Fast Swing Speed, why not me?

[mrserv0n18]

Ok, so I practice at the driving range few times a week since this will be my second year of golf and I want have a solid season, 1st season was trial and error and learning how to swing period.

My driver swing speed is around 90 and my irons are in the mid 70s I think. I generally swing a litter slower than I can cause I find the ball just goes farther, If I try to crank a drive 100mph (if I even could) I cant help but grip the club harder messing up my shot on the down swing.

Im 28, 5'10 , 162lb, so I have a decent athletic build, there is this kid next to me 19 at the most and jesus I never knew you could hit a ball this hard, his 6 irons looked like my drives till they hit the back of the dome!

When I swing its extremely passive, I let my arms go completely dead and my hands barely grip the club enough to where it doesnt fly out of my hands.

I find if I swing as hard as I possibly can the ball flight is nowhere near as good as if im completely weightless in my arms and hands, so where do you get that kind of power? It got me thinking maybe I play my arms too much and not enough turn or something, but I just cant see myself ever being able to rip a golf ball like that and I feel like I should be able to.
Am I supposed to have my arms and hands that limp through my swing?

[mkoreiwo]

Ok, so I'm 52 and my driver ss averages around 105... So speed for you is there, you just have to learn to tap into it.

Its only your second year playing, and that may have a lot to do with it - though maybe not. Golf is really weird, in that it really is a game of paradoxical paradigms - you hit down to get the ball up , you swing easy to hit it further . I watched my friend hit today, and he looked like he was swinging out of his shoes, yet his ss was consistently below mine. When I swing my "goal" (apart from finding a fairway) is to make a balanced motion swing. It is hard to explain really, but I think the more your mechanics become "fluid", the faster your swing speed will get.

There are lots of ways to "lose" clubhead speed. If you aren't satisfied with your swing and the effort you are putting into it, I would say book some lessons, and see if a good pro can't get you tapped into you potential. Good luck - addicting bugger of a game isn't it?

[Titleist Man]

Well the limping arms sounds like vijay so you can do it.

[KwSipp]

Ya Im sorry to say it but sounds like your getting lazy to the point where your just not controling the club, take a look at some of the top pros and tell me if you see their arms limp... your arms have to control some part of your swing but not all thats where people get mixed up, Heres a tip that I picked up from MYTPI.com, learn how to flatten and arc your feet using your ankles, sit in a chair legs at 90 degrees bent and tilt your feet out(creating arc) and back in(flatening your foot).... at the top of your backswing your rightfoot( if your right handed) should be flat and your should be using that pressure against the ground for leverage to create more power in your golfswing, try it out and telll us if you feel the wieght on the inside of your right leg .. thats how you can get some more speed out of your swing

[ryohazuki222]

I'm curious too. After reading Hogan's book I've come to the conclusion that many more factors than I realized attribute to swing speed.

So I realized after that simply with better technique I can hit the ball easier and further than I was swinging out of my shoes..... because when I swing out of my shoes... there are lots of bad things I do that lose huge amounts of potential power.

BUT!

Technique aside.... how do you increase swing speed? Is it just being stronger and more flexible in the right places? Or is it something else as well?

[KwSipp]

Technique aside.... how do you increase swing speed? Is it just being stronger and more flexible in the right places? Or is it something else as well? Bingo!!!

[Eeryck]

There are all sorts of places the amatur loses swing speed:

Variations in swing plane - Most of the time this is a coming back too flat / layed off / to the inside, then having to come over the top to get the club back to the ball.

Failing to create a wide arc, or creating a false wide arc - Many beginners move their heads or change their spine angle attempting to get more rotation through the swing and then have to make a compensation to get back to the ball.

Having a swing mechanic that kills wrist lag - If you look at your swing from the front and your wrists are released before returning to the 9 o'clock position in the downswing you are losing power.

Failure to release the club - Because of other factors and swing flaws many beginners have no idea what a good release feels like. The forearm rotation here adds club head speed.

Overly Passive legs and hips - If you don't engage your hips properly you can not take advantage of the large muscles in your legs and you can not get a full shoulder turn if your hips don't move.

While you can muscle through these things and make up for some of them with strength and the like, until you have identified the proper fundamentals that create a wide arc, with good hip rotation both ways, with a consistant swing plane (one or two) coming slightly from the inside, with mechanics that maintain wrist lag and a good release, you will often find yourself wondering where all your power is.

There are some golfers that have made very good powerful swings without following these methods, however over time they had a tendency to either fade away or change their swing.

I have just tried to list some of the possible places where you can lose power with a brief explaination. There are entire volumes of information available that details each of these power losses and how to make it better, the trick is the trial and error to get it to work for you.

