Boosting power off the tee eases the pressure on your short game. The farther you hit your drives, the shorter your approach shots. The shorter your approach shots, the more chances you have of hitting the green in regulation. Hitting more greens in regulation increases your birdies and pars and chops strokes off your scores and your golf handicap.
But like many gofers in my golf lessons, you may think that you’d have to revamp your swing to boost power. Revamping your swing is no picnic. It takes a lot of hard work over months to do it. Just ask Tiger Woods, who has made several major swing changes over the years.
But you don’t have to revamp your swing to boost power. Instead, you can increase power by plugging power leaks in your existing swing.
Below are some two-minute golf tips that can help increase power by plugging power leaks in your existing swing.
1) Turn your lower body: One common golf tip says that you need to create torque by turning your upper body away from the target to increase power. That’s true. But trying to do that sometimes restricts your backswing. Instead, allow your lower body (hips and pelvis) to turn away from the target with your upper body. This move helps you load up and gives you room to swing the club down from the inside.
2) Shorten your backswing: You’re not John Daly. So don’t try to swing like him. You’ll only end up overswinging. Plus, solid contact and launch angle are more important than clubhead speed. So shorten your backswing and focus on hitting the ball with the center of the clubface. You’ll find yourself hitting them longer and farther than ever.
3) Use the ground for leverage: I tell students this in my golf lessons all the time. Using the ground for leverage is among the best ways of quickly increasing your power without changing your swing. As you start down in your swing, push into the turf with your left leg. It will feel like you’re dipping then rising as you hit the ball. It’s called “squatting.”
4) Keep your knuckles pointing down: Not squaring up the clubface is among the most common causes of a slice. But there’s an easy way to correct this problem: Lead with the heel of the club in the takeaway, with the back of your left hand flat and your knuckles pointing down. This move not only helps you square up your clubface but also prevents the clubface from opening up.
5) Delay the release: Releasing the club at different times can boost power or increase trajectory. For more power, delay your release until the last possible second, like Ben Hogan did. For more height, release the club at the top of the backswing, like Tom Watson does. To produce loft and power, release the club somewhere in the middle—the most versatile approach if you want to develop one trajectory.
6) Compress the ball at impact: By compressing the ball at impact, you can generate more power. To do this well, remember three words: Stack. Squat. Swivel. On the backswing, keep your upper body stacked over your lower body as you turn away from the ball. Once at the top, squat down as you start your downswing. Then, swivel your upper body around your lead leg, allowing the club to follow through.
7) Keep your elbows together: Coming over the top—a common swing flaw—robs you of power. To load up with power, keep your right elbow tucked, allow your right elbow to move away from your side as you go back, but keep your elbows close to each other at the top of the swing. This move allows you to swing down from the inside with more width—two keys to increased power and boosting consistency.
Below is a drill that boosts power without swinging harder.
At the range set up with a piece of cardboard laying flat about 4 inches behind the ball. Make your swing. Start with a short iron and then move up to your driver. If your right hand is too active on the shot, you’ll hit the cardboard. The only way you’ll hit the ball without scraping the cardboard is if you hold off your release until just before impact, allowing your left arm to rotate and fold in.
This drill develops patience in your transition, which helps store energy on your right side that you can release at impact—and not before.