Tips Needed For Backswing

Hello All,

Noob here, was told that I need to keep my left hand parallel to the shaft angle at the top of the backswing and I am finding it difficult to achieve this when there is so many other things I need to remember during the swing.

So far, I've tried practicing in front of a mirror to try and get a feel wheere my arms should be, but when it comes to the actual swing I still can't seem to get it consistent..

Would appreciate any kind of tips you guys have to fix this.

Thanks in advance.

I think one back swing should go not go beyond what your body permits... There is no reason why would you need to replicate an 'ideal' golf swing and make the god knows how many degree turn done by the pros...

You might be doing a 3/4 or half back swing... but if u can hit it straight and decent... who can fault you?

Play within what your body can do... over doing it for the sake of replicating something that your body is not capable of doing... you risk injuring yourself and worst... making the game not enjoyable...

harimau wrote:

left hand parallel to the shaft angle at the top of the backswing

I dont follow! Care to elaborate?

TourSwing wrote:

harimau wrote:

left hand parallel to the shaft angle at the top of the backswing

I dont follow! Care to elaborate?

Maybe he means perpendicular?

TourSwing wrote:

harimau wrote:

left hand parallel to the shaft angle at the top of the backswing

I dont follow! Care to elaborate?

Hi TourSwing, take a look at the picture below



What I meant was, say for example using the pic above, how his left hand was parallel to the red line, which is where the shaft angle is at address

That is actually the swing plane.

Been staring at that pic for 5 mins and i swear i can't see a difference between the before and after....

its just like in Golf Channel, the guy show Michelle Wie's swing change.. i also dunno what is the difference in the two Michelle Wie's swing

If you back swing by turning your shoulders, u should be in plane. If hands only, high chance not in plane. I know it after 4 yrs. And I was hands most of the time.

wilkang wrote:

That is actually the swing plane.

Yes!!! Swing plane! Thats what I was referring to. Sorry still trying to digest all the jargons of the game. :p

harimau wrote:

wilkang wrote:

That is actually the swing plane.

Yes!!! Swing plane! Thats what I was referring to. Sorry still trying to digest all the jargons of the game. :p

Take your time in this journey...it'll be loads of fun.

Do join us at our weekly range meetings every wednesdys at MBGC.

harimau wrote:

TourSwing wrote:

harimau wrote:

left hand parallel to the shaft angle at the top of the backswing

I dont follow! Care to elaborate?

Hi TourSwing, take a look at the picture below



What I meant was, say for example using the pic above, how his left hand was parallel to the red line, which is where the shaft angle is at address

This is interesting...

Among some more hardcore circles in lesser-known but more focused discussion groups, there is a difference of opinion which is better, the 'before' or the 'after.'

The 'before' and 'after' will result is two fundamentally different ways of deriving power from the pivot.

mengteck71 wrote:

its just like in Golf Channel, the guy show Michelle Wie's swing change.. i also dunno what is the difference in the two Michelle Wie's swing

yes, Mengteck! That particular golfix snippet doesnt make any sense at all. He's giving tips that has nothing to do with discussion on Michelle Wie's posture.

solarpop wrote:

Been staring at that pic for 5 mins and i swear i can't see a difference between the before and after....

Wait till you read the article...gets even more confusing. kekekeke

duffader wrote:

If you back swing by turning your shoulders, u should be in plane. If hands only, high chance not in plane. I know it after 4 yrs. And I was hands most of the time.

Yes yes, makes sense. But then again at some point the arms are activated, especially how the right arms bends , albeit that it's done naturally.

What is bugging me is that where my ball ends up is so inconsistent. I mean I am not talking about the extreme pull or slice. Even at half swings the deviations can be quite a lot

mengteck71 wrote:

its just like in Golf Channel, the guy show Michelle Wie's swing change.. i also dunno what is the difference in the two Michelle Wie's swing

This should make it easier ...

harimau, I find the ball flight laws very helpful to find root cause of directional mishit. Backswing can be anything, as proven by Moe Norman, Jim Furyk, Jack Nicklaus, TW, Ben Hogan, they all have different back swing or swing planes.

What matters most is the downswing (i.e. swing path) to impact (i.e clubhead position) to follow through (swing path again).

swingpath can be straight, out to in, in to out (some say now in to in, but I think it's just an extension of in to out)

impact can be open face, closed face, square face. This is affected by grip and clubhead position at address.

so the theory is there for us to analyse/understand...but how to fix the problem? Here's where a pro can help

Hi Matey

I spent a full month trying to get the club in the 'after' position and have finally succeeded. A lot of mirror work has to be done. Basically the change has helped me swing the golf club on a singular plane throughtout the swing, as demonstrated by Tourswing with the additional line he has added to the picture. As a method, a one plane swing is one that I would advocate and one that I do incorporate into my teaching. However, I understand that everyone has the physical limtations as well as their different goals ( i wouldn't be teaching the whole method to someone who just wants something short term). If you wish to swing the club back in such a manner, practice with the mirror as much as you can. Make a few practice swings and stop at the top of your backswing to have a look at the mirror. Keep that feel of that position in mind and then execute.

