The
second part of the back swing is commonly called the pivot. Here
you will "load" the power needed in the rest of the swing.
This part of the swing is a balancing act between the up and down
motion of your swinging arms and the turning motion around your
spine. The trick is in blending the two motions into a graceful
coiling of stored energy.
At the end of the last lesson, the club was parallel to the ground
and parallel to the target line, even with the feet. Your hands
are just outside your right thigh and the wrists have not really
moved from your setup position. If they have, it will be only a
slight movement in anticipation of what is to come. Your grip pressure
should be constant.
The first thing to understand is the hinging of the wrists. I will
demonstrate this by asking you to leave your hands and arms where
they are and try to lift the clubhead toward your head. You should
get 45 degrees or more of movement. This is the direction the wrists
will move to "set" the club at the top. You could hit
balls from this position and get great results. Try it for practice.
Finishing the pivot is fairly simple from here. Lift your arms until
the left shoulder touches your chin slightly. In the full swing,
this is when you know you've taken the club back far enough. You
will feel your weight shift more over your right leg as you turn
and lift your arms. Your chest will face away from the target and
your eyes will still be looking at the ball. The club will lay over
at the top and essentially be pointing at the target, parallel to
the ground.
Don't contort yourself here. Be comfortable and fluid. I encourage
you to hold the separate positions I have described to you as a
means of checking club positions and as a balancing exercise. You
must maintain your balance throughout the swing.
After learning the positions, practice cocking the wrists and lifting
the arms at the same time. Practice slowly at first to ingrain the
feelings you will experience. When you are comfortable with this
phase, practice joining the takeaway, backswing and pivot together
until you can blend them together smoothly.
Remember the straight left arm. Stay balanced and comfortable. Keep
the knees flexed and springy during the turn back. Taking the club
back with force does not make the ball go farther. Just the opposite,
it will throw off the chain of events. A slow, smooth backswing
to the top will allow the proper storing of coiled energy. Remember
that leverage is the goal, not power. Leverage will give you accuracy
and distance. Power is the result of timing and leverage, not strength. |