Thinking of moving toward "quiet hands" on the backswing

[majorchamp]

Over the last 10 years...my backswing has taken on various looks and feels.

As of recent, I think my swing visually is looking very nice, but the one thing that absolutely disturbs me is the amount of "bounce" I get at the top of my swing, which I believe coorelates with my losing of lag on the downswing.

Even when I try a 3/4 swing in front of a ball (since we all know practice swings look different :)), my club tends to get parallel.

So I have started trying to feel what its like for my hands to hinge LESS on the backswing as I move toward the top. I always try to stop my swing when my chin touches my left shoulder...but my hinging them less, I believe I am preventing my wrists from wanting to create the bounce effect. So visually, this at least keeps the club well short of parallel.

And I think its even possible that when I start my downswing..if I have kept my hands quiet enough...they might even hinge/bounce (simply due to momentum) enough to "improve" my lag. Just a theory.

I think "quite hands" is the appropriate term to be used here, but if not please let me know.

Thoughts?

[Phil McGleno]

99:1 odds your swing goes long because your right elbow overflexes. I like firm wrists so long as you can keep firm wrists with relatively softer forearms and a grip. This might help your "lag" issue but you still need to do the arms thing. A shorter backswing will help there too.

[majorchamp]

99:1 odds your swing goes long because your right elbow overflexes. I like firm wrists so long as you can keep firm wrists with relatively softer forearms and a grip. This might help your "lag" issue but you still need to do the arms thing. A shorter backswing will help there too.

overflex = folding too much?

I actually never thought of it that way...but its kind of the same move...to not fold your elbow forces you to resist your wrist flex a bit...because you can fold your right elbow to the max and never break your wrists. I know I overswing, but part of the problem of what I am trying to "feel" is when to stop the backswing..and I always tend to still stop it too late, even if I am desperately trying. I litearlly have to feel like I am stopping my swing at waist level for it to probably even stop at 3/4, but I think a part of that is when I am letting my wrists begin to hinge. I don't purposely try to hinge my wrists at a particular point, it comes at a natural point for me in my backswing. And you probably already saw, but in regards to whether my right elbow overflexes, you tell me: http://thesandtrap.com/forum/threads...l=1#post521424

[majorchamp]

but you still need to do the arms thing.

Hey Phil. Can you elaborate on this bit? Thanks

[MbolicGolf]

I have moved to this for my swing and have tried to immitate Steve Stricker's swing. I used to start my backswing with the right hand, now I start the back swing with my right hip back up and start the down swing with my left hip. I keep my left arm board straight my wrist flat and stiff my, right grip firm and my right arm like a noodle. I'm getting more consistency out of it and the shorter backswing it requires and when I make contact I pound the ball.

[mdl]

Both Phil and majorchamp are  a lot better than I am, but I thought I'd proffer at least a tentative answer to majorchamp's request for elaboration on Phil's point cause I think I know exactly what he's talking about.

It's something that Erik talks about a lot too.  Feeling like you're keeping as much extension in both arms throughout the back swing.  Erik's even talked about feeling like you're pushing the club away from your body throughout the back swing.  You'll notice when you do this you can't over rotate with too long a back swing unless you have absolutely ridiculous rotational back flexibility, cause there comes a point where the only way to continue rotating into the back swing is to fold your right arm more and then to raise your front shoulder and flatten the shoulder plane.  If you work on keeping the arms both extended, and abide by the rule of thumb I've heard Erik use, which is never let your right arm fold to more than 90˚ (something I see from you avatar pic you go far past), then that will help eliminate the over swinging through too deep a back swing.

[iacas]

Very few PGA Tour golfers fold their right elbow beyond 90°. Of those that do, probably all of them stop short of 80°.

The average golfer tends to get down to 50-60 degrees. The first move they make then is to throw that angle out immediately from the top of the backswing.

I'd rather see more people have it at 100° at P4, then feel like it gets to 50° at P5 and even later in the downswing. Drive the hips forward and feel like the shaft is very close to your shoulders during the downswing.

But I'm not sure if this is on topic, so I'll stop there.