PurePoint Golf Full Swing Fundamentals Lesson One—The Grip Left Hand: The position of the left hand on the golf club Right Hand: The position of the right hand on the golf club Grip Variations: ariatio ns: The different ways to grip a golf club Grip Pressure: How Pressure: How much pressure pressure you should apply to gripping the golf club
1 2 3 4
Lesson Two—Address Two—Address Position Positi on The Feet: A Feet: A little bit wider apart than the shoulders width width The Knees: Slightly fex don’t sit The Hips: Bend Hips: Bend from the hips The Shoulders: Open the shoulders up for a bigger turn The Spine: How Spine: How do know if your spine is “straight” or not? The Chin: What role does the chin play in the golf swing?
5 6 7 9 10 11
Lesson Three—The Take-Away Standing to the Handle: The set-up secret The Key to Starting the Golf Club Back: The role of the right shoulder The Correct Path in the Backswing: The arc From Address to the 9:00 Position: One last look Check-Points to Arriving in the Correct Position: Tips along the way back
13 14 15 16 17
Lesson Four—The Top of the Backswing The Moving Parts: How Parts: How to get from 9:00 to the top How to Get To The Top: The Correct Position at the Top Important Stops Along the Way: Check Points at the Top Top
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Lesson Five—The First Move from the Top of the Downswing The Secret of the Golf Swing is the First Move Down: Right Down: Right Arm First How to Start the Golf Club Down: The Simple Move Check Points for Starting Down Correctly: Helpful Correctly: Helpful Guide
21 22 24
Lesson Six—The Downswing
25
Lesson Seven—Two Feet Before Impact/and Impact
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Lesson Eight—From Impact to Finish From Impact to Finish and all of the moves in-between: Don’ in-between: Don’tt Stop now What the Body Does from Impact to Finish: Great info
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PurePoint Golf Full Swing Fundamentals Lesson One—The Grip Left Hand: The position of the left hand on the golf club Right Hand: The position of the right hand on the golf club Grip Variations: ariatio ns: The different ways to grip a golf club Grip Pressure: How Pressure: How much pressure pressure you should apply to gripping the golf club
1 2 3 4
Lesson Two—Address Two—Address Position Positi on The Feet: A Feet: A little bit wider apart than the shoulders width width The Knees: Slightly fex don’t sit The Hips: Bend Hips: Bend from the hips The Shoulders: Open the shoulders up for a bigger turn The Spine: How Spine: How do know if your spine is “straight” or not? The Chin: What role does the chin play in the golf swing?
5 6 7 9 10 11
Lesson Three—The Take-Away Standing to the Handle: The set-up secret The Key to Starting the Golf Club Back: The role of the right shoulder The Correct Path in the Backswing: The arc From Address to the 9:00 Position: One last look Check-Points to Arriving in the Correct Position: Tips along the way back
13 14 15 16 17
Lesson Four—The Top of the Backswing The Moving Parts: How Parts: How to get from 9:00 to the top How to Get To The Top: The Correct Position at the Top Important Stops Along the Way: Check Points at the Top Top
18 19 19
Lesson Five—The First Move from the Top of the Downswing The Secret of the Golf Swing is the First Move Down: Right Down: Right Arm First How to Start the Golf Club Down: The Simple Move Check Points for Starting Down Correctly: Helpful Correctly: Helpful Guide
21 22 24
Lesson Six—The Downswing
25
Lesson Seven—Two Feet Before Impact/and Impact
27
Lesson Eight—From Impact to Finish From Impact to Finish and all of the moves in-between: Don’ in-between: Don’tt Stop now What the Body Does from Impact to Finish: Great info
29 30
Lesson One—The Grip Left Hand We’re going to start with the grip When you pick up a golf club your hands are the only part of your body that touches the club. For many years the hands (grip) have often been referred to as the the steering wheel of the golf swing. I don’t believe this could be more true. Gripping the golf club correctly makes playing this game a much better experience. Gripping the golf club at rst glance does not seem like a very ve ry difcult thing to do, however, it can take a lot of trial and error to gure out the correct grip for you. This is a very interesting aspect to the game of golf. Gripping the golf club is a VERY VERY INDIVIDUAL INDIVIDUAL thing for everyone that plays golf. There are no two grips alike. During the time you spend experimenting exp erimenting on nding the correct grip for yourself, you will have to record in a journal what grip you were trying and the results of the shots you hit. You can only nd what works for you through hitting golf balls. I can and will guide you, but ultimately, ultimately, results on the golf course speak louder than me. Here is a guide, on the way I have taught my students since I began teaching this game over 30 years ago. I haven’t changed my theory of the grip in that time time span, so I hope you can take this this and learn from it. As you pick the golf club up in your left hand, the golf club goes across the left palm- from the base of the forenger to the pad above the pinky. The more you grip the golf club in the ngers, the faster you can swing the golf club and the the quicker the clubface will close (causing a hook or draw). If you grip the golf club further up in the palm, the slower the golf club will travel and the longer it takes for the clubface to close (causing a slice or a fade). If you are slicing the golf ball, you will want to move the grip more into the ngers (the base of the ngers), if you are hooking the golf ball, you will want to move the grip more into the palm area (higher up in the left hand).
