Maintaining lag on longer clubs

[Sai-Jin]

I have started to focus on improving my game by actually consciously using lag.

But I noticed that the longer the club such as 4 iron, hybrid, woods, it becomes harder to maintain that lag

until my  shaft is parallel to the ground.

It feels as if the club wants to go and release sooner before that point and I hit it fat.

Anyone has had that before? For me, it just take extra effort / muscle to hold that L until my hands passed the ball.

[haddockd]

Hi Sai-Jin,

I recently struggled with lag about 6 months ago and had the issue of flipping/casting for a LONG time before this. The thing that helped me was 2 fold (just my 2 cents anyways):

1) Turn with your shoulders and not your arms (I mean no turn in your swing from your arms at all.) I had to eliminate my arms' dominance from my swing.

2) Relax your forearms and wrists. I know this seems counter intuitive, but relaxing your arms and wrists is key to keeping lag. You can maintain it consciously with the shorter clubs due to lower intertia on the downswing, but the longer clubs have more oomph.

Anyways, that is what helped me get lag. Not that I am a professional by any means, it is just what helped me.

Good luck!

[Sai-Jin]

Thanks for sharing.

I notice that I lose my lag when I come too fast from the top.

Anyone has advice for slowing it down? I don't understand that "let gravity" take over and let the arms just drop.

[Joehuggy]

I also have this problem with longer clubs, I can hit my 7 iron 180+ but my driver only 250 carry

[jclark]

I try to have the feel that in transition and start of the downswing my lower body shifts from ground up and it feels like my waist up still hasn't moved a bit! It feels like it takes forever but the key point is my arms/hands fire last. It is a totally different feel but it is amazing how much it feels like it is slow and effortless. Does this all make sense?

[Joehuggy]

I've figured it out at last. I just hit a 315 yard drive, 20 metre downhill but still.

Didn't have enough separation, I was not creating much torque in my torso when my hips fired and left my shoulders behind.... This takes some getting, if you think you have it, be open to the possibility that you don't.

Thinking about the angle of lag is obsolete, how you get real distance is this separation and trailing the arms behind, which then fire through at the last minute and even bad contacts like this go further than good contacts with not so much trailing of the arms.

Thank god I have now got the distance game sorted, now time to concentrate on short game and start winning some tournaments!

[Joehuggy]

Originally Posted by jclark

I try to have the feel that in transition and start of the downswing my lower body shifts from ground up and it feels like my waist up still hasn't moved a bit! It feels like it takes forever but the key point is my arms/hands fire last. It is a totally different feel but it is amazing how much it feels like it is slow and effortless. Does this all make sense?

Yes it Does!!!