Ever wonder what made Jack Nicklaus so great? It’s hard to say for sure.
Altogether, he won 18 major tournaments, including the Open four times. He also had 73 official Tour victories. Nicklaus did many things well. Managing the course was one of them. But he also did some things poorly. He wasn’t considered a great sand player, for instance. Yet, he still excelled—especially when playing in major tournaments, like the U.S. Open. More than likely, it was a combination of things that made him so great—including great determination.
For Jack Nicklaus, His Full Swing Was A Strength
One of this hall of famer’s strengths was his full swing. Even at a young age, he had a dynamic swing based on solid fundamentals. As one major golf publication wrote when Jack Nicklaus first joined the Tour:
“This 23-year old not only has an amazingly mature knowledge of swing fundamentals, but also the veteran’s professional’s ability to incorporate them into his own game.”
That’s high praise from a major golf publication. And Nicklaus fulfilled the potential this publication saw in him
Below are 6 lifetime principles Jack Nicklaus ingrained into his full swing. Use them to take your game to the next level:
1. Keep the head steady and behind the ball
To swing the club well, you must position your body correctly beginning with your head. This creates a consistent bottom of the swing. Looking over your left cheek at the ball encourages you to keep your head—and body—behind the ball.
2. Place the hands on the club naturally
To do this, let your arms hang down naturally and then grip the club. Your pressure points are (1) the last two fingers and heel of his left hand, and (2) the thumb and index finger of his right hand. Also, keep grip pressure light and constant. This encourages a free release of his hands.
3. Stand relaxed but athletically
Relaxation is the key to good posture. Stand normally with you knees slightly bent. Bend from the waist not the chest. Hold the club out in front of you. Then drop your hands down. Where you hands fall is where the club goes. Also, lift your chin up slightly. That allows your shoulders to turn completely.
4. Roll ankles for proper weight transfer
You need to roll your ankles if you want to swing your arms the way you need to in golf. A good exercise to teach this is to swing your arms without a club, rolling your ankles over as you do. Roll your back ankle on the backswing. Roll your front ankle on the through swing.
5. Apply the clubhead to the ball
Simply put, this means releasing the club at the appropriate time. If you move to your left side correctly, it’s almost impossible to release the club (uncock your wrists) too early coming down. To release the club fully, you need to feel as if your upper body and chest are pointing toward the ball at impact.
6. Make balance your last checkpoint
If you apply these 6 principles above correctly, you’ll be in balance when you finish your swing. If you’re not in balance when you finish, check the other 5 principles to see if you executed them correctly.
If even one of these principles is executed incorrectly, you’ll be off balance. Being in balance instills confidence because it tells you you’ve executed your fundamentals soundly.
The key to using these 6 principles—and the accompanying golf tips—is to ingrain them in your full swing. They must become second nature. If you can ingrain them, you’ll dramatically improve your swing and your game.
More important, you’ll save strokes during a round. And that can help you break 80 and chop strokes off your golf handicap.