Instruction
Getting off the back foot

Do these swing tips “Get on your left side,” “Get through the ball,” and “Finish” sound familiar? They should, because they are some of the most familiar admonitions in the game and for good reason. There is no question that all great players move their weight through the shot. And to hit the golf ball consistently well, all golfers need to get there. That being said, why do so many struggle with their weight shift?
One of the difficult things about golf is that it is, of all games, the most paradoxical. For example, it seems that because the golf ball is sitting on the ground, the logical thing to do is hit UP on it to help it in the air. The minute that image directs a golfer’s motion, he or she will invariably fall onto the back foot to try to hit up on the golf ball.
When I train junior golfers, one of the first things they learn, after a proper set up, is how to hit down on the golf ball. In other words, they learn to overcome the natural instinct I just described. This is the genesis of shifting their weight to their lead foot. The drill I use most often is the downhill lie drill. I have players hit balls on a downhill lie and walk through the shot (down the hill). Try it. It will be impossible to fall onto your back foot.
The second biggest cause of falling onto the back foot is leaving too much weight on the lead foot in the backswing. This is caused by something called proprioception, the unconscious perception of movement and special orientation arising from stimuli within the body itself. Translation? Our body wants to be in balance. In everything we do, from sky diving to walking down the street, our bodies are seeking balance. It’s what keeps us from falling over.
Think of the downswing as nothing more than the body seeking balance. If the center of mass of the body leans too far forward (toward a golfer’s lead foot), it immediately and unconsciously falls back to the rear foot for balance. That is the root cause of “hanging back.” If you watch golf swing videos closely, most every time you see golfers finish on the back foot it is because they have tilted too far forward on the front foot in the backswing. This was mistakenly termed a “reverse pivot” for a long time. But, in fact, there is not “pivot” at all. John Jacobs referred to this as rocking, a much more apt description. This rocking motion is responsible for perhaps 80 percent of hang-back problems.
The correct movement
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- A “step” on the right foot (turning into the right leg, more than out over it).
- A push up (not a lift) through the right shoulder.
- A push off the right foot toward the left side. It is much easier to push off a flexed back leg than a straight one so the lower and upper body can “separate.”
- A push up through the left shoulder.
The torso will separate from the hips and legs and stay slightly behind the ball as the lower body pushes hard toward the lead foot.
The movements I described are verified by 3-D motion analysis systems such as the AMM (Advanced Motion Analysis). For more information, I would urge you to looks at some of the work by Dr. Young-Hoo Kwon. Dr. Kwon is a professor of biomechanics at Texas Women’s University. His work, in conjunction with golf teaching professional Chris Como, is some of the best work in the field on this subject. Their research is really enlightening as it deals with center of mass and center of pressure movements in the golf swing, and most importantly, the difference between them.
One of my favorite images that nicely illustrates the proper weight shift in a golf swing is that of a pitcher pushing off the rubber and stepping toward the plate.
For practical purposes, it reveals what I and many others have taught for many years: If the body weight is slightly on the rear leg in the backswing, we can push off to the front side in the downswing. The “hang back” look of so many amateurs can be corrected by understanding this principle.
It should be noted that when I say that golfers move slightly to their right side (for a right-handed golfer) in the backswing, I am not describing a “swaying” motion; simply a slight center of mass movement to the right foot in the backswing in order to feel a push-off to the left side. Watch Adam Scott’s swing as he does this. It’s a thing of beauty.
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The final way that golfers end up with their weight on their back foot is from over-swinging; simply trying to swing much harder or faster than their body is capable of. Try this: Swing as hard as you possibly can. You will notice some recoil — a spring back to your rear foot as a reaction to the speed of the motion. You see this in long drivers quite often.
I do not believe that golfers should try to intentionally slow their swing down, but I do want them to swing at a speed that allows them to feel the motion of the body. I’m often asked if there is a swing on tour I really like and although I’d be hard pressed to pick one, Adam Scott and Louis Oosthuizen come to mind. Their balance enviable.
