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Ross Jun 04, 2014
I have really emphasized lately, to some of my other students having flipping, throwing problems, to SHORTEN THE BACKSWING AND FOCUS ON SPEEDING UP THE BODY ROTATION ON THE DOWNSWING. This has worked wonders for them. The reason, if you allow your backswing to get too long, the arms lift slightly or the wrists hinge a bit, and then you are going to “throw the club head” to help catch up, but if you stop the backswing when the shoulders are done (will feel short and weird at first), you haven’t hinged or lifted and can now just focus on turning for the downswing… and I mean go! … TURN. The shorter backswing gives you confidence that you can return to the ball easily and keep going… no hit… just turn… commit! Think of it as a drill for a while and you’ll build confidence and know that you don’t have to help… just turn on the downswing.I wanted to add this to help you understand why shorter is better…
If you take the club back with the shoulders like 1/2 way, the hands and arms are more likely to still be under control. As you lengthen the backswing, generally what happens is… the hands and arms now take over and lift and hinge. That “Action” of the hands/arms (is a disconnect from Large Muscles), but it forces the “Reaction” on the downswing. So, practice with a shoulders only, shorter backswing and your hands and arms will get the idea. As you get better, you may make a bigger shoulder turn if it works… but if not, go back to the shorter backswing.
FYI… the downswing and commitment to tuning through faster, is what produces accuracy and distance… not the backswing.
Ross
Ross May 22, 2016
I didn’t see Pete K. talking about sliding, but I know why it happens (and will tell you in a sec.), but I did see Pete K. talking about Jordan’s hips way ahead of his swing, and anyone that has worked on my method that have block shots, the first thing I say is watch “The Ross Move” which teaches you how to bring down the arms/club back in front of the body, so what Jordan is doing can’t happen.NOW, a big reason it is happening to begin with is… he does not wind up like we do… from top down. He slides a bit into the back leg* and then tries to wind his shoulders, but lately is getting more of an ” arm lift” vs. shoulder turn. If he just knew how to start his shoulders first, there would be a HUGE improvement… BECAUSE, if you’ve wound up correctly, you really can’t get ahead with the hips on the downswing… everything is connected. So, when you fire the hips, here come the arms/club. There is a “continuity” through the muscles. Since, he winds up late in the backswing, he can get ahead of himself, because there is slack in his back. If there’s slack, the hips can move by themselves and leave the arms/club behind. AND, if he also knew how to keep the face square on the backswing (he opens it because he has mostly a traditional golf swing), even if his hips were ahead, he’d still hit the ball straight.
I know this is a lot of info, but I’m sure many of you know exactly what I’m talking about, because I’ve beens saying this for almost 20 years. The shoulders MUST start first on the backswing (ala Jason Day and many others that know). Essentially… you should not need “The Ross Move” if you’ve wound up correctly….
HINT: Almost no one has ever left their arm behind when they through a ball. You would not fire your hips and leave your arm behind… the hips unwind at a pace, to bring the arm/ball through and you let go.
* Since he slides, he has to slide back and that will lead to problems. It is almost like change the ball position mid-swing. If you get ahead of the ball (on the downswing), the face does not have time to close and the shot is blocked.
Ross May 24, 2016
Yes. All swings for every shot move the same. You may setup different for different lies, conditions or results.Now, the term fairway woods is too general anymore. The only real difference is whether you meet the ball at the bottom of the swing arc (for like 3 wood), or just before the bottom (higher lofted woods/hybrids). There is not much difference… and when in doubt, meet the ball at the bottom of the swing arc.
What changes more (between clubs), is the width of the stance and you have to figure that out on your own for how you rotate and what is comfortable. You can watch “Ball Position & Front Hip Rotation” for more.
Ross May 24, 2016
Hi J.T.Q1 No, not necessarily. It turns for some golfers and some hold it. It can be used to help keep your weight forward, for those that slide, or let their back leg move laterally.
Q2 Ideally, the start of the downswing is an “entire” unwinding move (like throwing a ball). You don’t have to think about what starts is and the body unwinds from ground up. If, you struggle with starting the downswing, “The Finish Drill” will help teach the feeling of how the “hips” work at the start. Now, for a right hander, the front (left) hip should feel like someone is pulling your left hip belt loop and spinning you around… but I’m not saying the “left hip” does anything alone… the hips/body all unwind together like a rubber band unwinding (if the backswing was wound up correctly).
Q3 Yes, they play a very big part. Again, do the “Finish Drill” and learn which of your muscles fire to accomplish that drill.
Q4 This is not a quick answer and can have many different reasons, BUT in general, a typical correct finish (any golf swing any method), will have almost ALL your weight on the outside of your front foot, with the front foot sole slightly off the ground. Very little weight is on the toe of the back foot at this point just for balance. I would have to see your specific reason for not completing your downswing. Some golfers have to modify their setup (flare out front foot at setup), to allow them to rotate to the finish of the front foot. The “Roll your Feet” video can show you a little more how the front foot should look at the finish.
