PUSHING YOUR WEIGHT AROUND

One of the most glaring errors I witness in the swings of most amateur golfers who are not low single digit players is an incorrect or almost non-existent weight shift through the downswing. Whether it is a chip, short pitch or full swing shot, the weight has to be moving toward the target and predominantly on the left side at impact. That’s the only way you can “stay ahead” of the club so that proper impact can be made.

What I see in mid- to high-handicap players is that they initiate the downswing with the arms and hands, which forces the body turn to be stopped as a counteragent to this upper-body turn. The result is the poor shots most amateur golfers hit. It’s not that their upper body movements are that wrong, it’s just that they are out of sequence with the lower body to generate maximum power and consistency.

So, how do you fix this? It’s really not that hard, actually. But you’ll learn it quicker without a club at all. Here’s a drill to really learn what the lower body is going to be doing to move your weight to the left side during the downswing.

1. Take your posture for a mid-iron shot, and cross your arms across your chest, fingers of each hand on the front of the opposite side shoulder.


2. Slowly move your hips so that your left rear pocket moves straight back toward your left heel. Just a few inches will move your weight significantly toward the outside of your left foot.


3. The key here is to not allow your shoulders and upper body to initiate this move. All you should be feeling is the left rear pocket moving back and around slightly. This will cause you belt buckle to point over your left toe.


4. Do this motion repeatedly . . . slowly . . . and deliberately, feeling how the slight movement of the hips really gets your weight moving toward the left side. Once you get the feel of this, extend the range of rotation of your hips a little at a time, seeing how it forces your entire body to move “on top of” your left foot, so that your chest now faces down the imaginary target line.

Practice this rotation move of the lower body until you can do it easily in perfect balance. Once you get the feel of it, let your arms hang into their address position and do it some more, feeling how the rotation of the hips then forces the upper body to rotate, followed by the arms. During the downswing, the only way great golf can be played is if the hips start the rotation downward first, which pulls the upper body, which pulls the arms, which pull the hands, which pulls the clubhead.

The key is to make/let your hips lead the entire action. Let me know if this little drill doesn’t give you the feeling of a more powerful swing through impact.

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Terry Koehler is "The Wedge Guy" and President of SCOR Golf- The Short Game Company.

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