In the Fingers
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The grip does more to effect actual ball ight than anything else in the game. That’s why we’ve started with the grip. It’s the foundation of the swing, and a quick x for those of you that have undesirable ball ight patterns. Once you have placed the left hand on the golf club you can close your hand around the grip. A side note: Most golf clubs either have a “ladies” grip or a “men’s” grip on the golf club. If you have small hands it is very important to make sure you have your clubs gripped with a ladies grip, it doesn’t matter if you own men’s clubs. If you have large hands you should have your clubs gripped with men’s grips. There are a couple more options, if your hands are really small you can have “junior” grips placed on your clubs or if you have x-large hands or arthritis you can have “jumbo” grips placed on your clubs. The grip size also effects ball ight. Large grips tend to make a person fade the ball and small grips tend to make a person draw the ball.
Right Hand The left hand is in place and now you are going to place the right hand on the golf club. With your right hand on the side of your right leg, slowly bring it towards the bottom of the golf club. The right hand will be placed on the golf club more in the ngers than the palm. You will simply fold the right hand around the ngers of the left.
Closed Right Hand
No matter which grip you choose, BOTH PALMS MUST ALWAYS FACE EACH OTHER. It is not a difcult thing to do but it is mandatory, no grey area. You have now GRIPPED the golf club. There is a good chance you have NOT gripped it properly for you, so you will have to experiment. However, I have given you a great starting point. The placement of the hands on the golf club controls what the clubface will do during the golf swing and ultimately what the clubface will look like at impact.
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Grip Variations There are several different ways to grip a golf club. Although it sounds overwhelming, it truly is not. Once you begin to experiment you will eliminate four or ve of them instantly. I will give you a guide to get you started on the right track.
Harry Vardon-Overlapping
Interlocking
For starters, if you have small hands and ngers, the interlocking grip will probably work b est for you. It helps you wrap your ngers and palm around the grip handle. On the other hand, if you have large hands, the Harry Vardon-overlapping grip will probably work best for you. Out of seven, two are eliminated right away. If you are struggling with which one to use, hitting 50 balls at the practice facility one day will give you the answer. The above-mentioned grips are the proper way to hold a club- however there are three different ways you can apply them to the golf club. You can grip the golf club in a weak position (no knuckles of the left hand showing), neutral (one knuckle of the left hand showing) or the strong position (2 or 3 knuckles of the left hand showing).
Weak Grip
Neutral Grip
Strong Grip
During your experimenting, if the golf ball has a tendency to curve to the right, you will want to move BOTH hands to the right (strong). When you move the hands make sure you do it slowly. If the golf ball has a tendency to curve to the left, you will want to move BOTH hands slowly to the left (weak). Now, if the golf ball is ying without a curve, you have the correct grip for you. DO NOT EXPERIMENT WITH ANY OTHER GRIP. 3
Grip Pressure OK, you have found the correct grip for you. There is one last item we need to deal with. The amount of pressure you apply to the club plays a major role in how you swing the golf club. The tighter you grip the golf club the slower your arms will swing and the longer the clubface will take to release in the downswing (causing a slice). This is a good thing if you HOOK the golf ball. This will denitely stop the ball from curving from right to left. On the other hand if you have problems SLICING the golf ball this amount of grip pressure will make the ball slice more. If you are struggling with slicing the golf ball, yo u will have to hold the golf club like you were holding a baby’s hand. Gently, the lighter you grip the golf club the faster the club will swing and the quicker the club will release in the downswing. If you do not have any problems with the ball curving, you have the correct amount of grip pressure. Now that wasn’t very painful was it? One lesson down and what is it seven to go. You will never know how important this lesson is. It is very difcult to explain how important this part of the game is. Next we will examine Part 2-Address Position. That does not mean you can just drop the grip. You have to continue to be very diligent with this part of the game.
