Carolina Golfer
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What are good ways of a getting rid of a cupped left wrist at the top for a rightie especially for the Driver?
Getting rid of a cupped wrist - Driver
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Check your left hand grip. If you have it too strong and you're afraid of a giant snap hook, you might be cupping it subconsciously in order to avoid that miss.
Carolina Golfer
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Thanks, Desmond. The downswing is another component for sure. Back to getting a flat wrist at the top. Does one add more body turn or something else rather than just doing it?
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^^^^^^^This^^^^^^
Sometimes we make this stuff more complicated than it needs to be. I'd add this piece of diagnosis.
A cupped wrist at the top often indicates tension in the backswing and manipulation of the club. It may also indicate a too upright swing as opposed to winding around the body. Unless your grip is way off in terms of hands opposing each other, a flat wrist at the top is the natural position that results from a flowing, low tension, on plane backswing.
Edited -- I find that if you have fairly relaxed arms and body, for me the flat wrist almost takes care of itself. But a slight flexion (flattening) needs to occur - relaxing helps. A full turn always helps me with a better strike but allow the lower body to unwind first. Relaxing helps a lot.
It's when I am tight or try to unconsciously control that the club face is wide open and it is more difficult to flex/flatten the lead wrist
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razaar
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A cupped wrist is caused by rotating the forearms away from the ball during the backswing. In order to get the shaft on plane the lead wrist needs to break back on itself. For a flat left wrist or a flexed wrist at the top, the forearms need to provide some resisance to limit the clubface to 90* or under of rotation during the backswing. What this means for a righty is both forearms exert counterclockwise pressure during the first part of the backswing with the right forearm keeping up this pressure (which becomes clockwise rotation as the right forearm points upwards ) to the top and during the first half of the downswing. The key to this technique is to engage the biceps and keep the triceps out of it. For a righty the left biceps point away from the target with the right biceps pointing at the ball/target line. The left elbow will break a little at the top of the backswing and the right shoulder will feel it is dislocating at first. This feeling will disappear in time.
Well you did ask.
Well you did ask.
One more feel. As you make that backswing, the traditional instruction is at the top, the trail hand holds the club like a tray - that image will have you flatten the front wrist and rid yourself of the cupped wrist. Use whatever feel works for you.
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Sometimes I have trouble transitioning up top from a flat wrist to a subtly bowed wrist as I try to shallow the club. One of my "Band-Aid" swings is to adopt a cupped wrist at the top - from there, I can make an exaggerated shallowing move which is sometimes easier than making a subtle shallowing move. I also like to cup my wrist up top to hit solid release-fades.
As far as what "feels" good to me, a cupped wrist feels awesome for some reason.
As far as what "feels" good to me, a cupped wrist feels awesome for some reason.
When I want a fade, I strike the outside of the ball first - the old "out to in."
Why would OP want a cupped wrist if he is trying to get rid of it? 
Hamfist
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What about the old "ruler inside the watch band" trick?
Yes, take a ruler, slide it inside your left hand watchband, and make some slow practice swings to get the feel of not pressing against the ruler.
Yes, take a ruler, slide it inside your left hand watchband, and make some slow practice swings to get the feel of not pressing against the ruler.
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I don't know what his swing looks like or what his ball-striking looks like, but it's possible that cupped wrists aren't the problem. Many good players have had cupped wrists at the top. Just giving him my .02-cents on the subjectWhen I want a fade, I strike the outside of the ball first - the old "out to in."
I don't know what his swing looks like or what his ball-striking looks like, but it's possible that cupped wrists aren't the problem. Many good players have had cupped wrists at the top. Just giving him my .02-cents on the subject
Could be - but he asked the cupped wrist question. I thought it best not to go to other areas. I go to an instructor - the guy mentioned in one of Luke Donald's Instagram links - so that's all I know. I did not sleep at a Holiday Inn Express last night, so I am limited.
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When I feel like I am cupping my wrist at the top, I use the tip that was mentioned in another post of imagining being a waiter and holding a serving tray full of plates with your right hand at the top of your swing. If you do that, you can't cup the left wrist, you will bow it, if anything.
Carolina Golfer
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Good idea, but I do have limited flexibility in my right wrist (too much computer mousing). That could be a factor as well.
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Do you have a video of your golf swing? A cupped wrist could be caused by a flying trail elbow but note that all lead wrists look cupped when they are radially deviated.
Even though your lead wrist might 'look' cupped at the top of your backswing it doesn't necessarily mean that you have opened the clubface relative to the watch area of your lead forearm.
Image 1 is with the club held neutral with zero radial/ulnar deviation - the back of the left wrist looks cupped because that's what naturally happens when you grip something in your fingers/palm.
Image 2 is the club held in radial deviation - note how more cupped the back of the left wrist looks - another natural anatomical phenomenon
Image 2 is the club held in ulnar deviation - note how flat the back of the left wrist looks - another natural anatomical phenomenon
Yet the clubface doesn't rotate open or closed by any significant amount relative to the back of the left forearm even when the back of the wrist looks appreciably cupped or flat.
So until one can see a video of your swing from both face-on and dtl , it would be very difficult to assess whether your clubface is truly opening relative to the back of your lead forearm (ie. watch area).
Even though your lead wrist might 'look' cupped at the top of your backswing it doesn't necessarily mean that you have opened the clubface relative to the watch area of your lead forearm.
Image 1 is with the club held neutral with zero radial/ulnar deviation - the back of the left wrist looks cupped because that's what naturally happens when you grip something in your fingers/palm.
