Swing the club from bottom to the top

[blugold]

Swing the bottom from the top of your swing

Swing the bottom from the top of your swing

A great drill that you can do at home is to set the club at the top and work on the left hip pulling back. Dont swing the club just get to the top and pull that left hip off the line. Or get to the top and fire the right knee at the ball. Both of these are the easiest way to get off that right side. You can also place a ball under you right heel instep, swing to the op and try the two previous drills.

Blue we have disucssed this, your right hip is way off the line on the back swing. Try to keep that belt buckle pointed at the ball as much as possible. With your coil and a belt buckle at the ball you will hammer the ball. The bottom frame shows you coming under the bottom of the ball instead of being ontop of the ball and driving through. You are close and I feel if you work on the belt buckle and the take away we have discussed, you will be longer than you can imagine and accurate.

Like I said buddy. There are a ton of issues in those pictures. They were the best I had of me face-on. They're from Late July. But I feel like there is a good example of lower body action.

 

[Tadashi70]

I agree and apprecate you posting, It really allows me to describe so others can see.

Like I said buddy. There are a ton of issues in those pictures. They were the best I had of me face-on. They're from Late July. But I feel like there is a good example of lower body action.

 

[Rambler]

You should try moving the right knee when it doesn't want to move or fire towards the target .

Ugh! Yeah, any sort of knee injury/recovery would certainly hamper lower body stability and positioning during the swing. Hopefully rehab will make huge differences in flexibility and strength for you.

 

[Akrobby]

Swing the bottom from the top of your swing

Swing the bottom from the top of your swing

I have been doing this for a long while now, months. Last night I was on an about golf simulator with cameras front and rear facing. I was able to see exactly what I was doing. My hips are starting the downswing, but I'm also coming forward just a bit, which leads to an over the top and very steep descent angle. I worked in still firing with the lower body, but keeping my arms on the correct plane. I have a lot of work to do, as this is something that is unfortunately part if my swing. It will take a while to reteach my arms how to act. Thanks for the drills Freddie, I will try these on my next practice session.

 

[dhill]

Thanks Freddie. Great dang reminder and something you've talked about with me before. I appreciate it bud.

 

[RPBGator]

Of course. Please note, I know I'm far from perfect with my swing and there are some other issues in these pictures.

At the top my left leg is "close" to my right

I then try to create space between my knees. Almost feels like I'm swinging my left knee down the target line. That move opens my hips forcing my hands down while keeping my back to the target

That width lets my turn into and against my left. I try to feel like I'm leaving my head behind. That way I don't come in too steep.

Off topic...that 2nd photo has serious lag! Nice!

 

[Golferbest]

Ugh! Yeah, any sort of knee injury/recovery would certainly hamper lower body stability and positioning during the swing. Hopefully rehab will make huge differences in flexibility and strength for you.

I live with these thoughts everyday. My knee is about 80 percent what it used to be pre injury. Add on top of that 5 years of being scared of re injury and I assure words like "fire" and "plant" scare the bejesus out of me. However it doesn't have to be a violent quick action. It's more of a fluid action based on the swings rhythm. From experience I will say that I have lost about 10 yrds per club and a couple mpg on swing speed since my injury and recovery. However the clearing of the hips with the knee of hip is still obtainable and needed. Just go slow and keep your balance without applying too much pressure on the injured knee. He diamond in the rough may also show that you hit the ball farther with less effort when the bigger muscles are working and not arms...ya never know.

Hope I didn't seem to hijack the thread tadashi I just have a little bit of experience when it comes to golf and knee injuries..

 

[Philly Golf Guy]

Great thread and advice from Freddie. I normally rely on tempo to engage my lower body first, but it's something I struggle with all the time. Once I start actively thinking about the left hip bump, that screws up the rest of my swing for some reason. I'm working on it a lot this off season.

 

[tequila4kapp]

There was a great segment on Titleist Performance Institute with swing drills and exercises to address separating the top and bottom parts of our bodies.

