Relaxation

One of the challenges you face as a golfer is learning how to rotate around the spine without changing the spine angle too much. When the muscles that connect the vertebrae are too tight, your rotation can become too tense, leading to inconsistency. Relaxation before, during, and after the swing can help. We’ve found that relaxed muscles more more easily, and allow more feedback about the position of the body.

Awareness of Spine Angle

We suggest that you find exercises that help you become aware of your spine angle. You can do the classic move that involves holding a golf club behind your neck, and rotating from side to side. You could invest in one of those expensive swing trainers (though we are not fans of mechanical training aids, except where absolutely necessary). Whatever you chose, repeat your practice daily until you have a good level of comfort and awareness of your spine angle while rotating.

Video

We are big fans of using video to compare your swing to the Top 100 role models you have chosen. It’s surprising how much you can learn by watching your own swing on video and comparing it to the pros. We recommend filming your swing from three angles - (1) your backswing side, looking toward the target, (2) face on, to see the entire rotation of the clubhead, and (3) the rear quarter, between the first two positions, which is very commonly where the pros are filmed.

Compare Your Swing

Now that you’ve studied and practiced the first four steps of our “bottom up” method for building the perfect golf swing, compare the video of yourself to your role models. Watch the feet, the knees, the hips, and the torso. Of course, you’ll probably learn things about what you’re doing with your shoulders, arms, hands, head, and your golf club, too!

Go to the next page for Step Five in this revolutionary method for building your perfect golf swing!

Adam Scott Short Iron

The torso windup does not go away when you hit short irons. As this video of Adam Scott shows, there is still more rotation in the shoulders than in the hips. There is simply less overall turn - less in the hips and less in the shoulders - than in a long iron or tee shot.

This wind up helps to limit the amount of power that your arms need to generate. By creating the power through relaxed rotation, more momentum is created for the arms and hands, so they can stay more relaxed - allowing extra speed and “feel” for the clubhead.