Instruction
Backswing 101: Tips to get the club on plane in the backswing
While Flightscope offers my students a host of swing data, one of the most common statements that I hear is: “I don’t know how to consistently get to the top of my backswing.”
The old saying, “The ball does not care about anything except for impact” might be true, but the backswing does set the stage for our move into the ball. The cleaner and more efficient the backswing, the easier and more reactionary the downswing can be.
If you’re struggling with your backswing, I suggest that you try the following practice drills, which includes the tracing of visual checkpoints and synchronizing the movements of the body, arms and club. Passing through these checkpoints is known as swinging the club back “on plane.” To identify what’s on plane, we will keep the club pointing at or parallel to the target line throughout the backswing.
The Start Up
In the photos above, I have attached a training aid to the end of the grip, which effectively extends the shaft of the club into my stomach. To start my backswing, I focus on keeping the club head pointing at the target line from address until the hands are approximately opposite my right thigh. The grip remains in contact with my stomach, thus assuring consistent radius and synchronization during start up. This is achieved by turning the core, while eliminating independent hand action.
The Halfway Back Position
Continue turning as you guide the club shaft through the parallel-to-the-target-line position, and then point the grip at the target line when you’re halfway back. I call this giving the club direction. The shaft can either lay down in a horizontal position, which is commonly known as flat (pointing too far outside the target line), or move too vertically, known as steep (the grip end pointing too much towards your toes). It is up to you to give the club proper direction and point the grip end at the target line.
Getting It to the Top
From an on-plane, halfway-back position continue turning your shoulders to complete your backswing, with the club shaft pointing at an extension of the target line (if you are swinging a driver and you are flexible enough, the club shaft will once again be parallel to the target line). The club and arms should stop moving backward when your shoulders stop turning. That is your check point for a synchronized top of swing. From here all you have to do is reverse the engines and keep pivoting all of the way through to a balanced finish.
Here is some good news. Use these checkpoints as guidelines, but they DO NOT have to be perfect. More than a few playing professionals only hit some of these locations. If you have discovered a consistent way to get to the top of your swing through trial and error or athletic prowess, by all means stick with it. Use these reference points to clean up any unwanted or extra movements.
If your backswing has been a cloud of confusion, then the closer you get to being on plane and synchronized, the better and more reliable your swing will become. Work these check points in front of a mirror or a reflection. A little practice time away from the ball will greatly speed up your coordination of the movements and make for more productive sessions when you get to the range.
Enjoy some peace of mind and find the right blend for your swing.
The LPGA Tour is kicking off its 2026 season this week at Lake Nona Golf and Country Club in Orlando, and the pros are dealing with something most Florida golfers rarely face: freezing temperatures.
“It’s colder here than in the UK at the minute, which is a first,” said England’s Charley Hull during Wednesday’s media day at the Hilton Grand Vacations Tournament of Champions.
Even Lydia Ko, who lives at Lake Nona, seemed surprised by the cold snap. “We’re pretty much getting to below zero in celsius here, which maybe in other parts of the country they would be thankful, but when you’re in Florida it is a little bit of a surprise,” she said.
If the world’s best players are adjusting their games for cold weather, recreational golfers should, too. Here’s how to play smart when the mercury drops.
Understand What Cold Does to Your Game
Before you change anything, you need to know what you’re fighting against. Cold air is denser than warm air, which means your ball won’t fly as far. Period.
Hull noticed this immediately during practice rounds at Lake Nona. She mentioned hitting a gap wedge into the 18th hole during a previous win but needing a 4-iron during Tuesday’s practice round. That’s a difference of four or five clubs for the same shot.
Action item: Expect to lose 5-10 yards on every club in your bag when temperatures dip below 50 degrees. Plan accordingly and don’t be stubborn about club selection.
Layer Up Without Restricting Your Swing
Hull admitted she wore three pairs of pants during practice. While that might be extreme for most of us, staying warm is critical to playing well in cold conditions.
Your muscles need warmth to function properly. When you’re cold, your body tightens up and your swing gets shorter and faster. Neither of those things help you hit good golf shots.
Action item: Wear multiple thin layers instead of one bulky jacket. Look for golf-specific cold weather gear that stretches with your swing. Keep hand warmers in your pockets between shots. And don’t forget a good hat because you lose significant body heat through your head.
