lower body vs. upper body & the hips

[Sandwedge74]

hi - I am new to this forum - glad to be here!
my handicap is a 17.2 and thankfully falling. As my game has improved I have been slowly grooving my swing everyday and keeping any new bad habits at bay (only been at it a year and half so luckily nothing too bad has developed) I have no issues hitting a nice draw on the big stick and my short game is very good and putting too - my major achilles heel seems to be my iron play. here is my question. my left arm stays straight (not rigid - just straight) but should I keep my lower body as quiet as possible during the backswing or allow my hips to rotate? I am very flexible and can get my left shoulder over my right knee on the back swing but I do feel the tension of a coil when I do that - thats good right? to help give insight as to why I am asking- I noticed on my round today that I wasn't hitting the the grass all the time on my practice swing with my irons. In fact I have noticed that for the last two weeks and I am wondering why - but it leads to topped irons and bad hits in general. I barely got out of the courses today under 90 (shot an 89) and hitting Greens in regulation is costing me dearly. so - when I got home I did an experiment - I put masking tape on the bottom of my 3 iron, 5 iron, 7 iron and PW. On the masking tape I made black lines across the sole of the club with a marker and took some swing to see exactly where the club was hitting the ground. I noticed when I quieted my lower body and just turned AROUND as opposed to WITH my hips and legs that I seemed to always hit the ground nicely and make marks right in the middle of the club or not to far off from it - when I activated my hips on the back swing I rarely touched the ground on my follow through. So, have I answered my own question?? I was hoping some the good ball strikers up here good offer me some insight and advice!
thanks for help - hoping to move down to a 13 handicap and I know iron play is the way to help me do it by summers end!
Sandwedge

[larlev]

I personally believe that you keep your lower body as still as possible, you want that coil.

You will be told that both ways can work...Vijay turns his hips, I am not made like a rubber band though..LOL

[Sandwedge74]

thanks please keep the advice coming!

[MPS67]

Hey Sandwedge,

In my opinion, If you were to draw an imaginary line through your two shoulders at the top of the back swing, it should be perpendicular (no farther) with the target line and even with your right knee. To get to this position, rotate your shoulders and allow them to pull everything back such as the torso and hips. Don't actively rotate your hips at all, but don't actively restrict them either. Keep them passive, but not quiet or fixed. Also, allow your hips to pivot about the same axis during the back swing as they were in at address. In other words, it's good to sway your shoulders back to get weight over the instep of your right foot during the back swing, but not your hips. The coil tension you should feel should extend from your grip, though your left arm & shoulder, down your left side, and then down through your left knee to your foot.

As far as your marker lines on the sole of your club, I'd prefer to see indications of ground contact near the leading edge, unless you're hitting out of a sand bunker and you want to purposely sole the wedge down. The lateral hip move and turn is important for the following reasons:

1) moves weight forward onto the left leg and creates momentum for the upper body to rotate about your posted left leg, which will then allow your club and arms to unfold into the hitting zone.
2) Keeps the coil tension tight and pulls the right side and club down without any arm action, allowing you to hit late.
3) Clears the area for which your club can pass through in the hitting zone.

Regards,

Mark :)

[DavidFehertysBike]

If you are topping your irons you are most likely getting stuck on your right side and swinging the club in an uppercut motion. I would suggest have a pro look at your swing.

[Sandwedge74]

thanks - i think i solved it in my house - but hitting a course tomorrow so i will post what happens - but I essentially figured that your totally right on - my body wasnt getting through the swing enough like it does with my driver
thanks!

[Avid Golfer]

You will be told that both ways can work...Vijay turns his hips, I am not made like a rubber band though..LOL

Larlev is correct either way can work.

Nick Faldo and Annika Sorenstam played some of their best golf when they felt their hips and shoulders both turned as they started their backswings. Greg Norman and Ernie Els on the other hand like to feel like their hips being pulled into the turn with some resistance being felt (not consciously turned), with the arms and shoulders being the dominant force in the backswing.

thanks - i think i solved it in my house - but hitting a course tomorrow so i will post what happens - but I essentially figured that your totally right on - my body wasnt getting through the swing enough like it does with my driver

For people who choose to consciously turn the hips the big thing to guard against is getting the weight outside the backfoot. If your weight gets outside the back foot you loose power storage, and you'll have to work harder to get the weight and the hips where they should be at impact.

For the people who chosse to have the hips resist the turn of the body the thing to guard against is the hips locking. If the hips lock on the backswing other parts of the body can take over the swing and you can end up having the downswing controlled by a part of the body (like the arms) that you may not want leading the downswing.

[Sandwedge74]

hi all thanks for the advance - just to report back after my round yesterday- I played one of the harder courses in my area - rating and slope being - 72/129 and I shot an 86 - the lowest round I have ever shot ! so something seems to be clicking for sure! thanks again for the help