The Body Swing Connection to Cure Your Slice

Guest writer: Chris Ownbey…The majority of golfers have been discouraged for years because they keep slicing the golf ball. Initially looked at, the flaw looks mechanical; but if you look a little deeper, you’ll see it’s much, much more, and there is a way to correct the slice problem.

Given us has a good grip, proper address posture bending from the hip joints not the with the knee joints and the understanding to initiate the downswing in the correct kinematic sequence, which is to begin the downswing with the lower body instead of with the arms… We can correct the slice by training the body not to Early Extend on the downswing despite the natural tendency of the body’s right hip to move forward. How is this done? First, it’s important to understand what Early Extension is, and based on the paraphrased definition from the Titleist Performance Institute, it is this:

“The lower body’s forward movement toward the ball during the downswing”

When we early extend on the downswing the distance between the body and the ball is decreased. This decrease in distance will make the central nervous system kick into gear, and will early release the club. The body will do everything possible to pull the club back to the ball. This will cause the body to decelerate so that it pulls back the club to the ball. It’s this decrease in distance between the body and the ball, and the reaction of the body to get the club face back to the ball that causes the out to in path.

Right handed students with early extension might also experience chicken wing, cupping and scooping. These will cause the ball to pull left or slice to the right. And, these kinds of misses (both to the left and right) can be harmful in players’ quest for obtaining lower scores.

Physical reasons why early extension can occur:

– Bad lead hip internal rotation
– Bad separation of lower and upper body
– Basic lower body stiffness, muscle imbalance and joint rigidity
– Weak core and glute strength
– Failure to maintain control of the pelvis

(Having one of these limitations can be detected with a golf fitness assessment)

You should understand that the inability to control your pelvis in a squat can have a negative impact on your posture at address which can cause early extension during downswing. Thus, you need to learn to control the pelvis correctly in a squat.

A Look at the Squat:

The squat is a worthwhile indicator of your ability to control the pelvis position. During the movement, be sure your knees do not extend beyond the toes and that the hips are back and down as much as possible without any pain. If you cannot perform this movement correctly, then it’s going to be a bit difficult to move the pelvis correctly during the downswing.

The Truth:

If you want to become a more consistent golfer, here’s what you need to remember: You must correct and train your body to do what you want it to do.

Put Some Focus into the Hip Joints

Downswing –
Move the hips 45 degrees down and back. Not forward and around.

Posture –
Focus on hip joints.Versus the knee joints.

Squat –
Be sure the hips move back and down versus forward and down

Demonstration video: http://chrisownbey.com/golffitnessindallastx-stoptheslice/

When you understand these key things, you can bring the lower body down in the right position in the right sequence and permit the upper body to do the things you need it to do properly. This is the connection between the body and mechanics.

You can try several “Curb Your Slice” exercises at
http://chrisownbey.com/golffitnessindallastx-cureyourslice/

What To Expect Now?

Now you’ve got the tools you need to fix some of the physical limitations that result in an Early Extension swing fault. While you should have a golf fitness professional do an assessment to learn the exact limitations you have that must be corrected, you can use the information provided here to help you “clean” the body’s weaknesses and imbalances. Thus, when the golf pro tells you to get into a certain position, you’ll do it in far less time.

This article is written by Chris Ownbey