This is the first of a two-part article on exiting your swing. In Part I we talk about the keys to exiting a swing and the types of swing exits available. In Part II we talk about common exit faults. Do you ever think about how you exit your iron swing? Not many golfers in our golf lessons do. You probably don’t either. Most golfers focus on where their ball went after impact not how they finished their swings. I know I do.
But your exit is almost as important as you’re takeaway. Controlling it can help increase accuracy, power, and consistency. It can also help increase the number of greens hit in regulation (GIR) and the number of pars and birdies you make. That in turn can help you break 80 and shrink your golf handicap by a few strokes.
Keys To Your Exit
When discussing a swing’s exit, it’s best to imagine a wall behind you. The wall runs from your heels to your head all the way out to the target and parallel to the target line.
Having imagined the wall, we can now talk about the two keys to your exit strategy. These are:
• Keep your lead wrist flat
• The clubface must “hit” the wall
Ideally, your lead wrists should be flat as you exit your swing. Keeping your wrist flat maintains the swing’s extension and encourages solid contact. It’s the “baseline” exit position in a full swing. Your clubface should mirror your lead wrist.
In a full swing the wrist and clubface must hit our imaginary wall as it moves to the inside and upward after making impact. That keeps the clubface on the right plane. Where your clubface actually hits the wall, however, depends on the type of exit you make.
Exit For Accuracy
You can exit your swing three ways. You can exit for accuracy, power or a blend of the two. Accurate golfers control ballflight without manipulating the clubface with hand action. Instead, they make big turns through impact, pulling the lead arm and the grip end of the club to the wall. These golfers usually hit a fade as their typical ballflight.
When the club hits the wall the lead arm is higher than the trailing arm, with the lead wrist facing upward. Meanwhile, the handle hits the wall first. Jim Furyk, one of the game’s most accurate iron players exist his swing this way. So do Tiger Woods and Zach Johnson.
Exit For Speed
Power hitters exit their swings for “speed,” which maximizes distance. The faster your club moves through the impact zone, the longer you hit the ball. It’s not so great on accuracy. With this type of swing, the body “brakes” quickly, allowing the arms and hands to whip past it. These golfers usually hit draws.
When the club hits the wall, the lead arm rotates and is below the trailing arm. The lead wrist faces downward, unlike when you exit for accuracy. With speed exits, the clubhead —not the handle—hits the wall first.
Most Tour players use a speed exit because it produces extra distance. John Daly is the best example of this type of exit. Others include Luke Donald and Adam Scott. Tiger Woods does as well but only when hitting a draw.
Blended Exit
Then there’s the blended exit. This exit brings together the best traits of the accuracy and speed exits. With this exit, the player makes “a concentric arc,” such as you often see Tiger Woods make when he finishes his swing.
When the club hits the wall, the arms are level and the lead wrist is parallel to the target line. The lead arm is folded and level with the trailing warm. The club and your wrists hit the wall together. These golfers generally hit straight shots.
Great ballstrikers favor this exit when they try to hit straight shots. The exit is characteristic of classic hitters like Ben Hogan and Sam Snead. Both were strait hitters for the most part. Today, it’s Hunter Mahan, Boo Weekly, and Tom Kite that feature blended exits.
We hope these golf tips on exiting your swing help. Matching your exit with the type of ballflight you’re trying to achieve—fade, draw, or straight—can help you increase the number of greens you hit in regulation—a key metric we emphasize in our golf instruction sessions.
Increasing your GIRs boosts the number of par and birdies you make, enables you to break 80 consistently, and helps you chop strokes from your golf handicap.
