Advice needed -- delaying hip turn going back

[LYG]

Shoulders to turn first...good drills/thoughts needed

Looking for advice:

Am working on turning the shoiulders first -- and pulling the left hip around -- as opposed to everything turning back at once. I KNOW I need to do this (to generate the right "torque") but it just feels unnatural as I've done differently for 30+ years.

Anyone have any adivde -- drills or swing thoughts that work for them?

Thanks, Lawson

[mikpga]

Excessive hip turn during the backswing eliminates 'torque' which will lead to weaker shots...

 

Grab a basketball and pop it between your thighs, just above your knees...

 

Practice backswings, keeping the ball lodged...

 

Advanced drill = Take backswing with ball lodged, then pop ball out at top of swing as you initiate forward motion...

 

Hope this helps...

 

Mike Deiters

PGA Teaching Professional

[email protected]

[againstthegrain]

Lawson,

 

That is the exact problem I'm having. Try Jim Mclean's dvd "x-factor 2" for a great primer. In addition to a strong workout program I'm trying various deep stretches which I hold for 90-180 seconds, and at your gym you might find torso rotation machines which will give you the feel of holding your hips in one place while moving your lower body or vice versa depending on the equipment. My trainer has a bio-feedback vest which reads out hip and shoulder turn seperately. The first few times I used it he had to hold my hips because after 30 years the whole works want to move at one time. The downswing is also started by a small move in your hips which will give you a slightly larger x-factor. You can stand in your address position, hands across your chest, make the small move forward and around with your hips and then go to your finish position. After you have the feel for that then make your shoulder turn trying not to allow the hips to rotate back as far as your shoulders, make the small move forward and complete the swing to your finish position. These feel very awkward and strange but over a period of a month or so they are starting to come more naturally.

 

It's not going to be an easy fix so I'm planning about 3 months of hard work in the gym to get it done by next spring.

 

Paul

[againstthegrain]

Mike,

 

I tried the drill, but how do you "pop" the ball out at the top of the backswing?

 

 

Thanks,

 

Paul

[mikpga]

It isn't as easy as Morgan Pressel makes it look...

 

You simply have to seperate your knees or widen the distance between them...

 

I usually don't encourage students to try full swing, only backswing...This way they can begin to feel the resistance between the lower and upper body...

[againstthegrain]

Mike,

 

The rear(right) leg stays braced so that means the front(left) leg opens slightly to let the ball drop straight down. Please correct me if I'm wrong.

 

Thanks,

 

Paul

[mikpga]

Correct...Almost every 'tour' forward swing is initiated with a slight lateral motion with the left knee...

[Pleasedwith3putts]

Try practising with your back foot turned in - this will stop the hip being able to turn as much and gives you the feeling of bracing against your right knee