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Lesson Two—Address Position The Feet As we move through the address position section I want you to wrap your arms around the idea that we are going to construct a building. The building is four to six feet tall and not very wide. Of course I am referring to the human body. The rst place you would start is the foundation, so let’s talk about the feet rst. Let’s see how far apart they are supposed to be and exactly where we place the weight once we get the feet planted. The feet have to support the upper body and once the golf club, the arms and the body get moving in the downswing there is a lot of force that the foundation has to support. The feet have to be just slightly further apart than shoulder width. This distance is far enough apart to maintain a solid base. As the club begins to build up speed and the left hip makes the rst move down the target line before it turns backward, the width of the stance will hold up just ne. If you have a tendency to lose your balance, your stance might be to narrow.
Slightly More Than Shoulder Width
Less Than Shoulder Width
After impact the golf club swings back around your body and up towards your left shoulder. As the golf club comes to the end of the swing your weight has moved from the right side over to the left side. The width of your feet will accommodate this move. Your weight is evenly distributed between your toes and heels.
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The Knees From the feet we are going to move up the building to the knees. The knees have played a huge role in most sports- golf is no exception. The knees are going to come into play in two different parts of the golf swing. The rst part is the address position. As you address the golf ball your knees will have a slight ex in them. You are not going to “sit” on your knees and they are not locked straight. For a long time instructors taught students to have the feeling you were “sitting” on a bar stool. I always believed we should have been teaching people to feel as though you were “leaning” back on a stool. The last thing you would ever want to do is sit in golf. Sitting will cause the golf club to swing too level to the ground in the downswing, and you will have a tendency to hit the ground behind the golf ball.
Slightly Flexed
Sitting
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Straight
Before you start to “straighten” your knees to a “locked” position, which is just as wrong as sitting, let me give you a bit of advice. The knee position is what I refer to as “slightly” exed. Because we are all different heights, I cannot give you an exact degree you should ex your knees- however; if you simply relax your knees, you will nd the correct amount of bend on your own. The second roll the knees play in the swing is when the golf club is in motion. As the golf club swings back, the single most important thing for you to remember is the RIGHT knee never ever never moves from the original position. If you think of the two knee caps as head lights shining in front of you as you drive along a road, you might makes some twists and turns but the headlights are always in front of you. As you start the backswing the right knee does not slide, bend or straighten out- it stays very quiet and xed during the entire backswing. Both knees must remain exed during the entire backswing and until impact.
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The Hips If your chin is in the correct position, and your spine is long, and your knees are exed the correct amount, the golf club will not sole correctly on the ground until you tilt or bend over from the hips. You do not want to bend at the waist. You always want to bend from the hips. The difference is if you bend at the waist your spine will bend (not good). If you bend at the hips you can maintain the spine angle and sole the club on the ground correctly. If you do not bend at the hips, you will not be able to sole the golf club.
Correct
Not Tilted
Tilted Too Much
When you bend over from the hips you have to make sure you do not straighten out or lock your knees. When you bend at the hips you have to pay close attention to making sure you do not bend at the bottom of the spine. The hips play another role not related to their posture position. Your hips must be parallel to the line of the ball ight at address. If your hips are open at address you will have a tendency to open the hips too soon in the downswing. The clubface will be open at impact and the golf ball will start right. If your hips are closed at address the golf club will swing too much from the inside in the downswing and the golf ball will either start right or you will struggle with a quick hook left.
Parallel at Address
Open at Address
Closed at Address
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At address the hips are parallel to the ball ight line. As the golf club swings back down from the top, the rst move from the top is for the left hip to move an inch or two parallel to the target line and then the left hip should begin to turn backwards out of the way so the golf club can swing back to the inside after impact. When you arrive at the nish of the golf swing your belt and shoulders should be level to the ground. Your belt buckle will aim parallel to the intended target and your hips are level to the ground.
The Shoulders The shoulders play three major roles in the golf swing. The rst two roles are static and the third is a moving role. In the address position the shoulders compliment the spine angle. If the shoulders are rounded the spine will be bent over too much. If the shoulders are opened up and back at address the spine angle will be in the correct position as long as the chin is up.