Image 2 is the club held in radial deviation - note how more cupped the back of the left wrist looks - another natural anatomical phenomenon
Image 2 is the club held in ulnar deviation - note how flat the back of the left wrist looks - another natural anatomical phenomenon
Yet the clubface doesn't rotate open or closed by any significant amount relative to the back of the left forearm even when the back of the wrist looks appreciably cupped or flat.
So until one can see a video of your swing from both face-on and dtl , it would be very difficult to assess whether your clubface is truly opening relative to the back of your lead forearm (ie. watch area).
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razaar
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The easiest way to eliminate an extended left wrist (backswing) for handicap golfers is cup the wrist at address and make the left palm visible during the takeaway , then both thumbs up to complete the backswing. Keep it simple, golf can be a simple game if one's head in in the right place. These simple movements will result in a two dimensional wrist break - flat left wrist and an extended right wrist for a two or three knuckle grip.
WILDTHING
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Maybe we should define what a neutral wrist is versus a flat and cupped one.
The 3D people regard the flat left wrist as the zero position below.
So if you didn't grip a club and just copied the above image , the zero point would be the back of the hand/wrist almost level with the back of the forearm (ie. the wristwatch area) .
They actually put sensors on the back of the hand and calibrate their 3D systems for that zero position.
Now just hold the club with a neutral grip and the clubface square to the back of your lead forearm , the shaft in line with your lead arm , then check how cupped the back of your lead hand/wrist is ( see image 2 below).
So your clubface is still square with the back of your forearm , the club shaft is aligned with your lead arm , but your wrist looks very cupped . In effect, you haven't closed or opened the clubface but your wrist looks cupped and if you were measured on a 3D system , it would show a reading that your lead wrist is 'x' degrees extended (ie. cupped) .
So there is nothing wrong with having a cupped wrist at the top of your backswing as long as the shaft is in line your arm and the clubface is still aligned parallel with the back of your forearm (with a neutral grip).
You can also have a stronger left hand grip on the club but where the shaft is still aligned with your arm but the clubface closed relative to the back of your forearm but the cupping would be even greater. You could retain this unchanged relationship all the way to the top of your backswing ,then look at your wrist and say "Wow! I've cupped my wrist and opened the clubface' . But you'd be making an error because nothing has really changed , your shaft is still in line with your lead arm while the clubface has not opened or closed relative to the back of your forearm.
Hope this makes sense.
The 3D people regard the flat left wrist as the zero position below.
So if you didn't grip a club and just copied the above image , the zero point would be the back of the hand/wrist almost level with the back of the forearm (ie. the wristwatch area) .
They actually put sensors on the back of the hand and calibrate their 3D systems for that zero position.
Now just hold the club with a neutral grip and the clubface square to the back of your lead forearm , the shaft in line with your lead arm , then check how cupped the back of your lead hand/wrist is ( see image 2 below).
So your clubface is still square with the back of your forearm , the club shaft is aligned with your lead arm , but your wrist looks very cupped . In effect, you haven't closed or opened the clubface but your wrist looks cupped and if you were measured on a 3D system , it would show a reading that your lead wrist is 'x' degrees extended (ie. cupped) .
So there is nothing wrong with having a cupped wrist at the top of your backswing as long as the shaft is in line your arm and the clubface is still aligned parallel with the back of your forearm (with a neutral grip).
You can also have a stronger left hand grip on the club but where the shaft is still aligned with your arm but the clubface closed relative to the back of your forearm but the cupping would be even greater. You could retain this unchanged relationship all the way to the top of your backswing ,then look at your wrist and say "Wow! I've cupped my wrist and opened the clubface' . But you'd be making an error because nothing has really changed , your shaft is still in line with your lead arm while the clubface has not opened or closed relative to the back of your forearm.
Hope this makes sense.
This is great. I've actually been working on this exact thing, but I kind of came about it by piecing several other tips and things together and I wasn't sure if I was actually doing something good or not. Nice to see a former No. 1 OWGR player confirm it.
One thing that can help. Assuming you do everything else correctly - your takeaway is good.
Some people do a wrist set at first parallel with their irons. David Ledbetter and coaches who follow his philosophy teach this. That's great and all that because it does prevent a hook. It allows more of a fade with irons. But with a driver it'll spell disaster because most people, and unless they're very strong they can't dump that much wrist angle by impact and the ball goes off on a slice or block.
People talk about lag and everything but dumping a lot of lag by impact requires strength and a lot of practice which most amateur golfers don't have the time to do.
If you're one of these. Don't set your wrist with your driver at first parallel with your driver. Instead keep the club wide and let it set naturally at the top.
You can do this in slow motion with an iron and you'll see. 90 degree wrist set at first parallel will lead to a square or slightly open club face with a 7i at impact. A wide or or late set of the wrists can lead to a closed club face at impact. But with a driver which has a long shaft, it's harder to square the club face and with the wide and late set you might find yourself hitting draws.
Some people do a wrist set at first parallel with their irons. David Ledbetter and coaches who follow his philosophy teach this. That's great and all that because it does prevent a hook. It allows more of a fade with irons. But with a driver it'll spell disaster because most people, and unless they're very strong they can't dump that much wrist angle by impact and the ball goes off on a slice or block.
People talk about lag and everything but dumping a lot of lag by impact requires strength and a lot of practice which most amateur golfers don't have the time to do.
If you're one of these. Don't set your wrist with your driver at first parallel with your driver. Instead keep the club wide and let it set naturally at the top.
You can do this in slow motion with an iron and you'll see. 90 degree wrist set at first parallel will lead to a square or slightly open club face with a 7i at impact. A wide or or late set of the wrists can lead to a closed club face at impact. But with a driver which has a long shaft, it's harder to square the club face and with the wide and late set you might find yourself hitting draws.