Regards,
-E

[pshizz]

You said that you have limp arms. It reminds of me of my swing and swing thoughts 2 years ago. I kept on swinging with only my arms, and not my body. To generate a higher ss you need to work on turning your back to the target. Then rotate your chest at the target towards the end of your swing.

[rubbery]

Technique aside.... how do you increase swing speed?

I would have to disagree with that. I'm 5'10" and weigh 150 lbs after a 3 course meal. I can

maybe bench press 130 lbs, but my swing speed is about 110. Swing speed comes from torque, coil, lag, and timing, not 24-inch pythons. Solid technique is the path to more distance, not a personal trainer and muscle milk.

[mrserv0n18]

Rubbery do u ever go to the golf dome on van dyke

[rubbery]

Yeah, I used to go there all the time last winter, but I've been going to the dome at CJ Barrymore's on Hall Rd. more this winter. I'll still go there late sometimes because it's open until 2.

[mrserv0n18]

CJ barrymores is a little far from me at 11/john r , but hows there dome is it a lot deeper than golf n games?

[rubbery]

It's not too significantly deeper, no, but maybe 15-20 yards.

[golfdad]

Ok, so I practice at the driving range few times a week since this will be my second year of golf and I want have a solid season, 1st season was trial and error and learning how to swing period.

i think golf is one of those games that speed or the generation of speed does not necessarily depends much on pure strength. it is a factor, but other things are at play as well.

my kid can barely do ONE pushup, she thinks carrying a gallon of milk is heavy, but she can swing about 90mph with fairly good control (in a round if she uses 14 times driver, more often than not, all 14 lands in fairway). from my observation, here are some factors that influence her swing that you may find pertinent... 1. she is flexible (may be too flexible), so it is easier to generate a whipping motion throughout the body. when speed increases per increment, we get acceleration. so ask yourself,,,how flexible are you all over your body? power without flexibility to golf does not mean much. 2. i am pretty sure she holds her club quite light in the beginning of the take off. it makes sense when the motion is very slow there. however, as the club comes down, it picks up speed and my suspicion is that the grip pressure increases accordingly (but hopefully, instinctivelly, naturally and subconsciously). it does not make sense to me that one can hold onto a grip lightly when the force is going away at 90mph during impact. one thing to consider is not to think about it and let the body does the work. may be that is the best approach,,don't tell the body what to do but pay attention what it does. imagine we walk on a balance beam,,,we don't have to pre-study how we balance,,we just do it accordingly. 3. sequencing: there are many ways to look at it but the bottom line is that if added up correctly for a specific person/body type, the final acceleration is not just the sum but compounded. my suggestion for you to find your sense of proper sequencing is to swing a club L to L, slowly at first, to really be aware of what each part of the body is doing, from ground up. feet, ankle, knee, hip, pelvis, spine, shoulder, arm, hand, fingers, etc. of course, we don't want to think like that during play, but during practice, it is important to get to know your body periodically like that. isolate then put together and then isolate, etc,etc. if the other guy uses the same strength but hits further, look into how efficiently he sequences.

[KwSipp]

Ok hotshot you stick with your 110mph swing speed and settle with your 250yrds of carry while the rest of us make changes in out fitness lifestyle to suite our golf wants/needs heres a perfect example of what I mean I was at this years pga show in orlando walked up to a both with a simulator and some kid waiting in line to hit on it aight you still with me here right... cool now heres where it gets good the kid was prolly 175lbs +/- and hit the ball 4 times in the simulator average carry was 303 and highest swing speed was 127mph but heres the good part his technique was ok but not perfect so hummm there buddy i wonder where this obviousely above average ss came from maybe cuz the kid was VERY well fit in the RIGHT places

[extremeld]

getting into better physical shape will only help your swing speed, of course technique is important but dont let anyone tell you that adding lean muscle isnt going to help.

Tiger works out, Jamie Sadlowski works out, Jason Zuback works out, Padraig harrington works out.

Best 2 golfers of the last couple of years, current world longdrive champion and the most succesful longdriver of all time.

They work out so they can either swing faster - or maintain their current ss with less effort.

[DBeane]

"When I swing its extremely passive, I let my arms go completely dead and my hands barely grip the club enough to where it doesnt fly out of my hands."

I would add some tension to these areas. In Hogan, Elkington, and Armour's descriptions of the grip, all talked about tension in these areas. Elkington noted "...it feels like 10 men couldnt pull the club out of my hands...". This might help you stay more so connected to your trunk while swinging the club. Giving you a little more control when swinging the club faster.

Hope this helps.

-Beane

[1Greatgolfguy]

Practice.Practice.Practice.

I believe that almost everyone generates 100+mph swing speed, but the problem is generating it at the moment of impact. Similair to martial artinsts breaking bricks. It's not that they are that much stronger than the average person, but they generate maximum power at impact.

Just an oberservation, but I believe most people generate max swing speed BEFORE they hit the ball.