Q5 I don’t think age has anything to do with it. Sometimes physical limitations play a part, but there are some adjustments that can be made to help allow the turn to complete.
Ross Jul 01, 2016
Let me look. Send it to me. I know I can rotate it and may be able to flip it too. Please use the Contact at http://duplessisgolf.com vs. the forums for direct contact for swing analysis… thanksRoss Jun 15, 2016
First… your elbows will never be right in front of you (or your hips), like setup, because the body is unwinding and rotating… so, the hips will be slightly turned when the elbows arrive. This happens very fast and is a “dynamic” or “in movement” position.Now, there is a moment when all body parts “sum” to move the ball. Kind of a “maximum” power moment. You can easily practice this by setting up (like the photo below), against an open door jamb, then let your hips unwind a bit (like the photo), and let your “rotation” press the club up against the door jamb…. you should feel everything unwinding to push against the door jamb equally. You don’t have to unwind too hard. Just enough to feel everything working together. There should be no leaning, or weight shift, or any hands/arms pushing… this is total unwinding into the jamb. That is what impact should feel like when done correctly… and you will see where your elbows end up to maximize impact.
BTW… I believe that if you practice this “impact position” against anything… the couch leg, a pole, a bench out on the range… anything that will resist, and gently HOLD IT for 15-20 seconds. Your brain will start to “map” impact and you can then “recall it” and “get to that position” just by “visualizing it” right before you hit. It is like you can visualize impact because you’ve been practicing impact. Boy, if you send your brain that great visualization, it will get to it. Remember, this is “dynamic”… nothing stops there or happens there, or hits there. It’s just a moment when everything is moving the ball, while your unwinding. I’ve see many students improve just by holding the correct impact… then getting back to that position during a real swing.
Watch Setup vs. Impact in the Swing Section for more info.
Ross Nov 14, 2015
Send me the videos you’re looking at so I can see. Front, and from behind looking down the target line.Ross Nov 13, 2015
Everything does not “line up”. The lower body will always be leading the shoulders and arms a little. This is the nature of unwinding… it is like a rubber band. So don’t fret if the arms are not exactly in front of the body… it is about the result… not the video. If you’re hitting solid… great.Ross Nov 08, 2015
Sure sounds like it might be. Yes, the elbows do bend, but never at the same time until the end of the swing. This is the ideal scenario.Your ideas about pointing the elbows down to help prevent “chicken wing”, is good. The elbows pointing at the hips, also helps achieve that.
Ross Nov 08, 2015
Real common. That is why I like to shorten the backswing to the point that you regain, or start making “solid” contact (like a fallback safety net). You hit many short shots and get confidence… then let the shoulders go a bit farther, until you “lose it” (so to speak).Then… many times times the culprit really stands out. The culprit might be arms lifting or across your chest… or wrists hinging various directions… or both elbows bending. Once you see what going on, you can work specifically on that. You either can improve the culprit, or you’ve gotten your self, past the point of a productive backswing. Everyone has different limitations.
Ross Nov 07, 2015
I’m not sure what you mean in your first question:“When you work to get the elbows back in front to point at the hips, how do I get my turn to sync with my body rotation.”
Your “turn” and “body rotation” are the same thing. The unwinding of the downswing, brings the arms down and around to the left (right hander)… they’re connected because of the way we wind up. So… if on the downswing you can “unwind” your body (turn), without moving your arms, then your backswing is not right. Many golfers move their hips with their shoulders on the backswing and don’t create and “windup” from top-down. This might be what you’re experiencing (guessing since I have not seen a video).
I don’t feel anything touch on the downswing. My body has a sense where my arms/club are, and the body’s job is to “unwind them down and around”. It is all done in one continuous motion. Kind of like, I was using my body to throw something, using both arms, from right to left by turning.
When in doubt, shorten the backswing, so the arms can be controlled. Watch the Straight Arm Drill too. It can help teach you how to control your arms using your body.
Forget about elbows for now and lazily let the body move the arms from about 8:00 on the backswing…through impact and around to the left… in one motion.
Ross Jul 20, 2016
Hi Ed
Not really. Remember, as you practice, you can experiment a little bit with the ball position. You can get different results if you impact a 5 wood just before the bottom of the swing arc, vs. right at the bottom of the swing arc. You can tell by the small divot vs. no divot. If you impact just before the bottom, it might give you a little spin and a bit more sit down… but just before impact, can also kill the shot if there is a face wind and you’ll come up short.Ross Jul 23, 2016
I don’t go into detail about stance, because everyone is a little different and since we keep 60% weight forward, the ball is played pretty much just inside the front foot. I do talk about stance some in the video “Ball Position and Front Hip Rotation” in the Swing Section (about 1:30 min. in). Here is a hint: If you were to throw a ball, you would not worry about stance width. You’d get comfortable so you could unwind around the “lead leg”. The same thing happens with different clubs. As the clubs get longer, you’ll adjust your “back foot” for comfort… a little bit wider. Then as they get shorter, that back foot comes in where it is comfortable to rotate. It is easier than you think…hope this helps.