Golf Driving Tips

Our golf driving tips and swing improvement begins with exploring the muscles involved in a golf swing.  The act of hitting a golf ball involves primarily stretching and firing of muscles. Which muscles are used, when, and how intensely by excellent players is knowledge that can be useful to all golfers. Before describing individual muscles, here are useful definitions.

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Rotation: Medial and Lateral The upper thigh bones (femur) and the upper arm bones (humerus) rotate significantly when the body hits a golf ball. Were the left thigh and kneecap to rotate clockwise toward the median, that direction of rotation is called medial rotation. Were the left thigh and kneecap to rotate away from the median in a counter-clockwise move, that would be lateral rotation. Note that for the right thigh and kneecap, lateral rotation away from the median is clockwise, and medial rotation is counter-clockwise. 

Medial and lateral as rotational direction descriptors are applied identically to the humerus of the left and right arms, e.g. left humerus rotating clockwise is medial rotation. Iliopsoas When you contract these muscles, you bend the waist and/or raise your thigh. The psoas muscles are least stretched when your thighs are pulled up against your chest. Since that’s nowhere near the case at the top of the lift ‘n coil, Davis’ psoas muscles are extended considerably. Right Gluteus Maximus This buttock muscle: 1) helps extend the right hip joint and 2) either rotates the right femur laterally or rotates the hips counter-clockwise.

Golf driving tips from the SWAIL tell us if tension shortens your lift ‘n coil, probably the first place you’ll notice it is in less wristcock. One of the key questions to ask yourself after a bad shot is whether your wristcock was as “floppy” as you wanted it to be. Concerning the three flat left wrists and the three bent left wrists, apparently here’s an area where a range can be defined within which you want to be. 

Swail thinks flat is best because it involves more stretch. Execute a full lift ‘n coil first with your left wrist bending backwards as it proceeds to the top, then with your left wrist flattening as it proceeds to the top. You may feel greater stretch with a flattened wrist--all the way down to your lower left back. Interestingly, in a more recent swing sequence reproduced in the July, 2001 Golf Digest after Tiger's 'swing re-work' following his 12-stroke Masters win, his left wrist is perfectly flat.

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