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Shoulder Lift

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Johneli

Johneli

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I have a tendency to "rise up" on the downswing. By that I mean my right shoulder comes up as a result of my right heel leaving the ground. What swing thought or piece of mechanics will help me keep that right shoulder from rising during the downswing? T/Y.
 
Johneli that is a great question. First thing I want to know do you feel the head tilt? The shoulders tend to follow the players eyes. That being said the tee drill I refered to in the 3 wood question is a great drill to feel staying down and through. Place a tee in the ground about a foot ahead of your ball and about 2-3 inches to the left (for left handed players). This is for visual purposes. I want you to keep the driver low to the ground after impact and feel like you are swinging the club out to that tee. If you can develop the feel of staying low and through the ball you will see the ball come tearing out of there. This applies to every club in the bag. Just double check the eyes and make sure that you don't tilt the head as well. Let me know how this goes for you and if there is any more that I can do for you.
 
amollerud said:
Johneli that is a great question. First thing I want to know do you feel the head tilt? The shoulders tend to follow the players eyes. That being said the tee drill I refered to in the 3 wood question is a great drill to feel staying down and through. Place a tee in the ground about a foot ahead of your ball and about 2-3 inches to the left (for left handed players). This is for visual purposes. I want you to keep the driver low to the ground after impact and feel like you are swinging the club out to that tee. If you can develop the feel of staying low and through the ball you will see the ball come tearing out of there. This applies to every club in the bag. Just double check the eyes and make sure that you don't tilt the head as well. Let me know how this goes for you and if there is any more that I can do for you.
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What wonderful advice! Thank you so much! At this moment I can't tell you about the head tilt because I have never consciously thought of it. But I will. The only thing I can tell you for sure is that I constantly and agonizingly fight a right shoulder which wants to come "around" (ie initiate the swing) instead of that great feeling of power when you feel that you can "hold it off" until the last minute. I've consciously tried holding back the right shoulder with great results but it puts a tremendous strain on my body to do so. Anything you can offer in tandem to the advice about the rising shoulder as it relates to the proclivity to initiate the swing with the right shoulder would be appreciated. I feel that they are very interrelated. Thank you. john
 
Try this for a feel to start the downswing. Instead of feeling the right shoulder starting the swing try this. I want you to imagine a rubberband from the butt of your club to the golf ball. It is pulled as far as it can go when you are at the top of your backswing. Feel like the butt of the club is being pulled to the ball to start the downswing.

In other words I want the hands to drop to start the swing instead of the shoulders. By letting the hands drop you slot the club and I hope that will slow and level out your shoulders. Let me know how this works.
 
amollerud said:
Try this for a feel to start the downswing. Instead of feeling the right shoulder starting the swing try this. I want you to imagine a rubberband from the butt of your club to the golf ball. It is pulled as far as it can go when you are at the top of your backswing. Feel like the butt of the club is being pulled to the ball to start the downswing.

In other words I want the hands to drop to start the swing instead of the shoulders. By letting the hands drop you slot the club and I hope that will slow and level out your shoulders. Let me know how this works.
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I can picture exactly what you're talking about and will try it this morning when I go to the range. Thank you very much. I hit my best shots when I feel like I'm hitting the inside of the ball, almost like hitting it at a right angle to the target. Hopefully, by letting the butt of the club lead the downswing, I should get that same result on a more consistent basis.
 
Good luck and please let me know how this goes for you!
 
I didn't get to the range until this morning. At the top of my swing I consciously pulled both hands toward the ball with the butt end of the club leading the way. 75% of the time it worked really well for me if I kept my head still and I stayed on plane. It's such a new swing thought for me that I know I will get better at it. The thing I really enjoyed was the solid feel of the strikes. Nothing like feeling that release of power just before impact. Thank you very much! I'm going to keep working on that thought until it becomes second nature. Thanks again. :D
 
Great to hear that it is working. Keep at it and it won't take long for it to become second nature.
 
amollerud said:
Great to hear that it is working. Keep at it and it won't take long for it to become second nature.
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Thanks again for all your help. You helped me infinitely more than the two lessons I had during which the pro would only say "complete your shoulder turn like Billy Mayfair!" Good advice, but not everyone can turn their shoulders 120 degrees.
 
Thanks for the kind words. Please let me know if there is anything more that I can do to help.
 
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