I ask my students to use their shoulders to control the backswing. This means the shoulders will move the arms and club to the top of the backswing. My students ask me, where should my arms go? up what plane? to the inside? I tell them the “Path of least resistance.” I know that sounds non committal, but that is what happens. If the arms were setup properly (shaft in line with the front arm, elbows close together pointing back at the hips), traveling up the path of least resistance will be very easy. Again, the shoulders control the backswing…the arms and hands must not help or lift.
We first need the spine to be natural and athletic. We do not want to have the top of the spine tilted right or left. If the spine tilts to one side, the shoulders get bound and can’t turn freely. The shoulders themselves, need to be level and natural. The spine will also tilt forward a bit, as our rear end counter balances to get into an “Athletic Position”. This is not a lean out, our weight is always straight down to gravity. Our goal is for the shoulders to rotate (at 90°) to the spine.
Now on the takeaway, when the shoulders turn 90° around the spine, the arms/club are moved on the path of least resistance. It does not matter where they go as long as the shoulders maintain control. If we are successful, we can then use the body to control the downswing. As the body unwinds, the body mass will unwind the shoulders/arms/club. Since on the backswing, everything traveled up the path of least resistance, everything will return back down that path, for a solid shot (if not disrupted by the hands or elbows taking over or changing).