 

[golfinFF]

Love it Freddie-such a great way to create easy power and get the in the slot.

Blue your turn away from the ball looks so similar to mine its creepy. I am working on the same thing that Freddie has you working on and its a tough one to break, but when I get it right the distance and accuracy is so awesome.

 

[Bullitt5339]

I would love to get a range session with the panda to work on my driver. It's something that I've always struggled with and I can't get it nailed down. I'm going to try the drills and see how it goes.

My natural miss is a hook. Starts straight and just hooks left hard. When I try to hold it off so that it doesn't hook, I get high pushes. I have serious left ankle, back and hip problems which has been a hindrance to anything that's resembles a standard swing and I haven't had an instructor that could get past my limited mobility yet.

 

[Tadashi70]

I live with these thoughts everyday. My knee is about 80 percent what it used to be pre injury. Add on top of that 5 years of being scared of re injury and I assure words like "fire" and "plant" scare the bejesus out of me. However it doesn't have to be a violent quick action. It's more of a fluid action based on the swings rhythm. From experience I will say that I have lost about 10 yrds per club and a couple mpg on swing speed since my injury and recovery. However the clearing of the hips with the knee of hip is still obtainable and needed. Just go slow and keep your balance without applying too much pressure on the injured knee. He diamond in the rough may also show that you hit the ball farther with less effort when the bigger muscles are working and not arms...ya never know.

Hope I didn't seem to hijack the thread tadashi I just have a little bit of experience when it comes to golf and knee injuries..

not at all, the knees are extremely important to the swing. I had my knee scoped 8 years ago and it took 3-5 months for me to get back to full strength. After several rounds of golf my knee throbs but haven't had an issue since.

I would love to get a range session with the panda to work on my driver. It's something that I've always struggled with and I can't get it nailed down. I'm going to try the drills and see how it goes.

My natural miss is a hook. Starts straight and just hooks left hard. When I try to hold it off so that it doesn't hook, I get high pushes. I have serious left ankle, back and hip problems which has been a hindrance to anything that's resembles a standard swing and I haven't had an instructor that could get past my limited mobility yet.

want cure the hook. Give yourself spin tilt and swing up on the ball. Setup to the ball tilt you spin to the right an inch or so and work behind the ball. You will hit high bombs with a cut

 

[rtparty]

Having torn my left ACL and coming back from that, the lower body is the key to the swing. The injury left me utilizing my right side way too much and I've been working through this all summer. Freddie even worked with me twice on it all. He's a great teacher!

Thanks Panda for the reminder and drills.

 

[TNTCigarguy]

Freddie thank you once again for sharing your knowledge with us. Such a resource you are my friend.

 

[ReserveGolfer]

Tried starting my swing with my left knee at the par 3 today. It definitely cured the fat shots, and when I did it right I hit nice perfect draws.

 

[TripleBogieTim]

That's always been something that I struggle with...it used to cause a slice but as I have gotten better it's turned into a pull or pull hook...mine is caused by not enough rotation in the lower body at all...when I follow through correctly its great...but I end up getting more upper body and not enough lower body..something I am really working on.

 

[mikeg_74]

So it's amazing what a little determination and encouragement will do. First thank you Freddie for starting this thread. I have always heard that you have to 'clear the hips' & create power, thus equaling distance....On the way home I stopped by Golfsmith and got on the launch monitor. I will preface that my swing is not perfect & I'm not long off the tee box at all. I want accuracy vs distance & let my iron/short game put me in position to score.

I started with the idea in my head to rotate my left hip away on my downswing. I hit a couple of really BAD balls at first getting used to the move, but at the end I was making solid contact on the face of the driver. I was shocked and amazed that at the end of the session, the last 10 - 15 balls or so, my SS= 89, Ball Speed=132, Avg Carry was 223 & avg Total Distance= was 241. In terms of carry and total distance I gained 5-10 yds. I'm impressed with just the incorporation of a simple move.

