Timing the upper and lower body - tips on curing the Pull shot

[NotBillCosby]

I am not exactly new to the game of golf but I recently started taking instruction to promote good form.  My posture, grip and setup are fine, and I focus on keeping the lead arm in motion, while keeping the trailing arm inert.  I have little trouble making contact with the ball but I tend to use too much upper body, resulting in frequent pull shots.   I use a little hip bump on the left side and turn with the hips to promote an in-to-in swing path on plane, but I have a tendency to still hit pull shots.  Is there any cue people use to make sure this doesn't happen?  How about trying to match the right shoulder and right hip on impact to form that K shape at impact?  That works for me sometimes but I am wondering if there is a better way to think about it, or if it's mainly a "feel" thing that cannot be explained until you hit enough balls to get it right.  Thanks!

[LuciusWooding]

Right elbow needs to stay connected, and check ball position. If you keep those things consistent, it's very hard to hit much of a pull.

[NotBillCosby]

Cool. Thanks.  Is it more of a feel of keeping the body connected rather than consciously getting the right elbow in the groove?  If the bump and turn are executed correctly, the right elbow should fall into place at the right moment. I think that is correct, but I just wanted to make sure.

[LuciusWooding]

Originally Posted by NotBillCosby

Cool. Thanks.  Is it more of a feel of keeping the body connected rather than consciously getting the right elbow in the groove?  If the bump and turn are executed correctly, the right elbow should fall into place at the right moment. I think that is correct, but I just wanted to make sure.

Basically, if the elbow is against or close to the body, it's impossible with correct ball position to hit a pull with any power, you'd have to make some pretty drastic moves to do so. Watch Hogan and Jason Dufner, they both make this move in a very pronounced way. It also allows you to use your right hand for power IMO.

In order to hit a pull, you need to swing out to in. So, viewed from the top, your arc would reach its farthest point outside the target line behind the ball. This is all assuming a square alignment, of course. To fix the pull, you could rotate your stance slightly shut to the target so you'd pull it down the target line, or tweak the clubface a touch more open to produce a pull fade, move the ball farther back so it's at or near the farthest point from your body, make a bigger weight shift to move said point farther forward, or keep your right elbow tucked in so you deliver the club more from the inside. Most of these are band aid fixes though, and you may well be off in one of your alignments.