Maintaining wrist angle

[blugold]

At a recent lesson, it became apparent that I had an early release of the club.

A feeling I worked with to maintain my wrist angle, I felt like I was smothering the ball with my right palm. This move opened the clubface at impact and allowed for more consistency.

What moves or feeling do you use to maintain your wrist angle?

 

[capt.dru]

I try to throw the butt of the club at the ball and through the target line. I have found that this keeps my wrists where they need to be.

 

[Rambler]

At a recent lesson, it became apparent that I had an early release of the club.

A feeling I worked with to maintain my wrist angle, I felt like I was smothering the ball with my right palm. This move opened the clubface at impact and allowed for more consistency.

What moves or feeling do you use to maintain your wrist angle?

I like that visual for maintaining the angle. The one my pro gave me was to feel like I was hitting the ball with the muscle pad at the base of the thumb - this is pretty close to your description, I think.

 

[Trout Bum]

Good thread Blu, I try to do the Hogan drill which is imagine hitting the ball with the backside of my left hand, it keeps the hands out front and really prevents the flipping I used to do. It provides a nice release, especially if I continue to look at the ground as long as I can after the ball is gone.

 

[C-Mac13]

I have been using the feeling that I'm pushing the back of my left wrist in to the ground.

 

[Tadashi70]

Good thread Blu, I try to do the Hogan drill which is imagine hitting the ball with the backside of my left hand, it keeps the hands out front and really prevents the flipping I used to do. It provides a nice release, especially if I continue to look at the ground as long as I can after the ball is gone.

This is my favorite feeling in the world on the golf course. Striking the ball with back of the left hand. It's almost impossible to release early with a back hand strike or the feeling of burying the knuckles of you left hand into the turf.

The right hand will naturally be on top or turning that way so don't feel like you we smothering the ball. That club shouldn't be open at impact, it ends to be square.

 

[blugold]

This is my favorite feeling in the world on the golf course. Striking the ball with back of the left hand. It's almost impossible to release early with a back hand strike or the feeling of burying the knuckles of you left hand into the turf.

The right hand will naturally be on top or turning that way so don't feel like you we smothering the ball. That club shouldn't be open at impact, it ends to be square.

I worded that wrong. Not open to the ball. When the session started, my swing path was to the right but my club face was to the left. I was hitting a starts straight goes left ball. By working on holding the wrist angle, I was getting closer to a 2:1 swing path to face angle ratio

 

[Agent Jay]

Wrist hinge is the key to great ball striking, IMO. Like Freddie said earlier, which I loved, "burying the knuckles of your left hand into the turf". Wrist hinge is a little bit hereditary, and a lot about feel. Just like some people are "double jointed", some people can just get into that hinge at a deeper degree than others. Meaning the range of motion in your wrist may not allow you to get that degree of angle.

Ben Hogan is a great example....look at this hinge...

Sergio Garcia also comes to mind for modern day golfers...

This is a power move, and if you can get yourself in a lag position anywhere close to this, you're getting there as a good golfer. This is not a move that most amateur golfers do, but the good ones do this, or really close to this.

 

[Tadashi70]

I worded that wrong. Not open to the ball. When the session started, my swing path was to the right but my club face was to the left. I was hitting a starts straight goes left ball. By working on holding the wrist angle, I was getting closer to a 2:1 swing path to face angle ratio

Gotcha, by the time the hands reach hip height on the down swing the butt of the club should be pointed at the ball, right knee kicked toward the ball, left hip 1/2 cleared and the rest is back of left hand

 

[Akrobby]

Awesome topic as this is something I have been working on closely this winter. Maintaining my wrist angle, while also having my hips clearing the ball. Seems I do one or the other well, but I am definitely working on getting both at the same time.

 

[Easy8]

Another one of my more common swing faults. It goes way back too. When I started playing I was self taught for the most part. I always felt that to keep from slicing the ball I had to be aggressive with my right hand to rotate the toe of the club through impact. So I would flip the club through the bottom and sweep the ball without taking a divot. I got to where I could pull it off but it required a lot of very good timing to hit the shot well. Naturally it produced a very high ball flight. My shots would get destroyed when hitting into even the slightest breeze.

Typically my timing was off when I was releasing the club early. I hate that feeling at impact, when you feel like the shot was hit with an all arms swing. I think that old habit has started creeping back into my swing a bit. Sometimes when I fight the urge to do it my hands get caught somewhere in between square and open at impact and I hit a weak push/fade. It's something I'll be working on for the forseeable future.