Rounded
Shoulders Back
The second role the shoulders play is they must be parallel to your intended line you want the golf ball to travel on. When you look down your toes, knees, hips and shoulders must be in line with each other. Parallel means they have to be on the same line going to the left of where you want the golf ball to start. If the shoulders are aiming to the right of the target the golf club will start too much inside the correct path in the backswing. If they are aiming to the left of the target the golf club will start too much to the outside in the backswing. For the golf club to start back on the correct path the shoulders must be parallel from the start. The shoulders play yet another role in the backswing. As the club head, shaft, hands, arms and (shoulders) start moving backwards, the right shoulder has to move out of the way to give the hands, arms and golf club a place to swing to at the top of the backswing. The right shoulder does not slide back. Instead – turns around your body.
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The shoulders play a huge role in distance and direction. The shoulders have to turn as much as possible in the backswing. Once your back is facing the target (this for the 30ish and under crowd) or as much of a turn as possible, you will be in position to swing the club down with maximum club head speed.
The Spine The spine has taken on an all important part in the golf swing in the past 10 years. Not many words were written about the spine and its role in the golf swing until then. If the spine stays long during the backswing, not rigid, you can make a much bigger turn. If your spine is curved at address the shoulders will have a tendency to tilt and not turn. In the downswing the shoulders will have a tendency to turn on top of the golf ball instead of moving under. If the shoulders can move under, the golf club will stay on the path in the downswing. As the golf club swings back the right shoulder has to turn to allow the golf club to swing up, if the spine is too long the club will swing around too much and not up enough.
Correct-Long Spine
Bent Over
Too Long
There is yet another role the spine plays in the golf swing. At the top of the backswing the spine sup ports the upper body, the golf club, the arms and most importantly the speed at which we swing the golf club. If the spine maintains its length in the backswing, you will be able to swing the arms at a greater speed in the downswing. The golf club is at its maximum speed as it nears the golf ball and the spine is supporting the “frame of the golf swing” - your upper body. As the club head passes the impact zone the spine is at its most vulnerable position and from that point to the nish is when the spine is taking a real beating (physically). Maintaining the correct spine angle will play a major role in club head speed and, the direction the club actually swings (swing path). The spine maintains the same angle from address to one foot past impact and it is critical that it starts from the correct position. If you are in the correct posture at address no changes are necessary. If you are standing too tall at address, bending at the hips will solve this problem. If you are bent over too much at the top of the spine or your shoulders are too curved, you will have to take a very serious look into changing your spine angle. Opening your shoulders and lifting your chin will be a great place to start. 10
The Chin After you address the golf ball there is a check-list of things you need to go through to make sure you are ready to take off. I am not going to tell you the position of the chin is the most important- however, it ranks up there for sure. The chin controls what happens to the shoulders in the backswing. If the chin is down in your chest at address, the shoulders will have a tendency to pop up in the backswing. The right shoulder will NOT turn out of the way to make room for the arms to swing around. If you continue to leave your chin down into your chest you might have some success with the shorter clubs, but the long clubs will be very difcult to hit. You can get away with the arms swinging up and down with the short clubs, you might not be so lucky with the longer clubs.
Correct
Too Down
If you are going to make the change you should do it now and make the change with all of the clubs. It will pay off with crisper iron shots and more solid tee shots. As you prepare to address the golf ball the knees are slightly exed, the spine is long, the shoulders are back and the chin is an extension of the spine. For those of you who wear bifocals or have played with your chin down in your chest for the past 20 odd years, this is going to be somewhat of an awk ward feeling when you lift your chin up. If you wear bifocals this might be close to impossible to accomplish. For the rest of you who do not wear bifocals, the party is over, no excuses, get your chin up. So now you want to know how much you should lift your chin up. I have some advice that is not the answer of all answers, but it is a wonderful starting point. Grip the golf club in your left hand and then make a st with your right hand, lift your chin up just enough to get your st under your chin and touch your throat. I know this seems a bit generic but it will give you a great starting point. If you have a tendency to top your shots or hit thin, your chin might be up too much.
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Use Fist as Guide
Chin is Up Too Much
When you start experimenting with this new position you will want to start with a club you like to hit. You will know right away if the correction is going to help you or not. Give it a chance. If you top a lot of shots, you have lifted the chin up too much. The rst few shots you might want to start with half a st so you can ease into it. Keep in mind it is an extension of your spine. You might have to bend over at the hips another inch or two; this will compliment the chin position.
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Lesson Three—The Take-Away Standing to the Handle of the Golf Club As you address the golf ball there are some critical parts of the setup that must be in place before you start the backswing. Once you are set to go, if you look down and see the grip-end of the golf club across from your belt buckle there is a good chance you have MOST of the critical parts in place.