Take More Club Than You Think You Need
This is where ego gets in the way of good scores. When it’s cold, the ball doesn’t compress as well off the clubface. Combined with denser air, you’re looking at serious distance loss.
The pros at Lake Nona are dealing with a course that measures 6,642 yards but plays much longer this week. If they’re adjusting, you should too.
Action item: Take at least one extra club on every approach shot. In temperatures below 40 degrees, consider taking two extra clubs. It’s better to fly the ball to the back of the green than to come up short in a bunker.
Adjust Your Expectations on the Greens
Cold weather affects putting in ways most golfers don’t consider. The ball is harder and doesn’t roll as smoothly. Your hands are cold, making it harder to feel the putter. And if there’s any moisture on the greens, they’ll be slower than normal.
Ko mentioned that she still sometimes reads the greens wrong at Lake Nona despite being a member for years. Cold weather makes that challenge even tougher.
Action item: Hit putts more firmly than usual. The ball needs extra speed to hold its line on cold greens. Take a few extra practice strokes to get a feel for the speed before you putt.
Embrace the Mental Challenge
Hull said something interesting about cold weather golf: “I like the mental toughness of it.”
That’s the right attitude. Everyone on the course is dealing with the same conditions. The player who stays patient and doesn’t get frustrated by the extra difficulty will come out ahead.
Action item: Lower your expectations by a few strokes. If you normally shoot 85, accept that 90 might be a good score in 40-degree weather. Focus on solid contact and smart decisions rather than perfect shots.
Warm Up Longer and Smarter
This might be the most important tip of all. Cold muscles are tight muscles, and tight muscles get injured easily.
World No. 1 Jeeno Thitikul revealed she’s been protecting a wrist injury that bothered her late last season. Cold weather makes those kinds of injuries more likely if you don’t prepare properly.
Action item: Spend at least 20 minutes warming up before your round. Start with stretching, then hit easy wedge shots before working up to your driver. Keep moving between shots on the course to maintain body heat and flexibility.
The pros at Lake Nona this week will adapt and compete at the highest level despite the cold. You can do the same at your local course by following these tips and keeping a positive attitude.
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 “Playing Through” now on R.org, RG.org’s partner site, 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!
Brooks Koepka is back on the PGA Tour, and whether you love him or hate him, the guy knows how to win when it matters. After his LIV Golf stint, the five-time major champion returns this week at the Farmers Insurance Open.
What makes Koepka fascinating? He doesn’t fit the mold. His swing isn’t textbook. He doesn’t obsess over mechanics. Yet he’s won three PGA Championships and two U.S. Opens, regularly making it look easier than guys with prettier swings.
So, what can average golfers learn from someone who treats the game so differently? Quite a bit.
Stop Overthinking Every Shot
Koepka describes his approach as “reactionary” rather than mechanical. While most tour pros grind over swing thoughts, Brooks sees the target and hits it. No mental checklist.
This might be the most valuable lesson for weekend golfers who’ve watched too many YouTube swing videos.
How to actually do this:
On the range, hit five balls where you stare at the target for three seconds prior to addressing the ball. Don’t think about grip or stance. Just burn that target into your brain. You’ll be shocked at how pure you hit it when your brain focuses on where the ball is going instead of how you’re swinging.
Next time you play, give yourself a rule: Once you pull the club, you’ve got 15 seconds to hit. Koepka is one of the fastest players on tour because he doesn’t give his brain time to sabotage him.
If you feel tension in your hands at address, you’re trying to control too much. Koepka’s grip pressure is famously light. Loosen up until the club almost feels like it might slip, then add just enough pressure to hold on. That’s your swing thought: soft hands, see the target.
This approach works better under pressure. When you’re standing over that shot with water left and OB right, the last thing you need is a mental checklist. See it, feel it, hit it.
Play to Your Strengths (Even If They’re Not Pretty)
Koepka uses a strong grip that wouldn’t pass muster in some teaching circles. But he’s built his game around what works for him, elite driving distance and recovery skills. He doesn’t try to be someone he’s not.
Here’s how to build your game like Brooks:
Look at your last five rounds and figure out where you’re actually gaining strokes. Bombing it off the tee, but can’t hit greens? Lean into it. Play courses where distance matters more than precision. On tight holes, grip down on your 3-wood instead of trying to thread a driver through a keyhole you’ll miss seven times out of ten.
