Golf Tip Of The Month

A sentence spoken to me by my golf mentor, Peter Kostis, many years ago and it still holds true today.

Good golfers use the ground and all of their body to create a full effortless turn where all of their body contributes equally to the swing.

A fantastic observation was made a few years ago by a trainer named Mike Boyle. He saw that humans are built on altering mobile and stable joints. Let me explain, let’s take the knee. It is a stable joint; it moves in one plane, forward and back. Above the knee you have the hip, and below you have the ankle joint. Both of these joints are mobile joints, and they move in multiple planes. So most of our turn comes from the mobile joints in our body (ankle, hip, and lower back). Everything is great when all your mobile joints do what they are supposed to do…move. When those joints don’t move enough, they ask the stable joints above it and below it to become less stable and contribute to the movement. For example, if your hips and your upper back don’t move enough in your golf swing, it puts your lower back in immediate risk.

 

So this article will help in getting those mobile joints to move and take pressure off of your stable joints (lower back).

 

Try this simple exercise—it is almost all my players do to get warmed up and ready to play the golf course. Open book stretch; start off on the ground lying on your side in a fetal position with your knees pulled toward your chest and your arms straight and in front of you chest.

Keeping your lower arm on the ground raise your top arm 180 degrees towards the ground behind you turning your chest and your head towards the ceiling as you go. Repeat five times each side. This exercise will give you results immediately. You’ll find it easier to be at the top of the backswing and to be finished for your shot and will begin taking pressure off of your lower back. Do this exercise before you practice and play, for better ball striking and decreased pain.

 

By PGA Golf Trainer Damon Shelton