swing thought is to transfer your weight to your right side on the backswing. Unfortunately, most players sway their hips back to do this causing fat and thin contact. The key is to allow your hips to truly turn, not sway.

Hip Turn | MySmartGolf.com Blog

 

Standing Too Close to the Ball?

Standing too close.

Most professional golfers would tell you that the biggest and most likely error seen among amateurs in terms of stance distance to the ball is standing too far away--in a sense, reaching for the ball. However, Tom Watson and others' opinions aside, I'm telling you that you CAN stand too close to the ball, because I did it for a while.

What are some symptoms of standing too close? Over-the-top/outside-in swing, pulls, slices, shanks, divots pointing left, fat shots, steep swing plane, standing up through impact, etc. True that these mishits and characteristics can originate from other swing problems, but I believe it's true that many--if not most--errors can be traced to the setup (GASP - grip, alignment/aim, stance, and posture/position).

You will find numerous methods online and in books to explain how you can judge the correct distance to the ball, and you'll notice that it's not an exact science. And two additional factors probably account for this inexact advice: One's body type and equipment (and whether that equipment is fitted to one's body type). For example, maybe you're 6 feet tall and skinny but your arms are short for your height. Or maybe you're 6 feet fall with a long, thick torso but you have short arms and legs. No matter, all of these characteristics can affect how far away you should stand from the ball to get an ideal swing plane. To me, the best advice is to just allow your arm-triangle to hang straight down from the shoulders, such that there's some open space between the arms and body; a down-the-line view would give the arm-triangle plane a perpendicular-to-the-ground appearance (though the arms may reach out towards the ball a bit more with the driver). I like to think of this triangular arm plane as floating on top of the chest and swinging around the neck and NOT underneath the chest; this should help you to visualize how to assume the proper distance to the ball with a given club.

I had experimented with a taller posture, which can cause one to stand closer to the ball, especially if one is not a tall player. Anything in golf can be taken too far, and what was a good thing, in retrospect, had gone too far for my body type. Standing closer to the ball, with a narrower stance and a taller posture, can lead to a swing plane that's too vertical, especially troublesome for shorter players. I had pulled my arms in closer to my chest, such that my elbows were REALLY close to my stomach. My arms were no longer just hanging from my shoulder sockets as they should be; I had been using unconscious tension to pull my arms inward, with my hands too close to my thighs at address. I had become that version of golfer that Tom Watson said didn't really exist: I was standing TOO close to the ball. My arm-triangle plane was angled inward; it no longer hung straight down. I had become TOO connected, meaning my entire upper arm was pressed against my torso, when only the top part of the upper arms should be pressed against or connected to the chest.

To correct my mistake, I had to let the triangle formed by my arms at address hang a little more freely from my shoulders, and because of this, I had to back away from the golf ball a few inches and bend over more. The club shaft automatically lowered into a flatter position at address, and I could focus a bit more on the inside of the ball instead of the top of it. It felt like I was much further away from the ball, and my posture was more bent over, covering the ball more. If you're 5-9 like me, chances are your posture should be more bent over, and your swing plane more flat. Getting further away from the ball (still only far enough so that one's arms hang freely) automatically shallows the swing plane and makes it easier to hit from the inside-out. It's also easier to stay in one's correct posture, covering the ball through impact, because the arms have space to move through without crashing into the body.

I finally started seeing a push again, which was a welcome sight after lining up on the left side of tee box, hoping to hit a push-draw, and instead, ending up with a pull-hook into the left rough or trees. If you do this and start pushing the ball, you will only need to close the club face more to get the ball drawing. If it starts hooking too much, you'll need to work on closing the club face less. This works hand-in-hand with a correct takeaway; be sure to keep the club outside the hands in the takeaway and avoid jerking the club inside, which will just cause another pull situation due to rerouting the club on the downswing.

Standing too close to the ball causes golfers to stand too upright, losing the forward upper body tilt. The arms won’t have enough room to hang and swing freely, causing the club to be lifted by the hands in the backswing, forced down on the downswing, and lifted again to the finish position. Since the hands are overly active, the body will remain relatively inactive resulting in poor club contact with the ball and very weak shots.