So if you’re trying to hit up, or leaving weight on the front side in your takeaway or swinging like a long drive competitor, you will likely finish going away from the target. And there is no sport I can think of where movement away from the target is functional. If you’d like to send a youtube video to my Facebook page, I’d be happy to take a look and help you cure your weight shift problems.
Instruction
The Wedge Guy: Beating the yips into submission

There may be no more painful affliction in golf than the “yips” – those uncontrollable and maddening little nervous twitches that prevent you from making a decent stroke on short putts. If you’ve never had them, consider yourself very fortunate (or possibly just very young). But I can assure you that when your most treacherous and feared golf shot is not the 195 yard approach over water with a quartering headwind…not the extra tight fairway with water left and sand right…not the soft bunker shot to a downhill pin with water on the other side…No, when your most feared shot is the remaining 2- 4-foot putt after hitting a great approach, recovery or lag putt, it makes the game almost painful.
And I’ve been fighting the yips (again) for a while now. It’s a recurring nightmare that has haunted me most of my adult life. I even had the yips when I was in my 20s, but I’ve beat them into submission off and on most of my adult life. But just recently, that nasty virus came to life once again. My lag putting has been very good, but when I get over one of those “you should make this” length putts, the entire nervous system seems to go haywire. I make great practice strokes, and then the most pitiful short-stroke or jab at the ball you can imagine. Sheesh.
But I’m a traditionalist, and do not look toward the long putter, belly putter, cross-hand, claw or other variation as the solution. My approach is to beat those damn yips into submission some other way. Here’s what I’m doing that is working pretty well, and I offer it to all of you who might have a similar affliction on the greens.
When you are over a short putt, forget the practice strokes…you want your natural eye-hand coordination to be unhindered by mechanics. Address your putt and take a good look at the hole, and back to the putter to ensure good alignment. Lighten your right hand grip on the putter and make sure that only the fingertips are in contact with the grip, to prevent you from getting to tight.
Then, take a long, long look at the hole to fill your entire mind and senses with the target. When you bring your head/eyes back to the ball, try to make a smooth, immediate move right into your backstroke — not even a second pause — and then let your hands and putter track right back together right back to where you were looking — the HOLE! Seeing the putter make contact with the ball, preferably even the forward edge of the ball – the side near the hole.
For me, this is working, but I am asking all of you to chime in with your own “home remedies” for the most aggravating and senseless of all golf maladies. It never hurts to have more to fall back on!
Instruction
Looking for a good golf instructor? Use this checklist

Over the last couple of decades, golf has become much more science-based. We measure swing speed, smash factor, angle of attack, strokes gained, and many other metrics that can really help golfers improve. But I often wonder if the advancement of golf’s “hard” sciences comes at the expense of the “soft” sciences.
Take, for example, golf instruction. Good golf instruction requires understanding swing mechanics and ball flight. But let’s take that as a given for PGA instructors. The other factors that make an instructor effective can be evaluated by social science, rather than launch monitors.
If you are a recreational golfer looking for a golf instructor, here are my top three points to consider.
1. Cultural mindset
What is “cultural mindset? To social scientists, it means whether a culture of genius or a culture of learning exists. In a golf instruction context, that may mean whether the teacher communicates a message that golf ability is something innate (you either have it or you don’t), or whether golf ability is something that can be learned. You want the latter!
It may sound obvious to suggest that you find a golf instructor who thinks you can improve, but my research suggests that it isn’t a given. In a large sample study of golf instructors, I found that when it came to recreational golfers, there was a wide range of belief systems. Some instructors strongly believed recreational golfers could improve through lessons. while others strongly believed they could not. And those beliefs manifested in the instructor’s feedback given to a student and the culture created for players.
