The Proper Technique for a Golf Swing
A golf swing grounded in proper technique is the best way to ensure consistent shot-making. Factors such as proper address position, athletic posture, fundamental grip, rhythm and tempo help achieve proper swing technique. When practicing your golf swing, first think about how the major muscle groups should operate, then concentrate on the small muscle movement. Put it all together to achieve proper golf swing technique.
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Instructions
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Setting up and starting the swing
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Stand with a straight spine--not slouched. Tilt at the waist to set the club in place behind the ball; do not set the club by lowering the arms and hands. Relegate tension to the big muscles in the back, shoulders and leg. Keep the arms and hands relaxed. Take the club back by rotating the upper body on the axis of the spine, maintaining the angle of your torso throughout the process and avoiding lateral movement. To rotate, Turn your left shoulder down toward the ball while moving the right shoulder up and away from the ball. Keep your hips facing forward and your head still. Continue the backswing until your back eventually faces the target.
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2
Resist any lateral movement of the right leg during backswing rotation. Tension builds in the right leg as you rotate the upper body. This tension is actually torque building up in the backswing, energy you release during the downswing. Keep your weight to the inside of your right foot and resist movement in the right leg.
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3
Rotate your torso to the point where the tension is too much to fight through. The more flexible you are, the greater amount of rotation you achieve before you feel any resistance.
Continuing and finishing the swing
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4
Lift the left arm vertically during the backswing. Hinge at the left shoulder, not the left elbow. Create a hinging action in the right elbow with only minimal hinging in the right shoulder. Keep both of these hinging actions slow and deliberate, and with very little tension in the arms.
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5
Hinge the hands vertically at the wrists. Do not allow the left wrist to hinge laterally (as in a slap) at any point during the swing. At the top of the swing, you will feel the weight of the club head pulling down on your hands--this is a sign that you are finished with your backswing.
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6
Initiate the downswing by incorporating the legs, torso, arms and hands simultaneously. In the legs, this will feel like you are pushing off your right foot. Rotate your torso to the opposite direction of the backswing, while you drive the left hip toward the target and the right shoulder down toward the ball. Pull down vertically with the arms, following the rest of the body into the ball.
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7
During the downswing, roll the hands over through impact so that the face of the club is actually rotating as it makes contact with the ball. Drive the club into the inside corner of the ball, not squarely behind it. (In making contact squarely behind the ball, you tend to pull the ball left or even hook it.) Allow the club to accelerate naturally through impact; the centrifugal force builds club speed.
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Ease into your finish position. End up facing your target with all or most of your weight on the left foot. The right foot should finish on the toes, perpendicular to the ground.
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Tips & Warnings
On the initial takeaway, it's helpful to keep the club low to the ground to avoid picking it up too quickly. Maintaining the same angle of the spine from setup to impact is essential in making an efficient swing.
These tips are for written for right-handed players. For left handed players, simply reverse the roles.
Keep in mind, a golf swing is filled with hundreds of intricacies that can break down with the slightest fundamental misstep. No one is born with proper golf swing technique and to learn all the elements of a good swing takes years of instruction and practice.
References
Resources
- Photo Credit golf image by Christophe Fouquin from Fotolia.com