 

[Mystery Meat]

:act-up:1st..Steve stricker is successful with less lag.. But if u wish to get it , without forcing it. Back of the left hand is great great advice. Or I would add, feel as if you are hitting with the hosel of the club ..alla a wide open club face feel.

a side karate chop as Gerry Hogan says in his book.

again, lag isn't the end all....but releasing too early is the end all of good shots for us. No early extension is your goal

great thread

hope the above tips help

 

[Mystery Meat]

:act-up:Forgot to add this,,but a drill a pro gave me to feel lag for the 1st time (10 years ago).. Take a wet mop, lay it on the ground..and pull the mop. The feeling in your hands of the pulling..of the wet mop, is the tension you must feel in your hands to retain lag

again..lag isn't the end all, but beating early extension/ all early release is our goals


good luck...post a video of your progress..

see www.lagpressuretips..com for some great old threads to read on lag as well

 

[salisboss]

Subscribed as this as my flipping is a big swing fault for me.

 

[P.J.]

This is a good thread. Freddie and other THPers, I have a question about my swing that I think is related to this thread but I'm not really sure.

I dusted off my swingbyte during practice yesterday to help reinforce keeping the clubhead on plane during the swing. But I noticed something that was happening on every swing. My swing speed would max out prior to ball contact. I'm left handed, so looking at my swing from face on, the clubhead approaches the ball from 3 o'clock to 4 to 5 and impact at 6 o'clock. My max speed seemed to consistently happen between 4 and 5 o'clock and I would drop about 1-2 mph from there to impact.

My swingbyte gave me the following data during the swings with my 8 iron: AoA - 13*, Shaft Lean - 12* forward, Club path - 3* in to out.

Am I releasing a bit early? Or are there other possible explanations. P.S. I don't have video at the moment but may have a chance this weekend to get a few. I know that would help you diagnose the issue best.

 

[ChristopherKee]

What moves or feeling do you use to maintain your wrist angle?

I used to have an early release and for a long time would try and release out in front of me. Now I have the opposite problem, I have a very late release and too much lag. You can solve both early and late with the feeling you are releasing the club through the ball around your left thigh (right hand player). After a while, as long as I'm in sync, the club just releases there on it's own.

For swing changes I always recommend hitting into a wall or net and not watching your ball flight. Practicing swing changes of these types takes much longer when you want to see the ball go where it should.

 

[Tadashi70]

This is a good thread. Freddie and other THPers, I have a question about my swing that I think is related to this thread but I'm not really sure.

I dusted off my swingbyte during practice yesterday to help reinforce keeping the clubhead on plane during the swing. But I noticed something that was happening on every swing. My swing speed would max out prior to ball contact. I'm left handed, so looking at my swing from face on, the clubhead approaches the ball from 3 o'clock to 4 to 5 and impact at 6 o'clock. My max speed seemed to consistently happen between 4 and 5 o'clock and I would drop about 1-2 mph from there to impact.

My swingbyte gave me the following data during the swings with my 8 iron: AoA - 13*, Shaft Lean - 12* forward, Club path - 3* in to out.

Am I releasing a bit early? Or are there other possible explanations. P.S. I don't have video at the moment but may have a chance this weekend to get a few. I know that would help you diagnose the issue best.

You are casting the club from the top and not swinging through the ball. Try to hold the angle until you reach 3pm.

This is accomplished by starting the swing with the right hip and arm swing with the right shoulder. This will get the club moving in the right direction and as long as you keep your chest moving through the zone and arms swinging, the angle will be easier to hold and stop the casting.

 

[Jackal]

Thanks guys for the answers.

Thanks blugold for starting this thread.

I bought one of those Greg Norman lag wrist swing aids last summer . It helps a little, but mainly it is a test gauge to see if you are flipping.

I will try the above practice tips.

Thanks again,

Jackal

 

[DaBuckBoys]

I try to throw the butt of the club at the ball and through the target line. I have found that this keeps my wrists where they need to be.

I like to feel like I am pulling the butt of the club through the swing. The other focus I have to mind is maintaing a flat wrist as well. I like to imagine a line connecting the small knobby bone on the outside of my left wrist (as a righty) to the butt of the club. That is the line that I am trying to pull through the hitting zone.