2. Coping and self-modeling can beat role-modeling
Swing analysis technology is often preloaded with swings of PGA and LPGA Tour players. The swings of elite players are intended to be used for comparative purposes with golfers taking lessons. What social science tells us is that for novice and non-expert golfers, comparing swings to tour professionals can have the opposite effect of that intended. If you fit into the novice or non-expert category of golfer, you will learn more and be more motivated to change if you see yourself making a ‘better’ swing (self-modeling) or seeing your swing compared to a similar other (a coping model). Stay away from instructors who want to compare your swing with that of a tour player.
3. Learning theory basics
It is not a sexy selling point, but learning is a process, and that process is incremental – particularly for recreational adult players. Social science helps us understand this element of golf instruction. A good instructor will take learning slowly. He or she will give you just about enough information that challenges you, but is still manageable. The artful instructor will take time to decide what that one or two learning points are before jumping in to make full-scale swing changes. If the instructor moves too fast, you will probably leave the lesson with an arm’s length of swing thoughts and not really know which to focus on.
As an instructor, I develop a priority list of changes I want to make in a player’s technique. We then patiently and gradually work through that list. Beware of instructors who give you more than you can chew.
So if you are in the market for golf instruction, I encourage you to look beyond the X’s and O’s to find the right match!
Instruction
What Lottie Woad’s stunning debut win teaches every golfer

Most pros take months, even years, to win their first tournament. Lottie Woad needed exactly four days.
The 21-year-old from Surrey shot 21-under 267 at Dundonald Links to win the ISPS Handa Women’s Scottish Open by three shots — in her very first event as a professional. She’s only the third player in LPGA history to accomplish this feat, joining Rose Zhang (2023) and Beverly Hanson (1951).
But here’s what caught my attention as a coach: Woad didn’t win through miraculous putting or bombing 300-yard drives. She won through relentless precision and unshakeable composure. After watching her performance unfold, I’m convinced every golfer — from weekend warriors to scratch players — can steal pages from her playbook.
Precision Beats Power (And It’s Not Even Close)
Forget the driving contests. Woad proved that finding greens matters more than finding distance.
What Woad did:
• Hit it straight, hit it solid, give yourself chances
• Aimed for the fat parts of greens instead of chasing pins
• Let her putting do the talking after hitting safe targets
• As she said, “Everyone was chasing me today, and managed to maintain the lead and played really nicely down the stretch and hit a lot of good shots”
Why most golfers mess this up:
• They see a pin tucked behind a bunker and grab one more club to “go right at it”
• Distance becomes more important than accuracy
• They try to be heroic instead of smart
ACTION ITEM: For your next 10 rounds, aim for the center of every green regardless of pin position. Track your greens in regulation and watch your scores drop before your swing changes.
The Putter That Stayed Cool Under Fire
Woad started the final round two shots clear and immediately applied pressure with birdies at the 2nd and 3rd holes. When South Korea’s Hyo Joo Kim mounted a charge and reached 20-under with a birdie at the 14th, Woad didn’t panic.
How she responded to pressure:
• Fired back with consecutive birdies at the 13th and 14th
• Watched Kim stumble with back-to-back bogeys
• Capped it with her fifth birdie of the day at the par-5 18th
• Stayed patient when others pressed, pressed when others cracked
What amateurs do wrong:
• Get conservative when they should be aggressive
• Try to force magic when steady play would win
• Panic when someone else makes a move
ACTION ITEM: Practice your 3-6 foot putts for 15 minutes after every range session. Woad’s putting wasn’t spectacular—it was reliable. Make the putts you should make.
Course Management 101: Play Your Game, Not the Course’s Game
Woad admitted she couldn’t see many scoreboards during the final round, but it didn’t matter. She stuck to her game plan regardless of what others were doing.
Her mental approach:
• Focused on her process, not the competition
• Drew on past pressure situations (Augusta National Women’s Amateur win)
• As she said, “That was the biggest tournament I played in at the time and was kind of my big win. So definitely felt the pressure of it more there, and I felt like all those experiences helped me with this”
Her physical execution:
• 270-yard drives (nothing flashy)
• Methodical iron play
• Steady putting
• Everything effective, nothing spectacular
ACTION ITEM: Create a yardage book for your home course. Know your distances to every pin, every hazard, every landing area. Stick to your plan no matter what your playing partners are doing.