Across From Belt Buckle
Having the grip-end of the golf club across from your belt buckle assures you of having your head in the correct position, not tilted too far to the left side or the right side of the golf ball. The second part is your spine is probably in the correct position, if the grip end is pointing towards you chin, your spine is too long. If the grip end is pointing lower than your belt buckle, your spine is bent over too much. Lastly, the most crucial part is the golf club is soled on the ground with the correct amount of loft. The golf club being soled correctly on the ground is the sure guarantee that you are in the correct setup, after you conrm all the positions that we discussed above.
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The Key to Starting the Golf Club Back One of the top ve most asked questions in the past 25 years has been, “What starts the backswing?” The answer is a bit complex, so grab your Hi-Liter and let’s get started. When you are all ready to start the backswing, the club head, shaft, your hands, arms and right shoulder move in ONE PIECE at the exact same time. The club head starts back on an arc (we will get to that in the next section). The right shoulder at this time is turning backwards. The take-away is one piece all the way until it arrives at the 9:00 o’clock position (we will get to that in two sections).
Right Shoulder Turns as the Arms Swing Club
As you start back, both knees are exed and during the backswing- the right knee NEVER changes positions. It does not ex more, nor does it straighten out and it does not slide back away from the target. It is xed. The left knee also plays a major role in the backswing. It does not move towards the line of ight and it does not straighten out. As the golf club starts back, the left knee moves towards the right knee as a RESULT of the upper body turning and the lower body resisting this turn. The left knee never passes the golf ball in the backswing.
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The Correct Path in the Backswing As the golf club starts back away from the golf ball the club head must swing back on an arc which is inside the straight line to the target. If the golf club travels outside in the backswing the right shoulder will tilt up in the backswing and the golf club will swing vertical to the ground in the downswing. If the golf club travels too much to the inside of the arc in the backswing, the golf club will travel too level to the golf ball in the downswing. If the golf club swings too straight back you will have a tendency to hit the ball in the heel of the club at impact. When the golf club travels back on the correct path the combination of the arms and hands will be able to swing the golf club back to the correct position at the top of the backswing as long as the right shoulder turns out of the way.
Correct Arc
Too Much Outside
Too Much Inside
Too Straight Back
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From Address to the 9:00 Position
9 O’Clock
The rst check-point in the backswing is the 9:00 o’clock position. When the shaft of the golf club is level to the ground and parallel to your intended target line- we refer to that position as 9 o’clock. When you reach 9 o’clock, you are half-way back and this is a great time to stop and take a look around, as long as you know what you are looking for. The rst thing you want to take a look at- is the golf club in the exact correct position? The club should be parallel to your target line and level to the ground. The second part to take a look at- is the right shoulder turning and not tilting? It is very difcult to get to 9 o’clock with a tilted right shoulder. If the right shoulder is tilting up the golf club will most likely be outside the path and pointed up. If the right shoulder turns too much in the backswing the golf club will swing around you too much. If you are in the correct position, it is time to head back to the top of the backswing.
Right Shoulder Turns Too Much
Right Shoulder Tilts Too Much
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Check-Points to Arriving in the Correct Position From the 9 o’clock position the golf club must continue up on an arc. This can only happen if you continue to turn the right shoulder out of the way. As the right shoulder turns out of the way, the arms, hands and golf club will continue to swing inside, however, after the golf club passes the 9 o’clock position, it will have to swing up. This combination is what I believe is the most difcult part of the backswing.
From 9 to the Top
You can not stop turning the shoulder. If you do stop turning the golf club will start to swing up to much. If you continue to swing the golf club around with the shoulders the golf club will swing too much around. The combination is when the shoulders turn and the golf club swings up. When you reach the top of the backswing with this combination you will be in position to swing the golf club down on the correct path and with club head speed.
From 9 to the Top
We are closing in on the top of the golf swing. Three lessons down and ve to go. I havesaid for years, if you get it to the top of the backswing in the correct position, you have an 80% better chance of making solid contact with the golf ball.
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Lesson Four—The Top of the Backswing How to get from 9:00 to the top As the golf club leaves the 9:00 position, it has to continue on the arc until you reach the top of the backswing. There are a number of moving parts that must be in place during this journey. First and foremost the right shoulder must continue to turn. The right shoulder can not stop or change directions. If the right shoulder stops or tilts up, the golf club will swing up too much. If the right shoulder turns too much the golf club will not go up.
