I take the club back way too far

My backswing stops well past parallel and during my range sessions i'm hitting the ball best when my backswing stops short of parallel. Any training tips or devices that can help? Thank you in advance for any tips here!

Following. I have the same issue.

Thanks for sharing that Fireballer

I know it sounds too simple and stupid but feel like you take half swings.

It's really not possible to go over parallel without something breaking down along the way to allow it.

Most guys I see that are over parallel have a reverse pivot. Meaning your weight pressure is more on your lead foot than your trail foot at the top of the swing. It's also why you hit it better when you feel like your swinging only three quarters back. You keep more weight on your trail foot then. Focus on feeling 80%+ weight pressure on your trail leg at top of back swing. You'll then notice you aren't over parallel.

Swinging at 3/4 might be the quickest solution. But in my opinion you don't want to restrict turn. Your losing power then. Good luck

> @wagolfer7 said:

> Swinging at 3/4 might be the quickest solution. But in my opinion you don't want to restrict turn. Your losing power then. Good luck

They key is to get a full turn, just dont let the arms over run.

@wagolfer7 this really sounds spot on--thank you to everyone and will keep you posted on the results!

Past parallell is just an arbitrary point - too long for some and too long for others - and for many too long for short irons but not for driver and 3 w.

If you can eliminate any swaying and do a proper turn with good fundamentals, it's not overswinging to go past parallel.

Does anyone have this issue more so on the course? In my practice I work on a shorter swing on every rep. I can feel the length of the swing and stop it more or less where I want to. When I’m on the course and I have a target and eye balls on me, I suddenly can’t feel where my swing needs to stop. I lose control of it as I try to turn big and swing hard. Very frustrating, almost like a full swing yip of sorts. Funny thing is half wedges I’m really good at. It’s full irons especially mid irons that are the worst. Driver I get away with it. I guess I can try to take a lot more club as a drill but it’s tough to break away from playing my conventional game.

Things that have helped me through this same issue:

1. Never let yourself hit a shot where you feel like you've gone beyond left arm parallel. You will go beyond left arm parallel, but you have to think left arm parallel. "Full swing" is not allowed.

2. Speed up your tempo. Keep the ratio constant, but speed up. Take away the feeling of having time to "reach for more" at the top.

3. Similarly, feel like you start your transition before you "get to the top". The "top" for you is too far. Starting the downswing transition earlier makes your body and brain set up for the downswing instead of continuing the backswing.

4. Although you're shortening your backswing, and you won't like it, make a full turn through the ball. You're allowed to hit it hard, you're just not allowed to hit it hard by taking the club back to where you think the top of the backswing is (because you've already determined that is too far).

Monte identified this issue for me at a clinic in 2015. With only once a week practice, I was unable to significantly impact the issue. I had some short stints, at one point shooting 67-71 while actively working on this, but I kept reverting to the old way. I retired in March. I've dedicated 4 months of almost daily practice to this. I've suffered through some really bad golf, made more frustrating by the fact that on the range I'm hitting the ball better than I ever have, including when I was a 1.5 index. Getting it consistently onto the golf course has been the struggle and my swing automatically lengthens. My handicap this year has gone from a 6 to a 10. I've had to stay extremely patient and that's been hard. About 3 weeks ago I started to see some fruits...+1 for 14 holes (but +13 on the other 4). +1 for 16 holes (but double/triple on the other two). I just shot back to back 76's, but only one birdie in those two rounds. Still, with "half a swing" I'm hitting my irons a club longer and driver just as long but straighter. It's a slow, painful process and the overswing just sits there like it's waiting for an opportunity to infect my game again. It's worth the effort if you have this issue but it is an effort, not a quick fix.

> @DFinch said:

> Things that have helped me through this same issue:

> 1. Never let yourself hit a shot where you feel like you've gone beyond left arm parallel. You will go beyond left arm parallel, but you have to think left arm parallel. "Full swing" is not allowed.

> 2. Speed up your tempo. Keep the ratio constant, but speed up. Take away the feeling of having time to "reach for more" at the top.

> 3. Similarly, feel like you start your transition before you "get to the top". The "top" for you is too far. Starting the downswing transition earlier makes your body and brain set up for the downswing instead of continuing the backswing.

> 4. Although you're shortening your backswing, and you won't like it, make a full turn through the ball. You're allowed to hit it hard, you're just not allowed to hit it hard by taking the club back to where you think the top of the backswing is (because you've already determined that is too far).

