My Swing (darrylc)

[darrylc]

Fellow Golfers:

I am trying to learn to retain my right wrist angle during my downswing.  I seem incapable of learning how to do this.  Does anyone have any radical drills or swing thoughts I can try?

Thanking you in advance - DC

[iacas]

First, be honest with yourself: you have some wedge. It's just coming out a wee bit early.

Why? Let's take a quick look at some pictures.

First, you do flip or lose the wedge quickly. Note that you don't flip hard because by the time you get to P8, you still have more of a "wedge" look than most people, but it is coming out a little bit early. It's inline just before impact when it should ideally be inline just after impact.

So let's compare you to Charlie (simply because I'm really really familiar with his measurements - I'll throw some Hogan in there soon enough - and it's a good high-speed video):

You've slid your hips forward. Your head is about in the same place as Charlie. Yet you have 10 degrees less "wedge" or you're 10 degrees closer to "inline" than Charlie. Why?

Why, with your hips in the same position, your head in the same position, and so on do you have so much less secondary axis tilt?

The answer is in the next post. If you're reading along, consider the differences. Consider Hogan. I think you can get the right answer.

[iacas]

Here's the answer (Charlie's hitting a 9I, Hogan a 4W I believe, which explains some of the other differences. Charlie is at P7, Hogan at P6, with lines drawn for both at each of the positions):

You straighten your right arm too quickly. Think about it: if from the top of your backswing the first thing you do is straighten your right arm, you're going to get to impact too soon. You won't have time to put secondary axis tilt in. It's tough to see from the angle above, but in the post above consider how much Charlie's right arm is still bent at impact. Look at yours. Yours is nearly straight. Charlie's (and Hogan's) won't straighten until a foot or two past impact.

Again, really difficult to see from this view, but from here, P6, your right arm will straighten fast. Hogan's right elbow is lower and more in front of him. He's pinched it in towards his belly button, which not only lets him keep it flexed longer but which lets him build natural secondary axis tilt.

(BTW: Since your hands are spaced apart on the golf club a few inches, fore applied by the right arm - i.e. straightening the right arm - will tend to rotate the clubhead in your wrists at a spot between the hands. This force can "flip" the shaft past the left arm. In your case, it's happening prematurely because the right arm is straightening prematurely.)

Make some practice swings feeling like your right arm never straightens on the downswing, and feel the right elbow pinching in towards your belly button more. You do a lot of good things in your swing, but that alone will help.

Also, read this thread . It doesn't apply to you as much as it does to others, but it'll still help. Your biggest thing is not the location of the right elbow (it could be more in front), but rather that having the right elbow more in front will HELP you to KEEP IT FLEXED LONGER.

P.S. Down the line videos next time too okay? They're helpful even though you'd think that "flipping" or "wedge stuff" is something you see from face-on. You'd be right, except the cause is best seen down the line. :-)

[darrylc]

Eric,

Beautiful!  A very sharp eye on your part.  Did not see that, did not think about it, did not even dream about it.

Per your request, here is a target view:

Will start practicing with a bent right arm.  Might even put it in a cast and leave it bent permanently!

Thanks, man, and Happy Holidays.

DC

[iacas]

Originally Posted by darrylc

Eric,

Two requests. Please embed, and please spell my name correctly. :-)

And yeah, as you can see, the right arm straightens too quickly:

[mvmac]

Erik did a good job of explaining it already.  I just want to add another part to understanding all this.  Check this swing out here, see as Mike lowers his arms the elbows stay close to eachother, squeezing together.  In the swings above, right arm lengthening out and not lowering down, your elbows are separating too much which will lead to losing the wrist alignments.  Just a different way to illustrate or feel the same thing Erik was talking about.

[Fozcycle]

Try a Swingyde......it's a yellow plastic arm that attaches to your club at the grip and maintains the correct wrist angle as you take practice swings....

I got mine off ebay for $0.98 Most sell for about $30.

[darrylc]

Erik(!) and Mike,

Thank you, kindly.  Christmas has arrived early...hurray, hurrah!

Darryl

[iacas]

Originally Posted by darrylc

Thank you, kindly.  Christmas has arrived early...hurray, hurrah!

As thanks, please become a happy and productive member of the forum. And tell your pals.

[darrylc]

Foz,  Thanks...I think I still have a Swingyde in my basement.  Will dig it out.  Also, I have a Tac-Tic elbow gadget I used to use on my left elbow to learn not to bend it.  I'm gonna try it on the right elbow, let it "Tac" on the backswing and try to prevent it from "Tic-ing" before impact.  This is how we handle winter in Michigan!  -DC

[darrylc]

Men,

I'm making what feels like good progress with my irons.  My driver, however, is another story.  I am pretty much always hitting a little push fade/slice.  Below are some video.  Any recommendations will be given a good faith effort!

Thanks - DC

[iacas]

I didn't read anything earlier so take anything I say with a grain of salt. :)

No answers per se in this picture, but it's no wonder the ball pushes and cuts. Even if the path is straight (0) through the ball a clubface pointing right is open to that path, and this path is definitely not right of a right-facing clubface:

P.S.