Right Shoulder Quit Turning
Right Shoulder Turned Too Much
As the right shoulder continues to turn in the backswing, the right hip must not follow it. The right hip has to resist turning so you can develop resistance. If you develop resistance in the backswing with the bottom half of your body, you will build up tension an d that is where the ability to develop clubhead speed comes from. As the right shoulder continues to turn level to the ground, the left knee will continue to turn more towards the golf ball. You have to make sure you do not allow the left knee to pass the golf ball. As the right shoulder continues to turn, the left shoulder will move from the address position towards the golf ball. As the right shoulder continues to turn, your head will move slightly to the right (away from the golf ball). Your head will move a couple of inches as a result of the right shoulder turning out of the way. The head does not slide back and away from the golf ball with the lower body. The right knee never moves.
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Right Leg Does Not Move
During the entire backswing, the left arm ha s remained long, not rigid. The right arm will begin to fold after the golf club leaves the 9:00 position. The reason the left arm remains long is to provide you with plenty of width in the backswing. Width in the backswing is the reason you can develop clubhead speed. If the left arm remains long you can swing the clubhead on the arc, and by swinging it on the arc you will be able to build clubhead speed in the downswing.
The Correct Position at the Top When the golf club arrives at the top of the backswing there are four parts that have to be in the correct place. The rst thing that is extremely important is for the golf club to be pointing slightly left of the target. Now what does this mean? When you address the golf ball, the ball is on what we refer to as the “intended ball ight line”, and your feet are parallel to that line. At the top of the backswing the shaft has to aim parallel to your heel line or parallel left of the target.
Check Points at the Top Getting to the top of the backswing is no easy feat. Now that you have reached the top let’s check to make sure all of the moving parts are in the correct place. Your checklist should start at the bottom of your feet and go all the way to the top of your head. At the address position the weight is evenly distributed between both feet. The arms and hands start the golf club back in a one-piece-take-away which includes the right shoulder turning. As the right shoulder continues to turn, the left knee will turn slightly towards the center of your body.
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Weight Evenly Distributed
One Piece Take-Away
Left Knee Turns Towards Right Knee
On the other hand, the right knee never leaves its original position. As the top half of your body is turning, the right knee must remain in the exact same position. When you are addressing the golf ball, the right knee has a slight ex. During the back swing, the right knee can not slide backwards nor can it straighten out and it can not ex more. The right knee is the foundation of the backswing, it takes on all of the force of the right shoulder turning and the hips resisting from turning. The right knee has to maintain this rock solid foundation so you can continue to turn the top half of your body against the bottom half. When the golf club has reached the top of the backswing, the right knee will be there to support the upper golf club, arms, hands and upper body. If there is one part of the body that has to be in the cor rect position at the top of the backswing, it is the right knee. The function of the right knee is not only the foundation of the backswing. In the next section you are going to nd out the value of the right knee in the downswing as well. Wasn’t that great? Now let’s head for home. Four lessons down, four to go. Next chapter is Lesson Five-The First Move from the Top of the Downswing. You know the drill, keep working on the back swing, you can not ignore it.
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Lesson Five - The First Move from the Top of the Downswing The Secret of the Golf Swing is the First Move Down Now you are ready to start the downswing. You have arrived safely at the top and now you need to return to the bottom in one piece. When you are ready to start the downswing, the very rst move is for the right arm to begin to straighten out and return to impact in the exact same position it started in.
The Secret
In order to do that, the right arm has to start to come unhinged as soon as you begin the downswing. There have been millions of words written on this topic. As a matter of fact, it seems like every time anyone goes near this subject, the entire golf world throws the four letter word “cast” at you. The terms “cast” or “casting the golf club” were used in the 60’s and have escalated to the point where if you mention any other way of swinging the golf club down other than “pulling on the handle” or creating drag and creating a tight angle with your arms, the golf world is ready to pounce on you. The good news, bad news is the terms “pulling on the handle” and “creating a tight angle” have kept me very busy for the past 25 years. If you are trying to practice the above mentioned phrases, I feel very condent you’ll end up hitting too many shots to the right. The ability to hit a golf ball squarely with the correct timing has more to do with how many hours you can dedicate to the game than it does with how hard you can pull on the handle of the golf club. Your ability to create clubhead speed lies in the speed you can swing your hands, arms and golf club not in how fast you can pull the grip end of the golf club. Clubhead speed is created from you generating width in the right arm on its journey back to the golf ball. Swinging just the hands, arms and golf club back to the golf ball with maximum clubhead speed inde pendent of the lower and upper body is not the answer either. Swinging the golf club back to the golf ball on the correct path with maximum clubhead speed is the combination of the hands, arms and golf club swinging in conjunction with the lower body moving out of the way and the upper body turning back towards the target.
