Too much pressure between arms and chest?

[westcyderydin]

So i have had a problem in my backswing that likes to come back and work its way in where i have problems opening the club in my takeaway.  Its like i can't get the clubhead to get back behind my hands and my shoulders get way too steep.

I have been taking some swings inside and a few outside and i think i got a feeling that really helps.

I was trying to keep pressure between my arms and chest but i think i was overdoing it.  When that starts to work its way into my swing it starts to feel like my body wants to take the club back and my hands get too passive.

But on my last few practice swings i kept my arms slightly off of my chest and it felt a thousand times better.  Does this make sense?

[mvmac]

Originally Posted by westcyderydin

So i have had a problem in my backswing that likes to come back and work its way in where i have problems opening the club in my takeaway.  Its like i can't get the clubhead to get back behind my hands and my shoulders get way too steep.

I have been taking some swings inside and a few outside and i think i got a feeling that really helps.

I was trying to keep pressure between my arms and chest but i think i was overdoing it.  When that starts to work its way into my swing it starts to feel like my body wants to take the club back and my hands get too passive.

But on my last few practice swings i kept my arms slightly off of my chest and it felt a thousand times better.  Does this make sense?

We suggest placing tees in each arm pit.  That way there is connection but enough separation for the arms to go in, back and up.  Seen some guys over do the pressure points where the whole upper arm is glued to the torso, not correct

[bunkerputt]

In my recent experience with this, it's best not to even think about armpit "pressure" or "connection".  Your arms are connected at the shoulders.  That should be enough.  Armpit connection, or more specifically the kind of athletic control of the arms we are trying to create is, in my opinion, a byproduct of a proper turn, pivot and downswing path.  The reason it probably feels "a thousand times better" is because you know how to hit a golf ball in the general direction you are trying to hit it.  If you are trying to do something with your arms by gauging a certain feeling of "pressure" (usually pectoral contraction) and your brain knows, because of an improper pivot, that if you "kept armpit pressure", you wouldn't hit it where you were trying to, then you're going to want the arms mobile to compensate.

My focus would be to simply work on turning the shoulders in a circle, check your axis tilts and pivot/hip action and posture.  If all of those are correct, you'll find you simply don't even need to think about keeping tees under the armpits because it just happens to work out that way.  Trying to maintain "armpit pressure" with an improper pivot is like trying to "create lag" with an improper pivot.  It just isn't going to happen and it will be a long, frustrating dead-end.  Check shoulder turn, transition, and downswing shoulder path.

Just my 2 cents.