Cheers

wilkang wrote:

harimau wrote:

wilkang wrote:

That is actually the swing plane.

Yes!!! Swing plane! Thats what I was referring to. Sorry still trying to digest all the jargons of the game. :p

Take your time in this journey...it'll be loads of fun.

Do join us at our weekly range meetings every wednesdys at MBGC.

Thanks for the invitation wilkang. Will try to make it. What time is the meeting usually?

Hi harimau, the weekly SSN @ MBGC starts at 8.30pm till late. We'tr usually at the bays nearest to Canopy. See you there.

pushslice wrote:

harimau, I find the ball flight laws very helpful to find root cause of directional mishit. Backswing can be anything, as proven by Moe Norman, Jim Furyk, Jack Nicklaus, TW, Ben Hogan, they all have different back swing or swing planes.

What matters most is the downswing (i.e. swing path) to impact (i.e clubhead position) to follow through (swing path again).

swingpath can be straight, out to in, in to out (some say now in to in, but I think it's just an extension of in to out)

impact can be open face, closed face, square face. This is affected by grip and clubhead position at address.

so the theory is there for us to analyse/understand...but how to fix the problem? Here's where a pro can help

You are making me confused now.

I definitely need to work on my swing from start to end, but I guess I have to break it down part by part and start from the beginning of the swing.

I think my one piece takeaway is improving...

Now the backswing...

Next impact, follow through, lag, etc...so stay tuned for more 'boh liao' noob threads.

it is a swing.
If I were you you need to focus on swing characteristic. The back swing set you to a comfortable position to start the down swing. This is different to everybody due to the fact that no one share the exact same physical traits and muscle structure.

There is however a guidance on how to do this properly as a generic template to follow, but you need to work within your own physic to find out what is comfortable for you. You can do slight variation to suites your body as long as you keep within the principle generic rule.

Then as everyone say, swing it down through the ball. (no it's not hit the ball). another characteristic of a swing from my experience is that it starts from 0 and then accelerate down through the ball. if you got it right you shouldn't even worry about direction as the right swing plane will bring your club face back to where it was at the start (the ball). And if you managed to do that while completely relax (ie with no correction, just relying on gravitational force and club weight and CG), you will end up with a repeatable swing (gravity and club weight and CG is constant). Repeatable swing = consistency = good striker. Not necessarily good golfer since there are other important elements that you still need (putting comes in mind), but none the less good ball striker you will be (as Yoda said).

might worth googling video clip from Rickart Strongert on golf swing, it was quite usefull for me at least. May the force be with you.

HTH

By looking at the pics. I have a strong feeling that the only thing that has changed is his grip. Looks like a stronger left hand grip in the after pic compared to the before pic. If u look really closely, there is a slight hinge on his left wrist on e before pic and is flat on the after pic.

I 2nd pushslice's comment. I don't think u should be too concerned with all these check points of a golf swing. However, if u are a real beginner who's never held a club in ur life, then it's good to cultivate such habits of a "text book" swing.

It's already hard enough to hit the ball straight.. Don't get too bogged down with all these swing mechanics and trying to get ur club in the right position on top. some might refer to it as the 8 check points of a golf swing.

Even if u do manage to replicate that position on top. Can u visually see what ure doing without a mirror? Or r U just forcing ur brain to focus on it rather than focusing on hitting the ball?

I'd would rather u focus your attention on getting the club in or under the swing plane, on your downswing and making solid contact.

abadan wrote:

By looking at the pics. I have a strong feeling that the only thing that has changed is his grip. Looks like a stronger left hand grip in the after pic compared to the before pic. If u look really closely, there is a slight hinge on his left wrist on e before pic and is flat on the after pic.
.

Hi mate

it's not grip. Totally different position at the top. The whole idea of a one plane swing is to match the left forearm and shaft with the plane line. When you do so the left wrist would be flat as in the 'after' picture. Harimau if you would like to know more about this swing method, drop by for SSN next wednesday. I'm probably gonna pop by.

Cheers

Luckily I don't have so much problem about all this swing thoughts and maybe thats why I will forever be a season beginner. But then because of that I truly enjoyed every game I ever played. My method is very simple. SEE BALL HIT BALL !. I do advised beginner though to go to a coach and get the basics right and not swing like me, a copycat Jim Furyk, well not exactly copy but it just developed into something like him. Enjoy the game.....

titu