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As the right arm begins to unhinge, the left hip must move one or two inches towards the target. Then the left hip should start to turn out of the way so the hands, arms and golf club can have a place to swing to after impact.
Left Hip Turning Out of the Way
How to Start the Golf Club Down As you begin the downswing there are many parts that must follow in order for you to swing the clubhead back on the correct path with maximum amount of speed. By now you know the right arm must begin to unfold rst and then the left hip moves one or two inches towards the target and then it turns back and out of the way.
Right Arm Begins to Straighten
Left Hip Moves
As the right arm begins to unfold the left arm must remain long during this entire time. Not rigid and locked, but long and relaxed. When you moved the golf club back to the top of the backswing it swung back on an arc. The arc was slightly inside a straight line away from the target. The club has to swing inside and up on the arc. When the club passed 9:00 it has to start swinging up.
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Left Arm Long
Arc in Downswing
The golf club has to swing back down on the same path it went back up on. When you swung it up, the right shoulder turned back and out of the way, now as you swing the golf club back down, the right shoulder has to stay back as long as possible so the club can swing back down on the arc. What happens next? For the rst couple of feet in the downswing, not much happens- then it all starts to go. As the left hip moves out of the way, the left knee will begin to head back towards its address position. When the clubhead gets halfway back to the golf ball, the right knee will begin to turn towards the target and your weight will start to move from the right side back to the middle of your stance.
Right Knee Turns Towards Target
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Check Points for Starting Down Correctly
#1 Right Arm Begins to Unfold
#2 Left Hip Moves One or Two Inches Then Turns
#3 Left Leg Returns to Address Position
#4 Right Leg Begins to Move Parallel to Target
We are headed home. Five lessons down, three to go. This is a lot of information, keep going over it again and again until you know all of the parts.
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Part Six - The Downswing As the right arm begins to unfold and the left hip moves one or two inches towards the target before it begins to turn out of the way, the downswing is in full swing mode. In other words the game is on. No holding back, no stopping and no bailing out. There is no turning back. As the force of the arms swinging down the lower part of the body is moving out of the way. There are some very important moves that have to take place for a solid shot with maximum clubhead speed. The speed of the arms and hands and the tension in the lower body is what creates the clubhead speed you are in search of. When the hands pass your belt buckle the right knee will begin to move down the intended line and the right heel will come up off of the ground. At the same time, the body is moving parallel to the target line and the left knee is about to become involved.
Left Leg is 90% of Maximum Length
The purpose of the left knee at this moment is to distribute the force from the d ownswing and maintain a strong foundation for a solid nish. The left leg must straighten out 90% of its maximum, it can not over extend. Snapping the left knee or overextending it can cause injury. If you snap the knee too soon it will also weaken the foundation and the downswing will not have any stability. As the golf club starts down it must remain on the same path it went back on. The path is a slight arc going back down into the back of the golf ball. The only way you can remain on this path is to start the right arm rst and then the rest of the body can follow. If the right shoulder starts rst in the downswing the golf club will have a tendency to swing outside the arc too much and if the left hip starts rst in the downswing the g olf club will have a tendency to start inside the arc too much. The golf club has to stay on this correct path until impact. The combination of the left hip turning back out of the way and the right shoulder following the arms will enable the golf club to stay on the correct path. At any time if there is a change in direction of the body, the club will come off of the path. 25
At impact the left arm is long, the left arm has turned out of way, and your bottom half has moved back towards the address position. The right arm is now long (speed of downswing has made the right arm longer than at address), the right shoulder and head are slightly behind the golf ball, and your right heel is off of the ground.
