Key to Steeper Shoulder Turn are the Hips?

**maddog0512** · March 28, 2014

I've been working on developing a steeper shoulder turn in an attempt to stop having my chin get "bumped" by my left shoulder on the backswing to the point I can't see the ball in my foveal vision.

While I was working on this, I realized that a big part of getting a steeper shoulder turn is actually related to the hips moving correctly. Essentially, the right hip rotating behind me and up allows the shoulders to turn at the correct angle. @saevel25 gave me this exact advice in my swing thread weeks ago, but it didn't click until last night.

My question is: am I thinking about this correctly and if so, does anyone have any drills they've successfully used to get a steeper turn? TIA

**Stretch** · March 28, 2014

Yes, you are thinking about it correctly.

A good drill is to put an alignment stick through your two front belt loops and rehearse getting it on a slant (i.e.. right hip higher than left hip for a right hander). You'll quickly see that your right leg needs to straighten more to make this happen. There's a video of Erik doing this on the site here somewhere, but I'm damned if I can find it. Hopefully he remembers the link.

**saevel25** · March 28, 2014

Yes, you are thinking about it correctly.

A good drill is to put an alignment stick through your two front belt loops and rehearse getting it on a slant (i.e.. right hip higher than left hip for a right hander). You'll quickly see that your right leg needs to straighten more to make this happen. There's a video of Erik doing this on the site here somewhere, but I'm damned if I can find it. Hopefully he remembers the link.

Or this!!!

**maddog0512** · March 28, 2014

Perfect, thanks guys! It's crazy to me how much of what I've read and been told about the golf swing that is actually incorrect. In the first lesson I ever took, the guy told me to make sure I kept my trail knee flexed, don't straighten it. I guess that's why there's an entire thread about that "myth".

**mvmac** · March 28, 2014

My question is: am I thinking about this correctly and if so, does anyone have any drills they've successfully used to get a steeper turn? TIA

Yep you're thinking about it correctly. @saevel25 already posted the stick video so I'll share this

**maddog0512** · March 28, 2014

Thanks, Mike. I'll check out that link when I get home tonight.

**motsco** · March 28, 2014

Perfect, thanks guys! It's crazy to me how much of what I've read and been told about the golf swing that is actually incorrect. In the first lesson I ever took, the guy told me to make sure I kept my trail knee flexed, don't straighten it. I guess that's why there's an entire thread about that "myth".

he could have told you that to keep you from reverse pivoting , if you slide your hips in the backswing and streighten your back leg your weight will go to the front foot. jmo.

***iacas*** · March 28, 2014

he could have told you that to keep you from reverse pivoting , if you slide your hips in the backswing and streighten your back leg your weight will go to the front foot. jmo.

I haven't seen that happen. And I don't think anyone is saying to slide the hips forward during the backswing…?

**motsco** · March 28, 2014

I haven't seen that happen. And I don't think anyone is saying to slide the hips forward during the backswing…?

sorry.

***iacas*** · March 28, 2014

sorry.

Give us an example or elaborate if you could?

**billchao** · March 28, 2014

I believe side bending is a big component of shoulders turning steeper in the backswing, is it not? You may be doing too much turning and not enough bending. I remember a drill I used for the backswing that taught me the feel of it. Stand straight up with your arms fully extended in front of you and put your hands together as if you were gripping a club. Turn away from the "target," (while still standing straight up) 90 degrees. From there, just bend down into your spine inclination to get into a top of backswing position. You should feel the contraction of your left side abdominals and obliques, and a stretch in your right side. I always liked this drill because it helps with a couple of other good feels, too.

**saevel25** · March 28, 2014

I believe side bending is a big component of shoulders turning steeper in the backswing, is it not? You may be doing too much turning and not enough bending.

I remember a drill I used for the backswing that taught me the feel of it. Stand straight up with your arms fully extended in front of you and put your hands together as if you were gripping a club. Turn away from the "target," (while still standing straight up) 90 degrees. From there, just bend down into your spine inclination to get into a top of backswing position. You should feel the contraction of your left side abdominals and obliques, and a stretch in your right side.

I always liked this drill because it helps with a couple of other good feels, too.

You mean something like this

**billchao** · March 28, 2014

You mean something like this :-D

Yea, thanks, Matt. This is exactly what I'm referring to. I'm on my phone, so it's kind of a nuisance to find and embed videos.

**maddog0512** · March 30, 2014

I believe side bending is a big component of shoulders turning steeper in the backswing, is it not? You may be doing too much turning and not enough bending.

I remember a drill I used for the backswing that taught me the feel of it. Stand straight up with your arms fully extended in front of you and put your hands together as if you were gripping a club. Turn away from the "target," (while still standing straight up) 90 degrees. From there, just bend down into your spine inclination to get into a top of backswing position. You should feel the contraction of your left side abdominals and obliques, and a stretch in your right side.

I always liked this drill because it helps with a couple of other good feels, too.

I think this is something I have trouble with. I tend to think about the swing as turning around an axis so I "see" very little bend in my mind's eye. What sort of thoughts/feels do you focus on to incorporate more bend into your backswing?

**mvmac** · March 30, 2014

What sort of thoughts/feels do you focus on to incorporate more bend into your backswing?

- Left shoulder going down

- Shoulder feeling like they work more like a teeter totter

- Left hip, left knee going down

**Abu3baid** · December 29, 2014

I still suffer from time to time with having my shoulder bumping my chin on the backswing. Is it possibly due to too steep a shoulder turn, and it would be physically impossible to get it steeper? What is the relationship between too steep a shoulder turn and the associated OTT swing and having a flatter turn? I am relatively speaking since you still want to maintain the same inclination to the ground, but getting too steep does make it hard to come from the inside doesn't it?

***iacas*** · December 29, 2014

I still suffer from time to time with having my shoulder bumping my chin on the backswing. Is it possibly due to too steep a shoulder turn, and it would be physically impossible to get it steeper?

What is the relationship between too steep a shoulder turn and the associated OTT swing and having a flatter turn? I am relatively speaking since you still want to maintain the same inclination to the ground, but getting too steep does make it hard to come from the inside doesn't it?

You're reaching. Golfers can come over the top with a flat swing or steeper shoulders. It's more likely with flatter shoulders, if anything.

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