HOW TO ADD DISTANCE TO EVERY CLUB IN YOUR BAG
If you are looking to add distance to not only your driver, but all of the clubs in your bag, check your swing for the following power leaks
1. Are you making a good turn in your back swing?
Many golfers are arms lifters thus they do not create coil or torque. Coil and torque in your back swing leads to the ability to generate club head speed and ultimately more distance. Ladies often complain that they hit their 9, 8 and 7 irons all the same distance. If this sounds familiar, you are an arms lifter.
To stop arms lifting or to ensure a proper turn in the back swing, a fantastic swing thought is to initiate your back swing with your lead shoulder (left shoulder for right-handed golfers). Golfers will often start their back swing by pulling their hands away or cocking their wrists. Start the back swing with your shoulder. This will force your upper body to turn properly.
2. Do you make a fast back swing?
If you are trying to create distance by making your whole swing fast — STOP! You are losing yardage. To maximize your distance, make a slow deliberate takeaway. This allows you to fully wind up and coil in your back swing. With a fast back swing, golfers often transition to their down swing before they have reached the top of their turn robbing them of distance.
Once you get to the top of the back swing this is the time to create speed. A common power leak occurs when golfers want to kill the ball, and throw their back shoulder into the swing trying to swing as hard as humanly possible. This ruins the coil and torque you built up.
Instead use the swing thought: Turn Harder, not Swing Harder. Start your down swing by turning your core (guts, belt buckle lead hip) harder and swing through the ball as fast as you can.
A great swing thought for good tempo in your swing is two beats in the back swing, one beat in the down swing. I like to use the name of sweet swinging South
African Golfer Ernie Els. I use his name when I swing. I say “Er-nie” in the back swing (2 beats) and Els (1 beat) in the down swing!
3. Do you shif t your weight to the outside?
Some players make a great turn but in their effort to create coil up they allow their weight to shift to the outside of their back foot at the top of the back swing (right foot for right-handed golfer). This is a massive power leak. It does not maximize the turn you made, impacts your stability and balance and does not allow you to use the ground efficiently to create maximum club head speed.
As you make your back swing, apply pressure/load to the inside of your back foot. At the top of the back swing, you should feel pressure on the instep of your foot. From here you can make an aggressive swing from the ground up!
Lisa “Longball” Vlooswyk is an eight-time Canadian Long Drive Champion. She is a keynote speaker, golf school owner, golf journalist and golf entertainer. Lisa can be reached through her website www.lisalongball.com or through Twitter @Lisalongball.