Flat wrist at top

[clonewars222]

Should I be focusing on having the wrist at the top of the backswing flat?( top of wrist facing ceiling?)

I was at the course yesterday... I had some good shots but I actually was hitting the ball thin and even topping it a few times quite a bit... Could this be caused by a flat swing?

[RIduffer]

This gets brought up alot, and you will hear different opinions. Is a flat left wrist at the top of the backswing essential? Definitely not. Many great ballstrikers don't have a flat left wrist at the top of the backswing, and to some degree it depends on your grip. However, they all have it flat at impact.

[canes113]

I'm working on that too. It's not necessary but does promote consistency. I have a tendancy to cup my left wrist at the top forcing me to use more hands at impact to square the face. If I don't time that correctly, it could be a miss left or right of the target and hurts my score.

[MikeLowry5]

I was trying this with some dry swings the other day. Feels very odd.

My wrist is cupped pretty good at the top as well and was going to try it out at the range tomorrow.

[Jooma]

Generally speaking :
All SLICERS of the golf ball have a CUPPED left hand wrist at the top of the back swing because they lift heir arms only instead fully turning their shoulders. To make things worse in a futile search for distance they dip their left shoulder on the downswing. It is usually corrected with a significant rotation of hips to the left on the down swing.
All HOOKERS are exactly opposite – they always overswing with a significantly flatter plane resulting in FLAT or BOWED left hand wrist at the top of the swing. The best example is Ben Hogan.
It is usually corrected by a pronounced slide of hips to the left on the downswing.
I do not mention ways of a club head release because it does not belong to the topic.

[Travtex]

Generally speaking :

I'm going to be a bit weird, here...

I've been a bit of a cupper for some time, and I'd recently abandoned trying to work on it because for whatever reason flattening out that wrist at the top of the backswing causes some nasty stinging shocking nerve/tendon pains down throughout my hand. However, I'm not a slicer -- My standard is a slight draw, my miss is a pull, and my "*#$&*" is the dreaded Duck Hook. I do have pretty active hips, but I'm not sure that's a compensation as I've never really fought a slice but for brief fleeting moments of overcorrection. (That, and that damn 45* left balloon push fade.... *"#$& shot #2.)

[nike_golf]

I'm always looking for ways to improve. And I've really become enamored w/ the wrist action lately. I can't get out and hit any balls, but I've been working on this in the simulator recently. I must say, keeping that left wrist bowed and flat isn't easy to do. It can downright hurt!

So, I'm still tinkering a bit. BTW, I will fight a bad fade/slice when I'm off. I always have. That's the main reason for me trying to work on my left wrist action. It might be the number one issue I've been fighting all along. I just didn't know it.

[shortstop20]

If keeping your wrist bowed or flat hurts, something is wrong.

[Rexx]

There should probably be some agreement on what it means to have a "flat left wrist". The obvious definition would be no visible curvature of the wrist. However, I thought I've read that is really a bowed left wrist if you look at the bone structure underneath (and requires active muscle tension to achieve). A flat left wrist will have a slight visible curvature which is achieved when the wrist is relaxed (e.g. the position you should be in when typing or playing the piano). I don't know if this is true or not. However, I prefer that the left wrist be in the latter position at the top of the backswing, but I don't know if that is "correct".

[Fatphil]

I'm always looking for ways to improve. And I've really become enamored w/ the wrist action lately. I can't get out and hit any balls, but I've been working on this in the simulator recently. I must say, keeping that left wrist bowed and flat isn't easy to do. It can downright hurt!

I hear ya...I know exactly what you mean...maybe "hurt" is a bit strong and some may jump on your choice of words but to make a proper wrist hinge absoutely puts a strain on your left thumb, palm and hand muscles. A lazy wrist hinge that whips the club inside and off plane causes no stress in the hands (that's why it's a common fault) we all avoid pain..(sorry discomfort)

[Travtex]

If keeping your wrist bowed or flat hurts, something is wrong.

Yep. I get a bit carpal tunnel-ish, and it's a similar tingle-shock nerve pain.

[nike_golf]

If keeping your wrist bowed or flat hurts, something is wrong.

I might agree. What disturbs me as that I'm a young, athletic, and pretty flexible guy. The shots that I can pull off prove that to be true.

However, like I said, recently, when working on the left wrist action, keeping it bowed and/or flat is giving me some fits. I have to literally stop my backswing at about a three quarter swing, otherwise it gets quite uncomfortable. I was a big baseball player. My natural swing is left handed. I golf right handed. I'm wondering if, because of that, my left wrist isn't strong enough, or flexible enough to pull it off? My right wrist was the dominant one in my left handed swing playing baseball. Now, it's my left wrist that I need to be dominant.

[nike_golf]

I hear ya...I know exactly what you mean...maybe "hurt" is a bit strong and some may jump on your choice of words but to make a proper wrist hinge absoutely puts a strain on your left thumb, palm and hand muscles. A lazy wrist hinge that whips the club inside and off plane causes no stress in the hands (that's why it's a common fault) we all avoid pain..(sorry discomfort)

Like I said, I think it's been a problem that I've kind of ignored for awhile. What you say about a reason for the outside to inside swing makes sense. It's an easier action to do w/ our hands/wrists. But, of course, that induces a slice on the ball.

[uttexas]

wrist position at impact (back of left hand facing initial ball target) is far more important than flat wrist at the top. Having a flat left wrist at the top, I suppose, does make it easier to stay on plane longer, but I don't think it's that important overall. I've tried to obtain a flat wrist at the top, but haven't been comfortable doing so (adds unnatural compensation moves like extending and ulnar deviating my right wrist to flatten the left wrist.

just found this video of Hogan. His wrist appears to be slightly cupped at the top, then half way down he flattens the left wrist into impact.

[nike_golf]

wrist position at impact (back of left hand facing initial ball target) is far more important than flat wrist at the top. Having a flat left wrist at the top, I suppose, does make it easier to stay on plane longer, but I don't think it's that important overall. I've tried to obtain a flat wrist at the top, but haven't been comfortable doing so (adds unnatural compensation moves like extending and ulnar deviating my right wrist to flatten the left wrist.

Yes, well, that's the reason for keeping it bowed/flat during the whole backswing, so on the downswing, it stays that way through impact.

I agree that it's not really super important to keep it the same way on the top of the backswing, but it would, of course, make it easier to stay on plane (as you said) and a good way to ensure it's in the correct position at impact. In regards to the Hogan video. To me, his left wrist looks pretty flat to me. That's what I'm trying to emulate.

[deronsizemore]

Should I be focusing on having the wrist at the top of the backswing flat?( top of wrist facing ceiling?)

It sounds like you're describing a really bowed left wrist (for a right hander)? The top of your left wrist shouldn't be facing the ceiling.

There's really no right answer to this question though. A lot of it depends on your grip. If you have a strong grip (not how tightly you're holding it, but your hands rotated to the right for the right hander), your left wrist should be cupped at the top to accomodate. If you have a strong grip and have a flat or bowed left wrist, your clubface will likely be closed at the top and you'll have to make compensations on the way down. With a perfect grip, your left wrist should be ever so slightly cupped at the top to have your clubface in a perfect position. Many pros play with cupped, flat and bowed left wrists and play well, so really it depends on the person.

[Zeph]

Well summed up deron, I agree. A neutral grip and slightly cupped wrist. It will get bowed slightly on the way down because of the lag, so the left han is leading the shaft.

[OJsakila]

A proper grip insures your "flat wrist." ...99.9% of the time..