>

> Monte identified this issue for me at a clinic in 2015. With only once a week practice, I was unable to significantly impact the issue. I had some short stints, at one point shooting 67-71 while actively working on this, but I kept reverting to the old way. I retired in March. I've dedicated 4 months of almost daily practice to this. I've suffered through some really bad golf, made more frustrating by the fact that on the range I'm hitting the ball better than I ever have, including when I was a 1.5 index. Getting it consistently onto the golf course has been the struggle and my swing automatically lengthens. My handicap this year has gone from a 6 to a 10. I've had to stay extremely patient and that's been hard. About 3 weeks ago I started to see some fruits...+1 for 14 holes (but +13 on the other 4). +1 for 16 holes (but double/triple on the other two). I just shot back to back 76's, but only one birdie in those two rounds. Still, with "half a swing" I'm hitting my irons a club longer and driver just as long but straighter. It's a slow, painful process and the overswing just sits there like it's waiting for an opportunity to infect my game again. It's worth the effort if you have this issue but it is an effort, not a quick fix.

>

>

Thanks for this and I feel your pain in how hard it is. Part of my problem as well is I have a launch monitor at home. I never experience the half swing goes just as far , it goes 75% of my too long full swing. Everyone says this but I never see the data. So I get in course and I have zero trust that my “half swing “ hip/chest high is going to go where I need it too. But it’s killing my game, I have been a 9 index for 3 years and I can’t get better.

> @phillyspecial said:

> > @DFinch said:

> > Things that have helped me through this same issue:

> > 1. Never let yourself hit a shot where you feel like you've gone beyond left arm parallel. You will go beyond left arm parallel, but you have to think left arm parallel. "Full swing" is not allowed.

> > 2. Speed up your tempo. Keep the ratio constant, but speed up. Take away the feeling of having time to "reach for more" at the top.

> > 3. Similarly, feel like you start your transition before you "get to the top". The "top" for you is too far. Starting the downswing transition earlier makes your body and brain set up for the downswing instead of continuing the backswing.

> > 4. Although you're shortening your backswing, and you won't like it, make a full turn through the ball. You're allowed to hit it hard, you're just not allowed to hit it hard by taking the club back to where you think the top of the backswing is (because you've already determined that is too far).

> >

> > Monte identified this issue for me at a clinic in 2015. With only once a week practice, I was unable to significantly impact the issue. I had some short stints, at one point shooting 67-71 while actively working on this, but I kept reverting to the old way. I retired in March. I've dedicated 4 months of almost daily practice to this. I've suffered through some really bad golf, made more frustrating by the fact that on the range I'm hitting the ball better than I ever have, including when I was a 1.5 index. Getting it consistently onto the golf course has been the struggle and my swing automatically lengthens. My handicap this year has gone from a 6 to a 10. I've had to stay extremely patient and that's been hard. About 3 weeks ago I started to see some fruits...+1 for 14 holes (but +13 on the other 4). +1 for 16 holes (but double/triple on the other two). I just shot back to back 76's, but only one birdie in those two rounds. Still, with "half a swing" I'm hitting my irons a club longer and driver just as long but straighter. It's a slow, painful process and the overswing just sits there like it's waiting for an opportunity to infect my game again. It's worth the effort if you have this issue but it is an effort, not a quick fix.

> >

> >

>

> Thanks for this and I feel your pain in how hard it is. Part of my problem as well is I have a launch monitor at home. I never experience the half swing goes just as far , it goes 75% of my too long full swing. Everyone says this but I never see the data. So I get in course and I have zero trust that my “half swing “ hip/chest high is going to go where I need it too. But it’s killing my game, I have been a 9 index for 3 years and I can’t get better.

>

I had to learn how to accelerate from the shorter position. "Long" felt fast, despite the fact that I was dumping angles to get back to the ball (costing speed). I was putting tremendous effort into generating speed, where now it just feels fast with little effort. Part of that transition was also getting the clubface more square throughout the swing since there was less time to flip it square, which then produced more rotation through the shot, which produced more speed and better contact.

Unless you are physically unable to, I'd recommend not feeling like your leaving any power at the table. The guys on TV are not swinging at 80% or feeling like they only bring it back so far. They are turning as much as possible without compromising posture. Resistance equals torque equals power. Again different philosophy for different goals. But if your looking to be the best player possible and you have the physical capabilities. I would try to learn how to turn as much as possible. If you are balanced with a good posture and stay in it, you can't go over parallel (I'm sure some few exceptions). Me personally I turn as much as possible and feel that weight pressure in my trail foot. Just sharing personal thoughts in hopes it might shed light on the right thing for someone. To each his own. If 3/4 gets you the results you want, then that's good.

