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Lesson
5 --The Follow Through. (Changed
- 06/05/2008)
During the down swing, as the movement
of the hips slowly force the twisted body unit to rotate
about its axis, thus automatically rotating the shoulders
back to the original address position, the weight of
the body gradually moves onto the left leg so that the
weight is predominantly over the left leg at the precise
moment the club head returns to the golf ball, but the
weight of the body moves completely on to the left leg
as the follow through movement is performed.
So to continue from the point where
we left off in Lesson 4:-
In
this sequence the elbows
remain held as close together as it is physically
possible, thus holding the shoulders and the arms in
a totally bonded condition, but importantly I judge
the movement so that the arms begin to interact as soon
as the shoulders are parallel to the target line and
simultaneously as the club head makes contact with the
ball.
Therefore as the arms
interact, the shoulders continue to rotate but at a
much slower rate whilst the right arm is forced into
the fully straightened position, thus performing the
Key Movement and also swinging
the club head to the bottom
of the swing arc.
In this sequence, the action of moving
the hands
towards the target area at the same speed as the club
head moves through the contact area is slightly exaggerated,
but its an indication of the technique of the Key Movement.
It is absolutely vital
that the head is firmly positioned so that the left
eye remains slightly behind the ball position
as the arms interact, thus swinging the
club head to the bottom of the swing arc, but importantly,
the head must remain in this position
until both arms are straight.
In addition,
the head must remain in the Fixed
Frontal as the movement of the hips force the shoulders
to continue to rotate, but importantly, the head must
remain in this position until it is forced to move by
the forces of nature. In addition, the upper
body angles must be maintained so that the right
shoulder rotates under the chin as the follow through
movement is performed.
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At the impact position,
the golfer must ensure
that the following things occur simultaneously:-
1) The upper body is in the original
address position where the
upper body is slightly tilted to the right, the left
shoulder is slightly higher than the right shoulder,
but importantly, the shoulders are parallel to the target
line, but the shoulder/arms-unit
is firmly held together as a very compact unit.
2) The hips are partly facing the
target area.
3) The hands
have returned to the original address position ( But
not gone past this position)
( As soon as the club head returns to the golf ball,
the hands move through the contact area at the same
speed as the club head moves through the contact area.
As soon as the both arms are straight the whole body
quickly turns to fully face the target area.)
4) The club head returns to the golf
ball.
5) The head
is positioned so that the left eye is slightly behind
the ball and the head in the Fixed
Frontal condition.
6) The weight of the body is predominantly
over the left leg.
THE
IMPACT POSITION.
The
impact position is simple the original
address position, but with the hips almost fully
facing the target area, the hips are partly pivoted
and the hips slightly swayed towards the target area
thus forcing the weight to be predominantly over the
left leg, but you will note that the head
is positioned so that the left eye remains slightly
behind the ball and the hands
are in the original address position.
From this position, the shoulder/arms-unit will
rotate very slightly whilst the passive arms interact,
thus performing the Key Movement and swinging the club
head smoothly to the bottom of the swing arc, but as
soon as the both arms are straight the movement of the
hips will force the twisted body unit to rotate about
its axis to the conclusion of the golf swing.
As soon as the both arms are fully straightened,
the whole body turns to fully face the target area and
as long as you maintain the upper
body angles, the right shoulder should rotate under
the chin.
It is absolutely vital that the shoulder/arms-unit
remains firmly held together as a very compact unit
whilst the arms interact.
Therefore it is absolutely vital that head is positioned
so that the left eye is slightly behind the ball position
and the head is held in the Fixed
Frontal condition and also that the upper
body angles are maintained until the both arms are
straight.
(Notice how the weight of the body is
poised over the left leg ready for the body unit to
pivot on the left leg and quickly turn to fully face
the target area as soon as the both arms are straight,
but the head
remain positioned so that the left eye is slightly behind
the ball and importantly the upper
body angles are strictly maintained.)
Therefore you must concentrate
to ensure that the hands
do not return to the original address position until
the precise moment the club head returns to the ball
position, watch
the ball as the club head make contact with the ball,
keep the head
slightly behind the ball position and in the Fixed
Frontal condition and importantly, you
must also and maintain the upper
body angles to the completion of the golf swing
movement.
The main things to focus on as you
perform the follow through movement is as follows:-
1) Hold the shoulders back from rotating
too fast whilst the passive arms interact - do not try
to force the arms to interact - the momentum of the
arms will cause them to automatically interact.
( As soon as the both arms are straight, this action
will cause the forearms to automatically rotate in an
anti-clockwise motion thus closing the club face to
the "square to the target line" .)
2) Continue to hold the elbows
as close together as is physically possible so that
the shoulder/arms-unit remains firmly held together
as a very compact unit.
3) Keep the left arm perfectly straight,
but with particular attention being made to ensure that
the back of the left hand and the left forearm and the
golf club remain held in a straight line as the club
head swing through the contact area.
4) Ensure that the hands
move towards the target area at the same speed that
the club head moves through the contact area.
5) The weight of the body remains predominantly
over the left leg.
6) Keep the head positioned so that
left eye remains slightly behind the ball.
6) Keep the head
in the Fixed
Frontal condition,
7) Maintain the upper
body angles.
Before we move into the next lesson,
which is the full swing, it is important for you to
understand that you must maximise the use of practice
swings prior to striking the ball.
There are only two or three basic
reasons why you should take practice
swings and one of them is to practice the correct
sequence of movements that is necessary to strike the
ball so that the ball goes in the direction that you
desire, one of the other reasons is to practice the
action of focusing
on the ball and keeping the head behind the ball
as the club head moves into and through the contact
area.
Tip.
The distance that
a ball travels is basically determined by the speed
of the clubhead as it goes through the contact area
-- distance is not determined by the size of your muscles.
Therefore
If you want to increase the velocity
of the club head, simply increase the speed of the hips
during the down swing and follow through movements,
thus forcing the shoulder/arms-unit to rotate faster.
Here is an article courtesy of Leslie
King Tuition that you may find interesting.
It is a good way to learn how to use the lower
body to control the upper body during the follow through
movement.
THE EXERCISE
1.
Ground the club as if you were addressing the ball.
2. Whilst keeping the shoulders and the hips as
a solid unit, simply use the movement of the hips to
force the shoulders to rotate towards the target area
thus moving the clubhead forward along the intended
line of flight
. But ensure the right heel immediately
comes off the ground, and the right knee begins to fold
in towards the left. NOTE. Do not allow your body to
rise up or move in the direction of the hand and arm
swing simply rotate the hips towards the target area!
3.
As the hands and arms swing the club up to about shoulder
height (Note the blade is dead square), the right heel
is well clear of the ground and the weight has moved
to the inside of the right foot. The right knee has
moved progressively closer in toward the left knee.
The player's height has NOT increased!
4 & 5 As the hands and arms swing the club up
to a finish, the right foot comes up on to the toe.
6. The finish of the stroke. The right knee is now
alongside the left. The right foot is now balanced up
on the toe, and the foot is vertical.
The next point is MOST IMPORTANT. -- The player now
drops their hands to waist level and checks the blade
is still square, as it was at address.
Do this exercise slowly at first, and be sure to
bring the right foot and knee into play as soon as the
exercise begins. Then, place a ball down, and , taking
a short back swing of about two feet, go into the exercise
again
..This time striking the ball.
Let us now go on to the Complete
swing.
Please Note.
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to this website, or if you want anything clarified about
the golf swing as described, please contact me:- Here
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