Koepka knows he can scramble, so he’s not afraid to miss greens. If you’re deadly from 50 to 75 yards, start leaving yourself those distances on the par 5’s instead of going for them in two every time.
Know when to take your medicine. Koepka in the trees at the PGA? He’s punching out to 100 yards, not trying to bend a 6-iron around three oaks. You’re in the rough with a flyer lie and water short? Hit your 8-iron to the middle and move on. That’s not playing scared, that’s playing smart.
Save Your Best for When It Counts
Here’s a wild stat: Koepka’s putting average in majors is often more than a full stroke better per round than in regular events. He elevates when pressure is highest.
How does an amateur tap into that gear? It’s not about trying harder, it’s about caring differently.
Here’s what actually works:
Decide which rounds matter to you. Club championship? Member-guest? That annual trip with college buddies? Circle those dates and treat them differently. Koepka doesn’t care much about regular tour events, but majors? That’s when he locks in.
Two weeks before your big round, change your practice. Stop beating balls mindlessly. Play nine holes in which every shot has consequences. Miss the fairway? Hit from the rough on the next hole too. Three-putt? Twenty push-ups. Koepka’s practice intensity ramps up before majors because he’s rehearsing pressure, not just swings.
Develop a between-shot routine that resets your brain. Koepka is famous for his blank expression after bad shots. Try this: After any shot, take three deep breaths while walking, then find something specific to notice, a tree, a cloud, someone’s shirt. That’s your reset button. By the time you reach your ball, the last shot is gone.
The Bottom Line
Brooks Koepka’s return reminds us there’s no single path to success in golf. His “substance over style” approach proves that results matter more than looking good.
You don’t need a perfect swing; you need a reliable one that holds up under pressure. You don’t need to hit every shot in the book; you need the shots you can count on. And you don’t need to play great every time; you need to play great when it matters.
Welcome back, Brooks. Thanks for the reminder that golf is ultimately about getting the ball in the hole, not winning style points.
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 “Playing Through” now on R.org, RG.org’s partner site, 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!
Blades Brown made a big impression last week in the California desert, and not just because he’s only 18. He put up numbers that would catch any weekend golfer’s attention. Most of us won’t hit 317-yard drives or find 86% of our greens in regulation, but there’s a lot to learn from how Brown managed his game at The American Express.
Here are three practical lessons from his performance that you can use on your own course this weekend.
Step 1: Give Priority to Accuracy Over Distance Off The Tee
Brown’s driving stats are impressive. He averaged almost 318 yards off the tee, ranking 12th in the field. More importantly, he hit 76.79% of his fairways, tying for fourth place in the tournament.
Think about that ratio for a second. Brown could have swung harder, chased more distance and tried to overpower the course. Instead, he played smart golf and kept his ball in play.
Your Action Item: Next time you’re on the tee box, ask yourself a simple question before pulling the driver. Do you need maximum distance here, or do you need to be in the fairway? If there’s trouble lurking or the hole doesn’t demand every yard you can muster, take something off your swing. Grip down an inch. Make a three-quarter swing. Do whatever it takes to find the short grass. Brown’s approach illustrates that fairways lead to greens, and greens lead to birdies. He made 22 of them last week, along with an eagle.
The math is simple. When you’re hitting three out of every four fairways like Brown did, you’re giving yourself legitimate looks at the green with your approach shots. That’s when scoring happens.
Step 2: Commit To Hitting More Greens
This is where Brown really separated himself. He hit 62 of 72 greens in regulation, an 86.11% clip that tied for first in the entire field. Read that again. An 18-year-old kid tied for the lead in one of the most important ball-striking statistics in professional golf.
How did he do it? By keeping his ball in the fairway (see Step 1) and giving himself clean looks with mid-irons and wedges.
Your Action Item: Start tracking your greens in regulation. You don’t need a fancy app or a statistics degree. Just mark down whether you hit the green in the regulation number of strokes. Par 3s in one shot. Par 4s in two shots. Par 5s in three shots.
Once you know your baseline, set a goal to improve it by 10%. If you’re currently hitting five greens per round, aim for six. The beauty of this approach is that it forces you to think strategically about club selection and shot shape. Brown’s strokes gained approach number was positive (0.179), meaning he was better than the field average. You don’t need to be perfect. You just need to be on the dance floor more often.