Mental Toughness Isn’t Born, It’s Built
The most impressive part of Woad’s win? She genuinely didn’t expect it: “I definitely wasn’t expecting to win my first event as a pro, but I knew I was playing well, and I was hoping to contend.”
Her winning mindset:
• Didn’t put winning pressure on herself
• Focused on playing well and contending
• Made winning a byproduct of a good process
• Built confidence through recent experiences:
- Won the Women’s Irish Open as an amateur
- Missed a playoff by one shot at the Evian Championship
- Each experience prepared her for the next
What this means for you:
• Stop trying to shoot career rounds every time you tee up
• Focus on executing your pre-shot routine
• Commit to every shot
• Stay present in the moment
ACTION ITEM: Before each round, set process goals instead of score goals. Example: “I will take three practice swings before every shot” or “I will pick a specific target for every shot.” Let your score be the result, not the focus.
The Real Lesson
Woad collected $300,000 for her first professional victory, but the real prize was proving that fundamentals still work at golf’s highest level. She didn’t reinvent the game — she simply executed the basics better than everyone else that week.
The fundamentals that won:
• Hit more fairways
• Find more greens
• Make the putts you should make
• Stay patient under pressure
That’s something every golfer can do, regardless of handicap. Lottie Woad just showed us it’s still the winning formula.
FINAL ACTION ITEM: Pick one of the four action items above and commit to it for the next month. Master one fundamental before moving to the next. That’s how champions are built.
PGA Professional Brendon Elliott is an award-winning coach and golf writer. You can check out his writing work and learn more about him by visiting BEAGOLFER.golf and OneMoreRollGolf.com. Also, check out “The Starter” on RG.org each Monday.
Editor’s note: Brendon shares his nearly 30 years of experience in the game with GolfWRX readers through his ongoing tip series. He looks forward to providing valuable insights and advice to help golfers improve their game. Stay tuned for more Tips!
william reichert
Oct 20, 2016 at 10:04 pm
To move the weight from the right foot to the left(without moving the head forward as well) involves
either dropping the head slightly on the downswing or addressing the ball with significant knee flex. This is just anatomy. Moving to the left with the lower body while keeping the head from moving means that the left side of your body has gotten longer. This is impossible so there must be some action that allows this to happen. The head must drop. However if you start the swing with a little more knee flex this action lowers your head at address. Then the extra knee flex allows the weight shift to occur without further head lowering on the down swing.
Padre
Mar 27, 2014 at 7:16 am
Thanks once again Dennis. You have the uncanny ability to explain something so clear. When I read your articles I always get the lightbulb moment. Dont know if you have written books, but you should. Its one thing to know and understand something, its something else to TEACH it to someone. I once attended a a pro-am tournament and I noticed something strange. The pro’s and long hitters left shoe prints in the grass which the ameturs didnt, which I found odd, now I know why.
Keep them coming Sensei.
From rainy, but better weather on the horizon- The Netherlands
Billy
Mar 27, 2014 at 4:01 am
Great article!! I HAVE a big problem with weight shift, I hit it ok, but bad ball flight.
I also have a I fight with flipping my hands through impact.
I know if I can move my weight, ill lose my dumping the club/casting.
Thanks, good read.
DavidI
Mar 26, 2014 at 9:38 am
Thanks for a great article – adding the video and commentary make the point very effectively.
