Golf Swing Trainer – The Down Swing (part 1)
In an earlier post here on golf swing trainer I spoke about the top of the swing. After you reach the top there is only one way to go, down. The down swing is just as important as the rest of the swing (upswing and the top of the swing).
The first movement from the top of the swing is a lateral thrust of the hips to the left, eventually followed by an automatic turning of the hips. This is true. But there is more than that. Here are some great tips to improve your downswing.
Not only should the hips move to the left and turn, but their movement must be very much tied to the left arm that it pulls the arm and the club down as it they whips through the ball.
It is vitally important that movement is done for you to become a good golfer It must be a definite, conscious feeling that this happens. To finish the proper movement, the hips must turn towards the target as they reach the extension of their lateral movement. You hips need to be in the proper position when you hit the ball.
What happens, actually, is that the left arm itself is being pulled by the hips. The arm is merely the connecting rod between the hips and the club. When the hips exert this pulling action, they cause the shoulders and the left arm to revolve so fast around the axis of the upper spine that the hands have little or no time to manipulate or do anything whatever with the club except hang onto it.
I know it sounds quite easy to do and to understand, but nearly all golfer fail to do it. We’ve all heard it and read about it as well as in pictures, yet many still go on by starting down with their hands or pulling with their arms or even forget to follow through with their hips by stopping them after they start them.
What are the reasons that they fail?
The first is that this is a big movement and they are afraid to make it. The second is that, preoccupied with what they think they must make the club head do, they completely forget the fundamental hip action and let it die.
The biggest source of power you can get in your golf swing is from the hips. The big muscles of the upper legs and of the torso are giving the club a flying start before the hands do anything.
If you can imagine, think of a rope running from the left hip up your left side to your shoulder and then out through your left hand. This rope is pulled tight at the top of the swing. As the hips start the downswing by moving to the left and turning, they will pull your shoulder, arm, and club with them so long as the rope is tight.
The rope can be kept tight only if the hips move first and only if they keep moving and then turning, on past the ball. If not, the rope will have slack in it and the club will never gain the speed it needs when it reaches the ball.
How do we know when to start the hip movement?
We start it the instant we feel the backward momentum of the club start to pull against our hands at the top. This is a reflex action with most of us, but for those who want the moment pinpointed, there it is. And once you start to move the hips, keep them flying—all the way through until they turn toward the target. This action alone will cure a great number of golfing ills.
I’ll have more to say in regards to the down-swing in a later post, but for now I know if you follow this it will improve your game.
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