I'm no expert but something I realised was that in an effort to shorten the backswing you can make the mistake of not taking a full shoulder turn. This has the opposite effect because the arms break down and the club gets past parallel.

I think this is what happens on the course because you can get tentative and not make a full turn. To me it has been better to turn the thoracic to max and maintain structure in the arms. That way it's almost impossible to get to parallel.

Sometimes the right transition intent can keep the arms from overrunning. With the right intent, It’s very possible you will make a shorter backswing to allow you to accomplish what you want to do in transition easier.

Maintain structure in the arms = ? =>” feeling “a straight trail arm ?

Hinge your wrists a little bit more as you go back.

Until your wrists are fully hinged your arms want to keep turning and turning and turning...

A 1-piece takeaway is good but don't overdo it.

Add me to the list of people struggling with this. For me, at least at present, I have such a big disconnect between feel & real that just thinking 3/4 swing or 1/2 swing isn't enough.

So long story short, I'm reliant on feedback for the time being until my body and brain are in a bit more in sync with where the club is in space. Here's a drill I've been doing to help get the feeling: https://forums.golfwrx.com/discussion/comment/18956540#Comment_18956540

Also, as others have said a really early full wrist hinge can make it easier to feel when your turn stops and not reach for more with the arms.

> @MelloYello said:

> Hinge your wrists a little bit more as you go back.

>

> Until your wrists are fully hinged your arms want to keep turning and turning and turning...

>

> A 1-piece takeaway is good but don't overdo it.

Absolutely agree with this.

I think it's really important to work on and maintain TEMPO. That is, you can't take the club back a short way, and slowly, and then try to hit the ball hard from there with a quick, jerky downswing. It never works out. If you can really make the shorter swing a smooth, continuous-feeling motion, you'll get the results you're after.

...And within that shorter swing, you still need to incorporate all of the aspects of your full swing, just in a shorter package. You still need to make a shoulder turn and pivot, and sometimes that means starting your transition sooner to start the downswing sooner. It's otherwise easy (for me, anyway) to try to shorten the swing by just swinging ONLY the arms a shorter distance, and essentially not turning my shoulders and pivoting correctly. That usually produces a terrible shot -- and then it's easy to think that a shorter swing isn't the answer.

> @ddetts said:

>

> Also, as others have said a really early full wrist hinge can make it easier to feel when your turn stops and not reach for more with the arms.

1 million percent true

does your left/lead heel come off the ground? i know many want to let their left heel release but for me this leads to serious overturn and a flattening of the shoulders and arm overrun. Its not a good thing for me and creates excess unnecessary turn. Me swing stays more compact and efficient if I keep that left foot completely planted on the ground.

Alright so I've had this issue for quite sometime but I recently got a lesson and found the root cause. It usually is a result from the lower body stalling/not rotating and the arms keep going.

Here is a drill. Stand Close to a wall about a foot away with a club upside down. Take your back swing the butt of the club should hit the wall and you should be done rotating at the exact same time. Go slow! LMK if you need help.

Just a different perspective and feel. But i feel where I'm at with the swing mostly through my feet and legs with the ground.

That's also why I was saying it's nearly impossible to go over-parallel if you have solid posture and balance. You should be feeling a ton of pressure building in your trail foot and if you keep turning too far (usually by compromising your posture somewhere) you'll start to lose some of that pressure / torque / resistance feeling. Bottom line - build as much pressure as you can handle without giving any back and you're at the top of the swing (most likely not even to parallel, takes a lot of flexibility, but definitely wont' be over parallel).

Take a 1/2 shot or less for example. More of your pitch shots, longer chips, punch shots. You don't want the transition move with these shots. Traditional golf says to have your weight forward and don't shift it. Another way to look at this, is you are pre-setting your transition move to say like 70% completed already in your setup / address position. I have say 60-70% on the ball of my left foot at setup, then I turn my shoulders and keep my lower body quiet. Once we get close to impact zone, you simply finish the move. Weight pressure should go from ball of lead foot, to heel of left foot. You can't really over swing - go past 1/2 swing back - without letting some of that pressure move from lead foot to trail foot.

There's all the emphasis now on using ground force reactions to create power. It's not just power in my opinion. You should be feeling the ground as you address the ball and all the way through the swing. By feeling the ground, at least for me, I know a lot better where I am and what I'm trying to accomplish in each swing.

