Correct release

[inthecup]

I have been slowly working on my full swing over the last year and a half. I was an arm swinger and I am trying to achieve a correct swing. I think we can all agree that a golf swing is not intuitive.

My latest swing thought is to start the swing with my legs and hips and that is coming around. I am also trying to have a good free release. I define release as letting the club go in the downswing and letting it “release” I am not trying to guide the club to the ball nor am I trying to apply extra force with my wrists and hands.

I have noticed with the driver if I let my arms come for the ride and do not swing them at all I hit it much further and do not tend to slice. It also lowers my ball flight which can get high.

Is that the final piece of the puzzle?
Is it correct to start the swing in the feet/hips and let the shoulders pull the arms through while not really swinging with the arms but to just them whip through? Any comments are appreciated.

[grantc79]

Start the back swing with the upper body and start the down swing with the lower body.

I pull the club back with my right forearm and try to keep a straight line going backwards for about 24 inches. Throughout this 24 inches I try to keep my chest pointed at the club head.

After 24 inches I take the club straight up in the air.

I start the downswing with limp arms and begin the swing by twisting the hips and very slightly squatting (I mean very slightly).

Then the right shoulder throws straight down plane at the ball and I make sure to make an inside out swing.

[inthecup]

Then the right shoulder throws straight down plane at the ball and I make sure to make an inside out swing.

So the right shoulder or shoulders swing the limp arms?

[TN94z]

I wouldn't necessarily say "limp" arms because you don't want the arms to break down. That would just be one more thing to have to get back on plane before impact.

[inthecup]

I wouldn't necessarily say "limp" arms because you don't want the arms to break down. That would just be one more thing to have to get back on plane before impact.

I'll agree that limp is a poor choice of words. How about the shoulder muscles are not adding power, the turning of the hips and shoulders generate the power?

[MiniMoe]

every swing is different. Personally, my arms control the swing and the power comes from the leverage created with the legs and the late release of the angle created between my arms and the club shaft with the wrists being the hinge in the downswing. Balance in my swing causes me to hit the ball very,very straight.

So, if it takes you to focus on your legs, and that produces the correct movements of the arms, then it's ok. The key is that the club is in the correct position.

[Zeph]

Is it correct to start the swing in the feet/hips and let the shoulders pull the arms through while not really swinging with the arms but to just them whip through? Any comments are appreciated.

I believe so, yes. It is a chain reaction, which means that if you miss one part of the chain, the rest won't move. If the chain linking up with the shoulders and arms are not moving, you have no choice but to swing with them, and rarely make a good one.

The important part of this chain is the hips. The hips create power, but more importantly, they control the weight. If the hips don't move forward, your weight can't shift forward. The reason why the weight moves to the back foot is the extension of your arms. Essentially, body mass moving away from the center of your body. If you want the weight to move over to the front again, you have to get some of your body mass out that way. But we don't want the head to move, as that would ruin your good set up position. The legs certainly can't move, so you have to shift the hips. You can go to Youtube and watch videos of the greatest golfers. Jack Nicklaus, Ben Hogan, Arnold Palmer, Bobby Jones, Tiger Woods. The hips always lead and promotes the weight shift. Without it, you can't hit the ball as well. It also promotes lag and de-lofting of the club. Lots of good stuff happens automatically with a proper weight shift. One of those things is the chain reaction. Once the hips move forward and turn, the rest of the body have no option but to follow. The arms can't move through the ball on their own, they need something to pull them through. At the same time, it's important to keep the head from moving too far forward. It can move some, but not too much, as that will get you out of the set up position which you want to be the same as impact position. If you look at Jack Nicklaus, he had the same ball position for every shot at the inside of his left foot. I believe this worked great because his head moved so much forward. If you drew a line on the right side of his head, I'm sure that line would be in the middle of his head at impact. If you have the ball more back and do that, you'll have a hard time making good contact. The head pretty much control the bottom of your swing. If the head is too far forward, you can top the ball from hitting the ball too much on the way down, or you can hit it fat because the hands release too early and slam the club into the ground. Here's a series of pictures of Tiger. The camera is not set up at a straight at angle, so the lines are a bit hard to see, but it works. The first red line goes through the logo of his cap. From the second to the third picture, his head has actually moved backwards to find the same position as it was at address. If you don't play the ball from inside the left foot at every shot, you don't want the head to move very much forward. The second red line goes through the outside of his hips at address. Look how far they have shifted forward by the time the arms are parallell to the ground. From there they don't move laterally, but keep turning to a good finish position. I didn't add the finish position, but the hips stays pretty much at the same place through that line from the second picture to his finish. So, on to the yellow line. As I said, the camera is not square, so the line can't be seen as it should. It still give you a good indication of what is happening. It shows the position of the head compared to the hips and between the feet. The head must stay behind the ball, or you'll get no lag and have to cast the club. Jack moved his head a little, but still got the reverse C at impact, he just moved the entire swing a bit forward so he could get to the ball. Jack also has a more laidback finish position than Tiger, which I believe is because of his ball position and that his upper body have to move so much laterally to get to the ball. Since Tiger doesn't move his head forward, he stays in a good position for a tall and solid finish, with the head slightly behind the left foot which all the weight is stored on.