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Lesson 5 - The Down Swing.(Changed 06/11/2023)

*** During the back swing movement it is the left shoulder that is in control of the rotational movement of the upper body.

However during the down swing and the follow through movement, it is the right shoulder that is in control of the rotational upper body movement. ***

Basically the down swing is all about rotating the shoulders around the central core of the spine, but it is important to understand that it is the right side of the upper body, specifically the right shoulder, that forces the upper body to rotate into and through the contact area.

However the most critical part of the golf swing is from the moment you begin the down swing, until you have completed the interaction of the arms, only at that point do you begin turn the whole body to fully face the target area.

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Before you start look at this Video -- It shows you how to use your body as you strike the ball.

The aim of the down swing movement is to achieve the perfect impact position --- ( see still photos of top professional golfers.)

 

At the end of the back swing movement the muscles of the whole body has been wound up to its maximum, however at this point you must create a very slight pause before you begin the down swing movement.

Begin by rotating the hips at a very slow tempo and gradually increase the speed as the down swing progresses, but the majority of the down swing is best performed as a very slow tempo, thus allowing you to correctly adopt the impact position and also time the strike of the golf club.

Down Swing Movement.

I hold the shoulders and the arms as a one piece solid unit at the end of the back swing position (and still in the configuration where the left arm is held close to the right shoulder) for a millisecond before I move my weight slightly on to the left foot and simultaneously beginning to turn the hips towards the target area and pulling the right elbow into my waistline.

( As soon as the weight of the body moves on to the left foot, the weight must remain over the left side of the body for the remainder of the swing process.)

After a delay of a milli- second, the action of pulling my right elbow closer to my waist line initiates the magic move,

Therefore as soon as the right elbow touches the waist line, the hips continue to rotate towards the target area whilst the upper body is forced to rotate into the down swing movement, with the left arm remaining close to the right shoulder.
( The left arm must remain close to the right shoulder throughout the down swing movement)

 

The upper body must be held as a solid one piece unit whilst focussing on the right shoulder and using the right side of the upper body unit to literally swing the club head into the contact area.

(The arms and the golf club move because of the rotation of the upper torso, never independantly of the upper torso rotation.)

 

At the precise moment the club head strikes the ball, the shoulders stop rotating, albeit for only a milli-second whilst the arms swing across in front of your body and whilst the shoulders remain square to the ball position, until the right arm is fully straightened.

(The time that the shoulder stop rotating whilst the arms interact is only a milli-second but feels like a much longer period,)

 

Once the right arm is fully straightened you must concentrate on ensuring that the right shoulder rotates under the chin, thus swinging the arms / club head through the contact area and simultaneously the whole body quickly turns to fully face the target area.

But remember to keep the elbows held close together as you perform the down swing movement.

( The longer you can keep the shoulders static whilst the arms interact, the straighter the ball will go.)

But most important, you must hold the upper body angles and keep the left arm close to the right shoulder whilst the right shoulder rotates under the chin.

Sounds crazy, but it works.

Important points.

As the precise moment the club head strikes the ball, the hands must be held in the original address position for a milli-second whilst the club head accelerates into the back of the ball, and as soon as the club head makes contact with the ball the hands move towards the target area at the same speed that the club head moves through the contact area whilst simultaneously the whole body pivots on the left leg to fully turn face the target area.

 

The longer you can keep the left arm close to the right shoulder, the more solid strike of the ball will be achieved.

It can be achieved, you just need to persevere, if I can do it so can you.

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