A Good Golf Swing Starts with a Connected Takeaway
By Dr. T. J. Tomasi, Keiser University College of Golf Senior Faculty and Director of Research
To create the proper sequence during the takeaway, your front arm must swing across the front of your body, keeping your triceps muscle snug against the top of your chest. Then, during your downswing, the upper arm stays melded to your chest, so the full force of your body is directly behind the club at impact.
Given this information, your job is to create a connection between your lead arm and your body at the address and then keep it all the way through your swing.
A Board Drill for Connection: The board provides enough resistance to keep my left arm on my chest. When I lose connection by prematurely lifting my arm off my chest, I will have trouble pushing the board back, or I will at least notice a difference in effort needed, a sure sign something has gone wrong with my connection.
At no time should there be any slack in your backswing because slack breeds slap. That is, looseness in the backswing causes a weak slapping action through the impact that is due to a corruption of your connection mechanism. By swinging the lead arm to create maximum stretch, you keep constant tension on the muscles, which also contributes to a powerful release.
Just remember that you don’t consciously prevent your chest from moving, but you do condition it to wait for the lead arm tug, and it’s this tug that signals the presence of beneficial tension.
The arrow indicates the creation of my “window,” which causes my right forearm to ride higher than the left at the end of my takeaway, providing another checkpoint for proper connection. Note the wrinkles in my shirt that signify proper tension as the board is pushed straight back.
The Window:
To produce the window, allow your trail elbow to “float” away from your chest, which opens a space (per the above photo) between your elbow and your side. If your elbow stays too snug against your side, your club will pivot incorrectly, taking the hands too much inside the toe line. The window at the end of the takeaway, as shown in the photo, declares the presence of connection – the glue that keeps the system synchronized as the swing unfolds.
Takeaway:
The key takeaway in this article is found in the ‘push the board back’ drill. Film your swing and use a mirror to help ensure you produce the key positions correctly – 1) the pushback and 2) the window. This will ensure that your takeaway is coordinated by the principles of connection – the guiding source of your entire swing.
Learn more!
Want more tips? If you want to take your game to the next level, contact our team at Keiser University’s College of Golf & Sport Management today. With our dedication and experience, together, we can elevate your game to new heights. Give us a call today at 888-355-4465.