When you hit more greens, you eliminate the need for heroic short game shots. Brown only had to scramble 10 times all week, and he got up and down 70% of the time. That’s solid, but the real story is that he rarely put himself in scrambling situations to begin with.
Step 3: Minimize Mistakes And Stay Patient
Here’s the stat that jumps off the page: Brown made only three bogeys all week. Three. In four rounds of professional golf against the best players in the world.
He also made just one double bogey. That kind of clean card doesn’t happen by accident. It happens when you play within yourself, avoid the big miss and trust that pars are never bad scores.
Your Action Item: Before your next round, decide that you’re going to play boring golf. No hero shots over water. No driver on tight holes just because you can. No aggressive pins when there’s a safe side of the green.
Brown’s performance shows us that consistency beats flash every single time. He didn’t lead the field in any single strokes gained category, but he was solid across the board. That’s how you post numbers and cash checks.
Give these three steps a try. Your scorecard will thank you.
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” now on R.org, RG.org’s partner site, 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!
RBC Heritage Tour Report: More minis, course-specific setups, Spider & GTS launches
Justin Rose WITB 2026 (April): Full WITB breakdown with new McLaren irons
Best fairway woods of 2026: The most versatile fairway woods + the most forgiving fairway woods
What’s the story behind Webb Simpson’s custom-stamped irons?
Cadillac Championship Tour Report: Spieth’s sizable changes, McLaren Golf launches, and more
The 24 players who can win the Masters
Rory McIlroy’s winning WITB: 2026 Masters
Kristoffer Reitan’s winning WITB: 2026 Truist Championship
J.J. Spaun’s winning WITB: 2026 Valero Texas Open
Cameron Young’s winning WITB: 2026 Cadillac Championship
Alex Fitzpatrick WITB 2026 (May)
Driver: Ping G440 LST (9 degrees) Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Black 6 X 3-wood: TaylorMade Qi4D (15 degrees) Shaft: Fujikura Ventus...
Kristoffer Reitan’s winning WITB: 2026 Truist Championship
Driver: Ping G440 Max (9 degrees) Shaft: Mitsubishi Tensei 1K White 60 TX 3-wood: Ping G440 Max (15 degrees) Shaft:...
WITB Time Machine: Rory McIlroy’s winning WITB, 2021 Truist Championship
Rory McIlroy’s victory at the 2021 Wells Fargo Championship 2021 (now the Truist Championship) marked a significant return to form,...
Collin Morikawa WITB 2026 (May)
Driver: TaylorMade Qi4D LS (8 degrees) Shaft: Mitsubishi Diamana D+ Limited 60 TX 3-wood: TaylorMade SIM Tour (14 degrees) Shaft:...
-
Equipment2 weeks agoJustin Rose WITB 2026 (April): Full WITB breakdown with new McLaren irons
-
Equipment1 week agoWhat’s the story behind Webb Simpson’s custom-stamped irons?
-
Equipment2 weeks agoCadillac Championship Tour Report: Spieth’s sizable changes, McLaren Golf launches, and more
-
Whats in the Bag3 days ago
Kristoffer Reitan’s winning WITB: 2026 Truist Championship
-
Whats in the Bag1 week agoCameron Young’s winning WITB: 2026 Cadillac Championship
-
Whats in the Bag3 weeks agoNelly Korda WITB 2026 (April)
-
Equipment2 weeks agoJustin Rose on the switch to McLaren Golf, learnings from previous equipment moves
-
Tour Photo Galleries2 weeks agoPhotos from the 2026 Cadillac Championship
sze
Jun 12, 2014 at 5:32 am
follow your first tip for my driver, for two rounds in three days, I hit every fairway , 20 to 30 yards more. thank you
Michael Howes
Jun 14, 2014 at 8:07 pm
You are very welcome. Thx for the update!
Ian harris
Jun 10, 2014 at 10:01 pm
I would disagree with your description of on plane. An on plane backswing would have the shaft parallel to it’s angle at address halfway back not pointing at the target line.
cody
Jun 9, 2014 at 7:20 pm
how do you set the angle on the stick to put in the ground? I am 6’2″ what do I use as a reference point.
Michael Howes
Jun 10, 2014 at 3:42 pm
Cody – The angle of the stick will match the angle of the shaft for whatever club you are using at the time. The stick will be at a more upright angle for a wedge and a flatter angle for a 5 iron. Just work on pointing at or parallel to the target line with all clubs and that is your main check point.