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Lesson Seven - Two Feet Before Impact/and Impact At the top of the backswing the clubface is open and as it begins to swing down, the face has to start closing immediately. The closing of the clubface is a long process that has to happen during the entire down swing. The clubface can not square up at the bottom of the hit. If you try to square the clubface up at impact, you have to be extremely quick and strong. The only case where you can “take more time” squaring the clubface in the golf swing is if you hook the ball. Getting the face back to square is not a quick ick of the arms and hands either. Remember, it is a long process that starts at the top of the backswing. By the time the shaft reaches your right knee, the clubface has to be square or close to it. You only have three more feet for the face to be one or two degrees closed and it is moving at 75-115 mph. If the face is open more than this amount, the ball is slicing to the right. There have been a million words written on the couple of feet before impact and I know that the absolute death of the downswing lies in the last couple of feet. If you have started the downswing with the right shoulder or left hip, this will be a very difcult way to improve your game. I do not believe the masses have the strength or the need to swing the body rst in the downswing. Their arms simply cannot keep up. Making sure the golf club is swinging on the arc is the rst and foremost part of the downswing. If you can swing the golf club on the arc with maximum clubhead speed, you will head down the road of success with your golf game. The body compliments the arms swinging the club; it is not the opposite. When you addressed the golf club, your right hand was even or slightly under the left hand. As the golf club begins to swing back, the left hand is slightly on top of the right. At the top of the back swing, the left hand is on top of the right, and now the golf club begins to swing down and as the club approaches the golf ball the right hand will roll over the left near and at impact. From that moment on, the right hand will be on top of the left. The roll I just mentioned is referred to as the “release”. This is yet another golf word that has had a million words written about. The release takes place just before impact and will insure a clubface that is slightly closed. Another topic that comes up in this part of the golf swing is “timing”. The timing aspect of the game is when the body works in concert with the arms and hands. When the left hip turns out of the way at the moment the right hand rolls the clubface closed at impact, this is wha t is referred to as perfect timing. Let there be no misunderstanding, it is certainly easier to write about timing the golf club correctly than to actually do it. The easy way out is to instruct students to hit one million golf balls, and that ought to do it. One million golf shots divided by 50 years is twenty thousand golf shots a year. I can not say I have hit 20 thousand golf shots a year, I can say I have averaged 10 thousand and my timing is not always exactly how I would prefer. 27
On the ip side, if you are not swinging the golf club back and down on the correct path with the cor rect posture and aim, you can hit 2 million shots and your timing is NOT going to be in any different place than if you hit 200 shots a year.
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Lesson Eight - From Impact to the Finish From Impact to Finish and all of the moves in-between The one thing you have to keep in mind is from the top of the backswing to the nish is a non-stop uid motion. When the golf club starts down there is no slowing down or stopping of the club head. Many things take place during the downswing and they all have to be in sync with one another to make for solid impact. Ninety-ve percent of the nal part of the swing (moment of impact to nish) is a result of you swinging the golf club from the address position to the top of the golf swing correctly. If you get the golf club in the correct position at the top of the backswing, you will up your chances of hitting a solid golf shot. Let’s take some time and discuss what takes place from the moment of impact to the nish. I will break it down into two sections. First, what happens to the golf club and secondly, what happens to the body. At the very moment of impact, the clubface should be one or two degrees closed. The clubface was square at address and as the golf club swings back to the top of the backswing, the clubface rolled open. As the golf club swings back down, the clubface has to swing back to square. It will begin to roll closed and continues to close until the toe is pointing up, when the shaft is pointing parallel to the target line. As the arms and hands swing the club from the parallel position up to the nish, the club continues to close.
Clubface Closing
Clubface Continuing to Close to Finish
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Let me share something with you right now. If I asked you what you think you have to do to hit the golf ball further I am afraid your rst response will be the same as most of the golng world. Swing harder. Yes, that is a start, however; the clubhead speed must be properly applied. The ability to have the clubhead make solid contact with the golf ball with maximum speed is the combination of the golf club, arms, and hands moving in concert with the upper and lower body. This combination is referred to in golf as “timing”. Simply put, the most abused word in golf. Everybody uses it and not too many people know how to do it.
What the Body Does in from Impact to Finish Now, let’s move on to the job of the body from impact to the nish. At the moment of impact the knees are in the same position as impact. Yes, the left knee moved away from the golf ball towards the center of your stance and now it is moving back to the original position. At this moment the left hip has moved towards the target an inch or two and is turning back and out of the way. As the arms and hands pass the middle of the right leg, the right knee will begin to move parallel to the target line and the right heel is beginning to turn up.
Left Knee Returns to Address
Right Knee is on the Move
When the club reaches the point after impact where it is parallel to the ground and pointing parallel to the target line, the left hip is behind you, the left knee is almost fully extended and the right knee has passed where the golf ball was on the ground. At this position, the body is moving at maximum speed and it will soon begin to slow down as it approaches the nish. When the golf club passes through the 9:00 position the upper body will begin to straighten out with the right shoulder turning to the top and the shoulders will soon become level to the ground.
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