How's Your Distance to the Ball at Address? ~ Create Golfers

Your posture determines your swing plane to a large degree. It seems that golfers who stand very tall and close to the ball have very upright swings and golfers who bend over a lot and are farther from the ball tend to have flatter swings. I would encourage the average golfer to bend forward more in order to make it easier to make a flatter (more rounded) swing as this will help him hook the ball and also help him take a divot after the ball is struck.

Jim Suttie: How far is too far and how close is too close? » Naples Daily News

Heck, if we can stand too far where we're reaching or stretching for the ball that takes us out of dynamic balance. It should be obvious that the exact opposite could be true. We can stand too close to the ball and be out of dynamic balance. In fact, being way too close to the ball, we're in trouble when we swing down with our hands and arms and club to impact the ball. We could very likely start bumping our arms into our body or into our hips or into our legs and have to spin out of the shot too fast to make room. So yes, we can definitely stand too close.

The Proper Distance to Stand from the Ball at Address | Swing Surgeon

Interestingly enough, Martin Kaymer just brought this up last night on the Fix. He said when hitting a draw, he sets up a bit further away from the ball. This results in 2 key things for shaping a draw: I allows him to come more from the inside without getting stuck, and it flattens out his swing plane a bit more.

OTT pull swingers may be standing too close

Standing with your body too close to the golf ball so you don’t give yourself enough room, then you try and lean back to create room, there’s another big cause of the fat shots.

Causes and Cures: Fat Shots, Golf Video

If you stand too close to the ball the club gets too steep in the back swing and if you are too far away, the club becomes too flat. You need to get a feel for this and ensure that your weight is in the center of your feet. If you are too far away from the ball, you will feel like you are too much on the balls of your feet. If you are too close you will be on your heels.

Golf Ball Position In Stance, Golf Stance Tips, Lesson, Ideas

 

Preset Open Hips

Open hips/open stance.

If you're struggling with solid contact, it's always best to try something different in your setup. The swing itself is best when the setup, posture, grip, and alignment (GASP) create a somewhat automatic backswing and downswing. Trying to control small muscles in the arms in an attempt to provide power and club face control (i.e., steering) is a recipe for disaster. A good setup should help you "automatize" the swing.

Here's something I've found that really helps me create consistent, solid contact. Please note that, depending on your body type and swing mistakes, trying this may cause you more problems than it solves. Try it as a drill (at the very least) before you determine whether this is of any help. Of course, I can only theorize why it's helpful, and I will get to that shortly.

First, let's get to the heart of it: Setup like you normally would with feet, knees, hips, and shoulders aligned square to the target line, as the fundamentals tell us to do. You can even setup with slightly closed feet, and the correct shoulder position should feel somewhat closed, although in reality it's square (shoulders pointing left is a major no-no). Now, before swinging back, preset your hips into a slightly open position. Yes, you can do this even though your feet are square/closed and the shoulders are square, due to the mobility available in the hips (assuming you have no restrictions in the movement of your hips). In essence, you're starting from a correct preset impact position, and your hips are "out of alignment" with the target line compared to your shoulders.

Starting my swing from this position created very powerful near-center-face hits on all clubs, so I decided to analyze potential reasons why this apparent break from the fundamentals is helpful to me, especially given that open hips are supposed to contribute to slices and pulls.

First, I think simulating the impact position before starting the swing pre-programs the brain on what the impact position should be for a particular club and lie. You're giving your brain a "pass-through" point in the swing; instead of trapping the ball between backswing and followthrough, you've added a middle waypoint to connect those dots.

Next, you'll notice that opening the hips while keeping everything else square automatically puts a little more weight on the front leg and positions the remaining weight into the right instep where it should be. In reality, your knees will move slightly to the left when opening the hips, so you should let them (don't think about moving the knees consciously); the right knee will automatically tick inward a bit, which is a solid setup tip unto itself.

Next, when you swing back and rotate your shoulders to 90 degrees, you'll notice now that your hip turn is VERY restricted and that it's difficult to stay in a fully rotated position. The shoulders instantly want to release the tension, which means more power for your downswing. You're basically presetting a greater "X-Factor" or differential between the shoulder line and hip line at the top, which is what the X-Factor calls for. This tension is a good thing because it's going to provide automatic unwinding power from your body down to your arms and club.

You'll also notice that your weight automatically concentrates into your right instep where it should be at the the top of the backswing and thus you can't really sway to the right off the ball with the hips or shoulders.

