How important is a steady head?

mcman1 · November 6, 2009

I recently read an article by Hank Haney where he was emphasizing the importance of keeping your head steady during the golf swing. Does this make a big difference?

***iacas*** · November 6, 2009

I recently read an article by Hank Haney where he was emphasizing the importance of keeping your head steady during the golf swing. Does this make a big difference?

Yeah. If your head doesn't move you have an awfully good chance of making solid contact. Much better chance than if your head moves.

**wedstuntpuller** · November 6, 2009

Another important thing about the head that I have been reading (most recently in "How I Play Golf" by Tiger) is to kee your chin up with your steady head to ensure a proper full shoulder turn in your backswing. A lot of people (myself included when I was learning) concentrate too much on keeping their head down that they tend to drop their chin and have a hard time getting their shoulders 90 degrees (or close).

**WUTiger** · November 6, 2009

First, we need to decide what we mean by "steady head" and head movement.

A pro I worked with a couple of years said that some lateral head movement was OK, as long as you swing smoothly. Too still a head, he said, could even choke follow-through.

He said the swing-wrecker was head bobbing - up and down movement - which shifted your spine angle and disrupted your balance.

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On the chin thing: I wear glasses, and have noticed in the past I was dropping my chin when I needed to change my lens prescription. Just a thought.
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**Where's the Cart Girl?** · November 6, 2009

I feel like my "steady head" through the swing is a consequence of my focus remaining on the back of the ball, which in turn does produce better contact. I think it definitely is understated how important this is.

As far as dipping goes; in yoga we were taught to imagine a string connecting our chin to our chest when were doing the different positions, and then concentrate on keeping this string taut at all times. It's a visualization I immediately recognized I could apply to my golf swing and it definitely helped me.

**DBeane** · November 6, 2009

I would say its critical, especially when we're talking about horizontal movement, you want to keep your head as still as possible.

As far as virtical movement, many great ball strikers have a "squat" that will make their head drop slightly. I have always thought this was a by product of keeping your head still (horizontally), yet putting a good pivot on the ball.

-Beane

**kfowler** · November 6, 2009

When ever I concentrate on keeping my head still, I end up moving it forward. If I concetrate on shoulder turn and just let the head move free, it ends up staying still. Go figure.

**chspeed** · November 6, 2009

As someone who struggles with a steady head, I think it's critical.

Yes, if you look at some pros, their heads move, often back on the backswing and sometimes down on the forward swing. But these movements are a lot more subtle then amateurs' moves. Also, they have incredible swings all around and boat loads of talent.

Any movement of the head requires a compensation on the downswing, either moving the head back to the original position, or some body or hand compensation.

That's not to say you should tense up your neck and back, or dig your chin into your chest trying to keep your head still, but you should focus on making easy smooth swings, keeping your head "steady".

**denver_nuggs_15** · November 6, 2009

I think Haney was definitely giving that advice to mid to high handicaps. Many tour pros move their heads including Tiger, so it's not always a bad thing.

**plugged** · November 13, 2009

Many tour pros move their heads including Tiger, so it's not always a bad thing.

Really? Check this video out:

The many times I have seen Tiger's swing analyzed during a tournament right after he makes a shot always shows the same thing - almost no movement of his head whatsoever, especially on the backswing. I personally consider it critical and believe it has helped my swing tremendously.

**golfdad** · November 13, 2009

since golf swing is a dynamic process, a stationary head may or may not matter depending on the person/swing. i don't think tiger can swing the way he does if his head is fixed in a halo. he dips quite a bit, even in that video---put a piece of paper abutting the top of his head and see how much he moves downward during downswing. in fact, he has talked about trying to work on that, possibly an end product of his junior playing days where kids learn to recruit body power at all cost. some jump, some squat.

head sits on top of the spine axis. if head moves that means the spine axis also moved. perhaps better players have learnt that certain movement is ok, others not.

**pingman** · November 13, 2009

a steady head promotes solid contact. even the slightest head movement can result in an errant shot.

**flopdarock** · November 13, 2009

my head moves significantly... only stays still when i putt...
i dont bob my head... its more of slight twist with my body... as long as i keep my eyes on the ball im pretty good... everyone that ive played with that isnt used to my head movement says i have a "pretty" swing and only the head moving is where they have issues with it

**shortstop20** · November 13, 2009

Watch replays of Tiger's head when he hits a bad shot, usually it dips way down on the start of the downswing and then starts to come back up right before imact.

If you ever wanna bet money on whether he's gonna hit a good shot or not, just watch his head before impact. Obviously it doesn't work every time but it's a main contribution to his misses.

**Mr Taylormade** · November 14, 2009

i always play well when i hav a crick in my neck, because i cant move it too well. never shows on my scores though because it tends to make me cranky and i lose concentration rather quickly, which draws me to my second point.
"steady head" did you mean keeping calm while playing as i think this is something that seperates us from the pros. if you can play one hole at a time then your scores are garanteed to drop. if you can play each shot with the mindset of playing only that shot and making it perfect i think you could be the next tiger. his concentration while playing is unmatched

**david_wedzik** · November 14, 2009

I think Haney was definitely giving that advice to mid to high handicaps. Many tour pros move their heads including Tiger, so it's not always a bad thing.

That advice would be good for everyone. The key is knowing how to do it. To turn your shoulders in a circle and keep your head steady you MUST side tilt (flex the spine to the left from address position) and stand up (come out of address flexion) during the backswing. This is what all great players that play with a fixed upper center accomplish in the backswing. Tiger has actually been getting his upper center more and more fixed lately. One other thing - the tour pros that do move their head only move it the slightest bit and there are a large number that keep it fixed. Either way the best players are moving that upper center (center of the shoulders) a very small amount at most.

Dave

**tm22721** · November 14, 2009

The goal during transition is to establish proper secondary axis tilt causing the head to drop slightly as you can see in Hogan videos.

**Andrew Rice** · November 14, 2009

It's vital to keep the head steady, because where your head goes your weight invariably follows (To a certain degree!) To strike the ball correctly you need your weight to be positioned in the proper spot.
BTW there are very few Tour golfers who move their head to any great degree - there are far more who do not move at all. Tiger included.

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