Decupping Left Wrist

[barnum1]

Hi!

Recently, my pro said that I was cupping my left wrist at top of the swing.
So we worked on "decupping" the left wrist, and when it worked it was a new revelation. I gained at least 10 yards on a mid-iron.
I have played golf for 40 years, and never known about the wrist cupping/bowing effect on hitting the golf ball!

So now I'm working on automating the flat wrist, and it works often/sometimes.
It's easier with short irons and wedges, but more difficult with longer irons and the driver (well, most things are ).

Basically, what I try to do now is to get to the top of the swing and kind of bow the left wrist.
It does work pretty well, but what I keep thinking is that the left wrist should be correct all the way up. 
I shouldn't have to correct (bow) it at the top. 
Anyone got a good advice on a drill, and especially to avoid the cupping from the start?

Thanks in advance!

[DaveP043]

It seems to me that the angle of your left wrist (bowed or cupped) is largely related to the position of the club (pointing left or right of the target) as well as the position of both arms, particularly your right elbow.  My question, did you and your pro change some of this stuff to influence your left wrist, or did you work on the wrist angle and have the other stuff change as a result?

I'm no instructor, but it I think that keeping your right elbow close to your body could promote a flatter wrist. Others have talked about a feeling of carrying a pizza in your right hand, forearm vertical, palm of the hand facing the sky.  Do you think that kind of feel might help you?

[RandallT]

14 minutes ago, DaveP043 said:

I think that keeping your right elbow close to your body could promote a flatter wrist.

For what it's worth, my instructor had me working on both the non-cupping and the right elbow. Getting the backswing right has been a challenge for me, looking back on it now. But I get that you gotta get yourself into a good position to even have a hope of things going ok on the downswing.

To the OP, the right elbow tucked in has seemed to help me with my left wrist at the top. Not sure if there's a physiological reason, but I've felt that as I've gotten better at my right elbow on video, the left wrist tends to be in a better position naturally.

[barnum1]

Hi,

thanks for your replies!

I did try tucking in the right elbow and that works. It cups the right wrist I think, and thus bows the left wrist.
(I did not think about pointing the club left or right of the target, though. I understood my pro that the club should be in the same position, just rotated so that the club head does not point downwards.)

However, tucking the elbow when I get to the top still feels like a quick-fix for something that went wrong earlier. I would like to understand how to keep the left wrist flat already on the way back and up.

[Let it Fly]

Working on the same thing, albeit my right wrist as I play lefty.  The coat-hanger drill works ok for me at the range...literally grip a coat hanger in my hands along with the club.  The sole focus is keeping the hanger in contact with my right forearm throughout the swing.  If the wrist cups, you'll lose contact between hangar/forearm.  Not really a diehard fan of this one though b/c I've found that the plastic hangars are incredibly clunky and completely change my feel of the club, and the thin/metal ones tear my fingers up.  I'm sure there are training aids out there that I just have yet to search for.

It's been a struggle to change since I'm so used to naturally cupping that wrist.  The past few weeks I've hit the reset button during my practice sessions going back to 1/2 and 3/4 swings with TONS of slow-motion practice takeaways & swings.  I've still been finding it tough to execute the motion when actually hitting a ball, so the 1/2 and 3/4 swings help in that sense...along with even pausing before the downswing to A) make sure the wrist is flat/bowed and B) let myself learn/feel that I CAN make contact from that position haha.  First 4 or 5 range sessions this way were tough to get through, but am starting to see some progress in ball flight and comfort.

To mirror @DaveP043...I'm certainly no instructor.  Although, once I became willing to hit/accept some ugly looking shots at the range I was able to hone-in on working toward that one specific change.  Good luck with it!

[barnum1]

Thanks for your insights!

I have heard about the coat hanger drill, and I imagine it can be clunky. 
But your saying that "keeping the hanger in contact with my right forearm throughout the swing" sounds promising. Maybe I can find something better than a coat hanger!

Good luck with your swing, it always take time to get new stuff in to the swing so it sticks.

[RandallT]

Also (for your viewing pleasure and for chasing rabbits down holes on the internet):

 

[barnum1]

Thanks, now I have a lot to read:-)

[Tee Wade]

I was a chronic slicer that now plays a natural draw.  The flat left wrist was the beginning of eliminating my slice.  I would add a note of caution though...I found that bowing my wrist to produce the FLW was not the best method.  FOR ME, rolling my forearms with a strong grip produced a more easily repeatable flat left wrist.  The roll is subconscious now but in the beginning I noticed that I had to focus on this roll or else I would prevent my forearms from naturally rolling during the backswing in anticipation of trying to bow my wrist.  In the downswing my forearms would naturally roll clockwise (and open my face) since they never rotated in the backswing.  If I allow the forearms to roll clockwise in the backswing, then the forearms would naturally roll counter-clockwise on the downswing and help close the face (I say "help" because I use my body turn to ultimately square the face at impact).  If push-fades start appearing out of nowhere you may want to look at whether or not you're restricting your forearm turn while trying to get a flat wrist.

[barnum1]

Thanks for your advice on rolling the forearms. To be honest I have no idea how my forearms roll (or not roll) in the backswing (or in the downswing). I'll try to take a look next time I'm at the range.

[nevets88]

I think generally, consciously rolling the forearms is not a good thing. Believe me, I tried that. The swings in my swing thread my forearms are rolling and I'm not even thinking about it, the rolling comes from the bigger muscles, body parts sequencing right because that generates speed in your arms, when think roll, you try to generate speed in your arms using your arms, which is kind of in reverse. You might want to consider videoing your swing and posting vids in the members swing thread so a more accurate assessment can be made.