I never played more than recreational tennis, but when I’m struggling with weight transfer during my golf swing my first thought is to think of the swing as a simple tennis shot, stepping behind the ball (transferring weight to the back foot) then stepping through it as my weight moves to my left as a right-hander. I also find this helps with shoulder timing; if I’m leaking the ball right it’s usually because I’m opening the shoulders early and I think of playing a tennis shot down the line but with spin to take the ball right to left. If I want the ball to drop to the right I’ll think of getting through the ball with my shoulders opening earlier just as I would to fade a tennis ball out of the court.
paul
Mar 25, 2014 at 10:16 pm
My two year old gets off his back foot because his clubs are to heavy and he simply gets pulled forward.
Dennis Clark
Mar 26, 2014 at 11:41 am
wow starting him early…for a lot of young’uns, the club swings them, as opposed to them swinging the club. When they are old enough to develop the musculature to mange the stick, I usually start them out
paul
Mar 27, 2014 at 1:37 am
Couldn’t help it. Couldn’t keep him away from my clubs. Bought a few foam balls and a small mat with a tee. Then found an old iron with a graphite shaft and cut it down for him. Want to get the smallest set money can buy for his birthday. Now my wife has two golf nuts to contend with. Is it best to keep him away from golf for another year or two?
Jacob Koehn
Mar 25, 2014 at 9:31 pm
In tennis you move away. just saying
Dennis Clark
Mar 25, 2014 at 9:42 pm
That’s good to know; I gave Ivan Lendl a lesson once, he’s quite a decent player. I hear Connors has picked it up too.
Joel
Mar 26, 2014 at 8:26 am
This is really interesting. I’m a former competitive tennis player, and I’ve always heard that I need to be on my front foot but I’m not quite sure how to transition to that sort of feel. If anything I have a tendency to pull drives somewhat dramatically this way.
Dennis Clark
Mar 26, 2014 at 8:14 pm
Joel if you’re pulling your drives you are probably opening your UPPER body too soon in an effort to get through the ball. The upper body stays behind and the arms and club have to lower before you begin to turn through.
sedevie
Mar 25, 2014 at 6:50 pm
Dennis,
Don’t forget to add Steve Stricker and probably the best ball striker ever Moe Norman to your list of flat footers. I personally like the idea of flat feet as it allows the legs to support and the torso to stay down and through the shot. I believe this lessens the back pain compared to the typical golf swing of the legs driving up through impact and the torso being forced down to be able to strike the ball.
See Tiger Woods. jmho Great Article for a lot of golfers!
Dennis Clark
Mar 25, 2014 at 8:18 pm
A flat footer can still move the center of mass and use the force vectors I’ve described. It is a matter of where the pressure is at impact. One with a very wide bottom to their swing arc is totally dependent on getting the COM forward, while one with a much narrower bottom can have some mass a little behind. The ground reaction forces created by the longest hitters are a result of pressing INTO the ground, creating a force vector that can be used for powerful leverage. Many of the long drivers have 30″ or more vertical leap and have tremendous speed because of that strength. But this article deals with mostly average players who need SOMETHING to push off generally due to a very early release. Glad you enjoyed the piece. DC
Stu
Mar 25, 2014 at 3:46 pm
Dennis,
Great article and very applicable to my swing.
Can you give me a drill (for flat driving range or indoors) that will ingrain this in my swing? The walk through swing or is there something better?
Thanks,
Stu
Dennis Clark
Mar 25, 2014 at 4:20 pm
One thing that might help…place a board, maybe a 1-by, or even a golf ball under the outside of your rear foot and hit some balls. You may feel the pressure point I described in the article.
Kammer
Mar 25, 2014 at 11:39 am
Thanks for the article, Dennis.
What do you make of guys like Kenny Perry who basically hit shots flat-footed and then ‘finish’ on the front foot mostly for show?
Dennis Clark
Mar 25, 2014 at 1:44 pm
Yes, there are those guys: Mark Calcavecchia, Dave Stockton, Rex Caldwell. They’re in the minority, but they’re still very interesting. I think they are mostly high ball hitters with lots of spin. I’ve always wanted to look more closely at them, and now that you mention it I am going to do so. My first guess is tons of lag. But I’m gonna look. Thx