@ddetts - I didn't watch the video. But that sounds like it's about trying to get the rubber-band affect in play. If you start the transition move at arms parallel, you are basically getting the weight pressure starting to move towards your lead foot and the target, but you can keep rotating your shoulders / chest away from target. These opposing moves, create that resistance in your abdomen, chest, shoulder area and is a huge power play I believe. I think it's a very hard thing to explain properly and even harder to grasp and execute.

Just a different view than what the others have posted. I personally don't think of my arms and wrists. It works for me, but may not work for everyone.

> @elthrill said:

> does your left/lead heel come off the ground? i know many want to let their left heel release but for me this leads to serious overturn and a flattening of the shoulders and arm overrun. Its not a good thing for me and creates excess unnecessary turn. Me swing stays more compact and efficient if I keep that left foot completely planted on the ground.

The heel should raise from being pulled up from hip turn. If your trail leg straightens, your trail hip turns up and back, you shouldnt have problems with over turning. The lead hip can turn inwards some, and lead knee can come towards the ball a little without issues.

Honestly the easiest thing to do is take what you feel is a half swing. Then take a half swing on camera and see that you are probably taking an 80-90% swing but will be hitting it just as far. There is no shortcut other than to keep working on "half swings" until you become comfortable with that new length.

I have the same ailment with over swinging. To the point that it messed up my entire swing and caused a sway and a rotation of my upper body instead of a turn. I've been working with my pro to shorten my backswing and get more on plane - starting with very short swings and building up to full swings, but never going beyond the feeling of arms being parallel. But the old habits still creep into the swing during a round of golf, hopefully less each time out. It's really hard to change your swing and very frustrating at times. It's been over 6 months now and I'm still working through the changes a little at a time. Takes a lot of time, even with almost daily practice. Work on 'cutting the dandelions' as Shawn Clement calls it and move up to half swings with and without a ball and it should help. I'm still working through it all but it's getting a little better. Good luck shortening your swing!!

> @lookylookitzadam said:

> Honestly the easiest thing to do is take what you feel is a half swing. Then take a half swing on camera and see that you are probably taking an 80-90% swing but will be hitting it just as far. There is no shortcut other than to keep working on "half swings" until you become comfortable with that new length.

That may be the easiest thing. But depending on what you are trying to accomplish, may not be the be best fix. There shouldn't be a marker in my opinion on where to stop a full back swing. You should't say, OK right here is where I stop.

You stop, where you stop because your body can't turn anymore. If you have the proper setup / posture and many others things done correctly on the way back, you should have the freedom to turn as far as you physically can. In result, you'll feel a ton of pressure built up. And this is a good thing. You should feel very powerful at the top of your swing.

Not saying your wrong looky. Just a different opinion, on what I would focus on, if I were in their shoes. Maybe the "half swing" is what gets them good results quickly.

> @wagolfer7 said:

> > @lookylookitzadam said:

> > Honestly the easiest thing to do is take what you feel is a half swing. Then take a half swing on camera and see that you are probably taking an 80-90% swing but will be hitting it just as far. There is no shortcut other than to keep working on "half swings" until you become comfortable with that new length.

>

> That may be the easiest thing. But depending on what you are trying to accomplish, may not be the be best fix. There shouldn't be a marker in my opinion on where to stop a full back swing. You should't say, OK right here is where I stop.

>

> You stop, where you stop because your body can't turn anymore. If you have the proper setup / posture and many others things done correctly on the way back, you should have the freedom to turn as far as you physically can. In result, you'll feel a ton of pressure built up. And this is a good thing. You should feel very powerful at the top of your swing.

>

> Not saying your wrong looky. Just a different opinion, on what I would focus on, if I were in their shoes. Maybe the "half swing" is what gets them good results quickly.

I agree when it comes to shoulder turn, but overswingers aren't overswinging because they turn too much...they overswing because their arms keep going after reaching full shoulder/hip turn. People who are flexible usually struggle with this. Less right arm fold helps, setting the club earlier helps, speeding up tempo helps, trying to make "half" swings helps, but the more an overswinger tries to "turn" the more likely they are to keep the arms going even when the shoulder turn has reached it's full range and stopped. We have to learn to stop the arms with the shoulders and change direction based entirely on the end of the shoulder turn, not turn the entire swing back as far as we can.

Overswingers who lose distance when they eliminate the arm overrun usually do so because they either can't adjust their tempo to accelerate or because they are shortening their shoulder turn in an attempt to shorten their arm motion. If they can get used to the fact that the backswing is over when the shoulders stop and reaching for more is actually robbing distance and solid contact, they will find the same or more distance with a shorter arm swing (but same shoulder/hip turn).