Golf Tips

It's one of the very first things I take a look at when I start with a new client.  The set up, stance, posture, and ball positioning.  I can't tell you how many experienced golfers come to me trying to get more consistent and they've neglected to refine their set up and instead start reinventing their swing.  If we don't start in a good position, we will not strike the ball in a good position.  Yes, of course you will get lucky, but when you have a set up that relies on luck and not technique you will have a very tough time progressing in this game.  So let's talk about what a proper set up should look like and feel like.  

First and foremost, how is our weight being distributed from our feet and into the ground?  We want a very balanced stance.  Our weight will be split 50/50 between our right and left foot.  We also want to avoid putting too much weight on either our toes or our heels. This will be a very grounded feeling.  Now you'll want to get a slight bend in the knees.  We want to maintain a bend in the knees throughout the entire swing until we are in a full follow through position.  One key factor to think about during our backswing is to never fully lock out our back knee when at the top of the swing.  We always want to maintain a slight knee bend in our back knee, this will ensure that we will stay balanced and controlled, and keep us in the key position to generate power and speed to initiate the downswing efficiently.  

This next step seems to be where many people get lost.  The angle of our spine from our hips.  We do not want to be too upright or too bent over.  I always tell my clients to relax their back and spine and feel as if you are siting into your hips and rounding your lower back out.  Many clients tighten their backs and stick their butt out, as if they're getting ready to tackle someone.  We have to free up our body so it can move properly throughout the swing.  One of my favorite indicators of the proper position is how our arms are falling from the shoulders.  They should be falling down to earth very naturally and in a neutral position.  If your hands are angled towards your thighs you're too upright.  If they are reaching out towards the ball you're too bent over.  Please take a look at the pictures below and practice your set up in next to a mirror.  

The correct angle of our spine will also help get us to the right distance away from the ball.  Using all the feels of weight distribution, knee bend, spine angle, and how are arms fall you will be able to hone in on the perfect distance.  This takes time and a few good practice sessions to reinforce but be patient and get into the proper set up first before making a swing.  When you watch professional golfers you'll notice they all have their own unique systems and routines to finding the sweet spot before they hit.  They're feeling out the set up that they've hit a million golf balls from.

The set up remains the same from club to club, but we must make very small adjustments to the width of our stance and ball positioning to account for the changes in club length.  Short irons and mid length should be in the center.  Longer irons are just left of center.  Hybrids and woods are a quarter of the distance inside your left foot and the driver is off the inside of your lead heel.  These are generic placements, but each golfer will have a subjective preference on where certain ball positioning is from club to club.

These are just some of the rudimentary golf techniques and feels for a standard golf set up.  There are certainly more details that were not covered.  Perfect your set up before moving on to any thing else in the golf swing.  With the right set up you are setting yourself up for success, it's the foundation for your best swing.  

Chase the feel!

Coach Brandt Everest Pfeifer