Andrew Rice Golf

Posts Tagged ‘quick swing’

A common complaint I hear from golfers is that their swings are too fast or aggressive.  They just have a sense that they are quick either in the transition or the downswing.

Timing is very important throughout the golf swing. When a golfer feels quick the first thing they do is try to ’slow down’!  In an attempt to get some rhythm in the swing they go overboard in slowing everything down. That leads to an overly slow start to the swing, which in turn leads to a rapid change in pace in the transition and on into impact.  It is this drastic change in speed that conveys the sense of quickness and aggression in the swing.

Ernie Els

The PGA Tour average time for the backswing is 0.74 seconds, with an additonal 0.25 seconds to make the down swing and get to impact. Notice that there should be a 3:1 ratio backswing vs. downswing. That means that a Tour golfer will invariably strike the ball in less than a second from when the swing started.  Ernie Els, one of the smoothest swings out there, takes in the vicinity of 0.78 seconds to complete his backswing with Anthony Kim, one of the fastest swingers taking 0.60 seconds.  The vast majority of golfers I teach invariably take well over 1 second to complete the backswing!  In watching Els or even Kim, most golfers believe they swing a lot faster than either of those two top players.  Wrong!

Anthony Kim

Each of the above golfers are able to maintain a good rhythm in their swing because they maintain that 3:1 ratio in their swings.  When a backswing takes over a second to complete the golfer is now faced with a 4:1 or even 5:1 ratio which feels way out of rhythm.

Here are a few pointers when trying to get the timing back into your swing:

• Don’t try to speed your backswing up too quickly – take one pill a day and not the whole bottle!
• The body should not feel hurried; the wrists and arms will create much of the necessary speed.
• Try a few shots with the clubhead starting 2-3 feet ahead of the ball and then flow into the backswing in one motion. This gives the club a rolling start and gradually increases the pace.
• Remember that rhythm does not have to be slow!
• Stay patient and gradually build up to it; try to blend the downswing speed into the transition and backswing.

Things to Ponder:

• In the six events Tiger Woods played in 2008 he won more prize money than Jack Nicklaus did in his entire career! That is crazy!
• Lee Trevino is a legend, but I cannot stand watching him teach or commentate on TV.  He is just too much “Lee” for me.
• Tim Clark cannot be feeling too good this week. How about the four swings he made in the playoff only to lose?
• Sorry for the slow down in posts this week, but I am floating on a boat with my family this week in the Gulf of Mexico. I’ll be back at full force next week!