Dave
Jun 8, 2014 at 2:17 pm
Another question about the on plane back swing: I had an instructor that had the clubhead outside of my hands (and face angle the same as my spine angle, which prompted me first response) when the shaft was parallel to the ground. What would the purpose of this be? I hit it good from that position for what it’s worth.
Michael Howes
Jun 9, 2014 at 4:28 pm
Hello Dave – sounds like you were taking the club quickly to the inside to a degree that you were not able to recover from. It’s “worth” a lot that you hit it well from your new position – the proper blend for your swing.
Rod
Jun 6, 2014 at 10:52 pm
Hi Michael, thanks for such a good summary. I was hitting the ball ok but although I was starting the back swing with my arms, I wasn’t bringing the club back parallel to the target line. I was taking the club straight up. I now have stopped the last bit of lateral movement in my back swing and it’s a bit shallower. I can feel my right elbow more connected to my body which must set up my downswing because it also feels a lot shallower. I’m hitting most shots a lot straighter and looking forward to your approach to the downswing.
Michael Howes
Jun 7, 2014 at 8:43 am
Sounds like you are on the right track Rod – keep working it.
paul
Jun 5, 2014 at 7:22 pm
When I first started messing around with golf about 3-4 years ago (lucky to shoot 110), I remember figuring out what this article is teaching with “plane” (ha ha) dumb luck. A friend of mine who knew more then I did said it looked great. Then once I learned that the swing arc is never going to be straight and needs to come from the inside my scores plummeted. Learning golf for me has always been a series of “A ha!” moments and this was the first one with scores that drop a few strokes each “A ha!” Shooting 90 now on 6400 yard courses now.
Matt
Jun 5, 2014 at 6:24 pm
No lie I just gained 4mph clubhead speed when I do this correctly…you ‘da man!
Michael Howes
Jun 7, 2014 at 8:40 am
Nice!!!
Michael Howes
Jun 4, 2014 at 7:51 pm
Hello guys. Summer is here, so I have been on the range with enthusiastic junior golfers & am just now getting a chance to check out your feedback & article comments. Thanks for reading & taking the time to provide input. Bear with me & I look forward to discussing my thoughts on the backswing with you. I hope you all have a great summer season!
Mbwa Kali Sana
Jun 4, 2014 at 4:24 pm
Your fine description should be completed by the indication that the backswing move is initiated (or correlated if you wish )with the weight of the body being brought on the back foot.
Also some golf Pros (Such as great teacher of the past ,JOE DANTE-THE FOUR MAGIC MOVES OF WINNING GOLF ) teach to hinge the wrists at the very beginning of the backswing ,then turn ..
Michael Howes
Jun 4, 2014 at 8:29 pm
A classic read…
paul
Jun 4, 2014 at 2:41 pm
I only focus on where my club is at the top and my wrist angle in a mirror once in a while. Rest seems to fall into place on its own.
Michael Howes
Jun 4, 2014 at 8:54 pm
Thx for posting David. While not the intent of this article, keep in mind that direction isn’t just clubface positions. A slice is the relationship between face & path (among other variables…).
David
Jun 5, 2014 at 11:20 am
I’m certainly not saying that the to up position is wrong. For beginners though it is sometimes hard for them to get back to square from this position. I also think it has to do with how upright or flat your swing is.
David
Jun 4, 2014 at 12:17 pm
Halfway back the club face is open if the toe is pointed straight up. Most people will slice from this position and would be better off if the club face is the same as the spine angle.
Richard L Cox III
Jun 4, 2014 at 12:47 pm
David, by your logic, does the clubface match the spine angle throughout the swing?
The toe-up position is square at the 9 o’clock position by the same precept that the toe up position is square at the 3 o’clock position.
David
Jun 5, 2014 at 11:18 am
No, it’s just a checkpoint for fixing a slice. I work with lots of beginners and lots of them would struggle to square up the face when they are in this position coming back. Some may say that’s hooding the club, but I find that an upright swing benefits from this more so than a flatter swing.
Nunya
Jun 4, 2014 at 2:12 pm
Disagree.
Toe-up will vary somewhat based on grip strength but this is a great way to check against yanking the club inside.
Michael Howes
Jun 4, 2014 at 8:16 pm
I agree Nunya & that was the point of this article – Plane awareness.
