I recently replied to a students comment about how he checks his balance by wiggling his toes just before he hits and I really like the idea of checking your Balance and being Centered, but prefer my method that also covers other concerns at the same time. My answer:
I see the concept behind the toe lifting as a way to check your balance. I use “Sit Down” with the club head behind the ball, to focus on the entire body being centered and sitting into an Athletic Position. This has the thighs ready to support the shoulder turn and automatically distributes the weight via natural instinct, meaning; as the knees bend to allow the backside to sit, the chest moves slightly forward as a counter balance proportionately still keeping the body centered. This is good, in that all clubs have different lengths of shafts and we want to maintain this Athletic Position Ratio (the more we sit, the more the chest counter balances equally) We need this “Sit Down” also for different lies and slopes (uphill, ball below feet, etc). This is a critical part of the routine and only takes a second to check. It is also great feedback that we are centered & balanced and ready to hit.
One small add-on to this moment in the Pre Shot Routine is that the shoulders must be “Level” as we “Sit Down”. Many, many golfers drop their back shoulder at this time causing another problem…. So, Shoulders Level & Sit Down … 🙂