I know this is only one launch monitor session and it has to translate to the course, but I left with positive feelings & anxious for the weather to get better and practice more.

Thanks Freddie!

 

[bhilln]

Does the over the top swing plague your game? Do you set up right and pull it left? Better yet do you set up left and hit further left?

If this is you then there is hope. We watch the top players in the world swing with effortless power week in and week out. There is great deal that goes into that but one of the common swing elements is their lower body.

Once they set the club at the top their body starts the down swing. This little bump of the left hip drop the club into the 'slot'. From this position they are able to SWING the club down and through the ball.

When they start straying off the fairways or greens they are always a bit out if sync. Slightly over the top or hanging back to save the shot. But to a man, when they are on their game that lower body is firing first.

Great tip, and something I've really tried to focus on this season. I took a series of 4 lessons this spring / summer and not one time did we talk about swing plane... everything was working on lower body and creating separation to correct getting too steep and not getting my weight forward. Like you said... when I'm doing what I'm suppose to do with my lower body, what a difference it makes.

 

[Texasbrons]

This is a great tip with some really good explanations in here. I became aware of this little tidbit last February at the golf show in Kansas City. GolfTec always has a demo and class area set up and they were showing this exact phenomena during one of their lectures. They had several swing analysis of several pros and then had a volunteer up there comparing his swing. I walked away with some good knowledge and when I can get everything to come together I was gaining about 15 yards and perfectly straight ball flight or maybe just a little baby draw. Now I just have to get consistent at it. And anyone on here who has played with me can attest that I have not mastered the art just yet!! LOL.

Hey!!, I'm gettin better.

 

[russtopher]

Great thread. This tip is something I've been working on for a while, and still don't have down pat. A lot of my inside club swinging is focused on starting the downswing with my lower body vs. my hands.

Another poster mentioned tempo, and I find that's the same with me - when I try and kill the ball, I start with my arms and come well OTT. When I swing with a more relaxed and controlled tempo, I can much more easily start the swing with a slight hip bump and make much better contact.

 

[mikeg_74]

I took this one step further today and I hit 11 fairways.... I had a couple of bad tee shots, but zero OB off the tee.


Tapping away on my iPhone

 

[Akrobby]

Panda, thank you. I had a swing "breakthrough" today after really struggling with lower irons over the last couple practice sessions. Besides coming in way to steep, and too much of an arm swing, I realized I was turning my hips way, way too much in my back swing. It all started with throwing my right knee at the ball. I just couldn't connect with my 7 iron down. I focused on more of a shoulder turn and only turning my hips enough to get a good coil. Once I started getting my hips firing, my contact has been much better, even up to my 5 and 4 iron. I need to get the dome soon, as I'm hitting into my garage net. The contact is so much better, just making a few small adjustments. Thanks for the small tip to get me thinking. Now to get some more lessons.


Tapatalking on my iPad

 

[Tadashi70]

Great thread. This tip is something I've been working on for a while, and still don't have down pat. A lot of my inside club swinging is focused on starting the downswing with my lower body vs. my hands.

Another poster mentioned tempo, and I find that's the same with me - when I try and kill the ball, I start with my arms and come well OTT. When I swing with a more relaxed and controlled tempo, I can much more easily start the swing with a slight hip bump and make much better contact.

Glad you are working on it, the move will make a better golfer no a better ball striker. You are not alone in the OTT move. Most golfer swing harder than they should which result in an arms started swing which general is OTT.

 

[Jman]

Glad you are working on it, the move will make a better golfer no a better ball striker. You are not alone in the OTT move. Most golfer swing harder than they should which result in an arms started swing which general is OTT.

I swear you're talking directly to me.

 

[JPR1959]

A good thought is to lower your left heel before swinging the club, if your left heel rises off the ground. This starts your lower body turning so your upper will lag behind. If I could only do this every time. I swing OTT trying to kill the ball far too much.