Scott Shields
Jun 4, 2014 at 11:58 am
If you have the time, buy two laser pointers, and attach to the bottom end and grip end of club. And just make sure the laser is always pointing at the line. My coach made me one years back, as part of TGM program. I love it.
Michael Howes
Jun 4, 2014 at 8:04 pm
Correct Scott – Doesn’t have to be any more complicated than that.
Darren Tan
Jun 5, 2014 at 9:02 pm
About the laser, I know why we need to attach to the grip end of the club.
But what is the bottom end? And why do we need that?
Thanks!
RobN
Jun 6, 2014 at 10:04 am
One on the bottom end, down by the head and pointing to the ground at address, will allow you to be sure you are taking the club back along the target line. As the club moves up the backswing, the laser on the grip end will then come in to play and point at the target line.
Darren Tan
Jun 8, 2014 at 10:06 pm
I see.
Thanks RobN for the explanation.
DaveMac
Jun 4, 2014 at 11:00 am
Thanks for the article. Golf swing tuition has been obsessed with the belief if you get the backswing right then the downswing will be right as well, unfortunately this is not the case. I think it is important to stress that the halfway back shaft plane is not the same as the halfway down shaft plane which needs to be flatter ( more in line with the right arm) .
While it might be tempting to see the swing in this way, matching the 1/2 way back position on the downswing will cause an over the plane strike which requires high hands at impact resulting in weak strikes.
Michael Howes
Jun 4, 2014 at 8:14 pm
The golf swing is a chain of good moves. Not always “Perfect” positions, but more importantly proper dynamics. I agree there is no magic move. One of those dynamics is the flattening of the shaft during the downswing.
Hennybogan
Jun 4, 2014 at 8:45 pm
Flattening the clubhead/shaft during the transition is a staple in elite ball strikers the last 70 years. So why is it now taught by some instructors to steepen the clubhead/shaft? I’m i missing something here? Can’t find one tour player who does this.
Winmac
Jun 6, 2014 at 12:43 am
I think for me personally, it works. Whenever you got the backswing right, you can’t go wrong on the downswing. Maybe some directional issues or a little draw / fade but never will it caused the basic problems of fat / thin shots.
IH8
Jun 4, 2014 at 9:50 am
This is one of the best instructional articles I’ve ever read on this site. You know what, it’s just one of the best period. Concise and straight to the point, with effective use of visual aids. A lot of the articles on this site tend to get a little over the top and become difficult to absorb and take with you. This article should become the template for articles on wrx!
Michael Howes
Jun 4, 2014 at 8:03 pm
Appreciate ur post IH8
Owen
Jun 4, 2014 at 9:38 am
You should publish a similar post on downswing to impact, and then impact to follow through. Good stuff!
SwingerWinger
Jun 4, 2014 at 10:07 am
+1
Regis
Jun 4, 2014 at 2:18 pm
+2
Michael Howes
Jun 4, 2014 at 8:02 pm
Thx guys!
JJ
Jun 4, 2014 at 9:32 am
I think the first portion of the takeaway is the hardest to repeat. Michael, what’s a good technique or method to get to the halfway back position using your core and not your hands?
Richard L Cox III
Jun 4, 2014 at 12:53 pm
JJ,
Try to imagine a full bucket of water in-between your hands. Practice making the action back to 9 o’clock without spilling any imaginary water. You’ll notice that the pit of your right arm stays skyward and your right arm stays fairly straight and extended. From that point you should be able to elevate your arms almost straight up into a proper backswing position.
Hieronymus
Jun 4, 2014 at 2:02 pm
“Try to imagine a full bucket of water in-between your hands.
Straight out of the Little Red Book….
Harvey was the man.
JJ
Jun 4, 2014 at 7:59 pm
Thanks boys, appreciate the insight!
Michael Howes
Jun 4, 2014 at 8:01 pm
JJ – try the variation of the drill suggested in the article. Choke down on the club until your hands are on the steel & the grip end is stuck in your stomach. Rehearse turning back until the hands are opposite your right thigh & keep the grip in contact with your navel. You can also choke down to the steel and let the grip rest against the outside left hip. Either way, rehearse the takeaway keeping contact between grip and body until hands over right thigh – then continue turning & point the grip end at target line 9:00 position.
Chip Hunt
Jun 6, 2014 at 10:59 am
My teacher just took my alignment stick and shoved it down into the hole at the butt end of my golf grip. It works just fine for the drill.