Synchronization in the golf swing is everything. That’s why we work on it constantly with students in golf lessons. It’s the difference between being a good ballstriker and a poor one.
When you’re out of sync your body stops rotating and your hands and arms release early, or your body zooms ahead while your hands and arms lag behind. Either flaw creates mis-hits that can add strokes to your golf handicap.
When you’re in sync, your body and arms work together like a well-oiled machine. You hit laser-like shots that go straight and far. Shots like these save strokes, generate pars and birdies, and make you a force in your foursome.
Synchronizing your swing takes work, though. You have a lot of moving parts in a golf swing and coordinating them can be a challenge. But if you’re serious about improving your game, you’ll work hard at synchronizing your swing.
Below are 2 golf tips and two drills that can help you synchronize your swing:
1. Rotating Your Body
We see it all the time in golf instruction sessions—weekend golfers failing to complete their backswings. This causes them to swing their clubs primarily with their arms and hands. An incomplete back swing throws your swing completely out of sync, causing hooks and slices and short-circuiting power.
You need to blend the motion of your body, arms, and clubhead in proper sequence to be in sync. The key to doing this is coiling and uncoiling your body correctly. When you’re in sync, your arms and body flow together as they move onto the finish. The drill below teaches you what that feels like:
• The Towel Drill
Tuck a towel across your chest and under your arms. Avoid pinning the towel to your body with your elbows. Now take some half swings with a wedge without dropping the towel. Keep in mind, though, that as your swing lengthens in both directions, the towel will eventually drop out, so try to stay with half-swings as much as you can.
Make note of the feeling this drill produces. Try to achieve it when taking a full swing.
2. Swing the club on an inside-out swing path
Another common swing flaw among weekend golfers involves the wrong swing path. When your lower body gets overactive on the downswing, it outraces the hands and arms to impact. When that happens, problems ensue. The club gets stuck behind the body on a swing path too far inside, causing you to block the shot or hook it. Neither is good.
When you’re in sync, your lower body is braced while the arms and hands deliver the club on line to the ball. You can now turn the front side of your upper body through the swing and hit the ball as hard as you like. You’re hips, arms, and club all release together in harmony. The drill below teaches you what this feels like.
• Back Foot Pulled Back Drill
Set up to the ball as you normally would. Now pull your back foot back a few inches so you’re set up in a closed stance. Hit some balls. Note what it feels like. It’s what it should feel like when your lower body clears correctly in the downswing. The drill also encourages your upper body to release properly during the swing.
Poor synchronization produces hooks and slices—the kid of shots that get you in trouble and pack strokes on to your golf handicap. Practicing the drills discussed above helps you get everything in sync.
When your golf swing is in sync, everything flows together. You make solid contact and hit laser-like heat seeking missiles that nail their targets every time. Getting your swing in sync will help take your game to a new level.