The hands and end of the club handle also move fractionally more forward of the ball, which is where they should be at impact.

Finally, when you let that automated unwinding happen, your weight gets instantly back to your left leg as it was at address, because there was no sway off the ball. You're moving left well before impact without even thinking about it.

There may be other reasons, but I believe these are probably the main reasons why presetting open hips assists me in making reliable, solid contact.

I believe that there are other versions of this same line of thinking out there. Opening the left foot while keeping the right foot perpendicular to the target line (espoused by Hogan) or using a slightly open stance with closed shoulders (like Trevino or Couples) are really designed to do the same thing. It's important to note that all of these golfers favored a fade, and open body lines at impact are associated with a left-to-right ball flight. However, you can still hit a draw using this technique; experiment with different grips, ball position, turning the club, swinging more right, concentrate on hitting the inside of the ball, etc. Trevino stated that he used the same setup for draws and fades; he pictured a row of four balls, and for fades he would try to hit all four in a row, while he would only pick off the first ball without hititng the others for a draw.

You can preset open hips for all shots, especially including the short game and even for putting (it locks the knees into place and prevents swaying), and for full shots, you may choose to use it merely as a drill.

Speaking of Hogan, I believe DTL views of his swing show that he also preset his hips slightly open, because you will notice his right knee ticked in slightly and his left foot flared out with the right foot perpendicular.

Last but not least, all three main horizontal planes, i.e. feet, hips and shoulders should never be parallel to one another. Hence the idea of increasing the diagonality of the stance in three planes - hips open in relation to feet, shoulders closed in relation to hips. Of course shoulders are used for visual aiming while feet seeks for ultimate balance and ultimate benefitting from ground forces.

Biokinetic Golf Swing Theory: Setting the Swing Motion

Pre-Set Drill: A great drill to properly train the feel of Key #2: Weight Forward is to pre-set your impact position before making a golf swing. Here's how:

1. Set up over the ball as you normally would.

2. Move your left knee and hip towards the target and open them slightly. Let your hands shift towards your left thigh as you do this. You'll feel more weight on your forward leg.

3. Make a half to three-quarter backswing leaving your left knee and hip forward.

4. From there, bump the hips even farther forward, hit the ball, and swing to an abbreviated finish.

Doing this drill properly will set you on the path to achieving Tour-quality impact.

5 Keys | GolfTipsMag.com

A common error of golfers of all levels is lining up too far to the right of the target. This forces you to come over the top on the downswing to reroute the club on line, then release the hands quickly to prevent a slice and send the ball toward the target. These corrections put too much pressure on the small muscles of the hands to release the club at precisely the right time. You may be powerful, but you'll find yourself missing the target in every direction.

If you're going to make mistakes in alignment, make them to the left of the target. An open stance presets your hips in a cleared position, as they begin slightly rotated toward the target. You don't need a quick release of the hands; instead, you can square the club with the big muscles of the shoulders and back and approach the ball from an inside path. Keep your stance square to slightly open to develop a repeating swing. Don't let yourself drift to the right.

Set up for straight shots | Golf Features | IntoTheRough.co.uk

For pitch shots and chip shots, there is a much less aggressive turning of the body through impact. This is especially true for chip shots, as the chipping motion more closely mirrors a putting stroke. To overcome the less aggressive hip turning through impact, ideally we want to set up with an open stance to the target line with our body lines. This ensures open hips through impact, and the result is our arms can swing freely without manipulation to the follow-through position.

Believe it or not, this also comes into play with putting. Although it is common for teachers to tell students that their entire body alignment should be parallel to the target line, most tour professionals set up with open feet, knees, and hips (with the shoulders remaining square to allow a proper putter path). Again, this open alignment of the lower body allows the arms to swing down the target line in a free manner.

Golf Teaching Pros: Why the Open Stance?

If that sounds familiar, here's a drill to help you start the club back straighter and shallow out your downswing. Set up in a dramatically open stance, with your feet aimed 30 or 40 degrees left of the target. Then swing back along your stance line. This will prevent you from pulling the club to the inside and will create a wider arc. You'll get into a lower, flatter position at the top (below).

Jim McLean: Open Up To Fix Your Slice: Golf Digest