Slowing down a backswing

Hi everyone...

Quite new to golf ... and been at the range quite abit.
well... there's always a comment made... "slow down your backswing"...

Honestly ... I know my backswing is too fast ... which causes the clubs to bend before my downswing.
so .... how do I correct this?

I've tried to slow down.... and could hardly hit the ball 50m with a driver, assuming I managed to make contact with the ball.

Seeking your kind advice

When I started, I got this a lot too, and I also did not understand this advice until I discovered the 2nd part.

Which is, "Speed up your release."

The release is the part of the swing that goes through impact.

When you slow down your back swing, you will eventually find you can load progressively and release as hard as you want through impact without losing your balance or your accuracy. But a lot must be done correctly in reaching the right position at the top, and slowing down the backswing will help you achieve that. The details of what must be done correctly would depend on the type of swing you are using, your pivot, your grip, your release action, etc, ie. too numerous to get into here.

But slowing down your backswing is a good start.

well, you don't hit the ball with your back swing.
anyway, I don't think the speed of the backswing is the only problem.
could be other things. many golfers have a fast back and down swing and hit the ball well.
when you do things fast, there is more possibility of getting it wrong.
so maybe the advise you hear means slowing the swing down so that you can make more precise contact with the ball?

MrBig wrote:

Hi everyone...

Quite new to golf ... and been at the range quite abit.
well... there's always a comment made... "slow down your backswing"...

Honestly ... I know my backswing is too fast ... which causes the clubs to bend before my downswing.
so .... how do I correct this?

I've tried to slow down.... and could hardly hit the ball 50m with a driver, assuming I managed to make contact with the ball.

Seeking your kind advice

My personal note on this.
If you swing fast, what happens is that you get inconsistency and will tend to hit the ball with your arms and hands. And after a while your hands and arms will be painful.

If you "slow' your backwing, you actually rotate your body (ensure that the chicken wing is not there), and that's when you get consistency. (with practice).

Hitting the ball with a rotated body will get you > 50m than hands and arms.

There are alot more theories, but this is what helps me when I want consistency in swing.
1. wear golf shoes
2. ball alignment
3. posture
4. body rotation
5. eye on ball (body rotated)
6. see ball fly.
7. sit down
8. drink beer.
9. repeat.

Just one to add one more thing.

Swinging fast is normal, going slow takes practice and patience.
Drink beer fast anyone can do, drink beer slow and enjoy a game of golf, that's retirement. (this line do not make sense)

my take on this.. seek a certified pro.

i like the sit down and driink beer then repeat.

Hi MrBig... in an ideal situation, your back swing is roughly 3 times slower than your front swing. So it really depends on how fast is your clubhead speed and the type of swing you have (e.g. smooth or agressive, late/early release, 3/4 swing/full/over swinger)

My advice is to ignore all advice not coming from a good pro who have seen your swing. Typical advice given in the range by friendly "I think I am pro" golfers are usually all wrong... and can be deadly for a beginner. E.g. when I just started to play golf left-handed, an uncle from the next bay kept giving me "un-invited" advice on how to swing my driver and then demo to me the "proper" way by hitting his driver no longer than 180m left, right and center. But all of those advice was actually incorrect (the theory is all wrong). Having seen/heard enough, I took my right-handed driver (I golf with my right hand for more than 10 years, even though I just started playing left-handed then for the fun of it) and sent a ball straight into the back of the net at the BBDC range which effectively stop the stream of advice from him.

Moral of the story... unless if it is advice coming from your golf coach, ignore it... this includes my advice as I am just a lousy golfer myself.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ykPsqBdjSXc&feature=related

slow back swing vs super quick back swing....both good players...important is correct backswing

Go see a pro, stop solicting for advice here, its not very helpful.

Ya... Seek help from a gd pro before u cultivate any bad habits in your swing... And surf forum for equipment lobangs...

eiji wrote:

Go see a pro, stop solicting for advice here, its not very helpful.

I'm w u bro eiji.

LOL~!
Thanks alot everyone.

hai .... you see ... the problem is ... "how to correct a fast backswing?"
coz ... if there is no ball on the mat ... i can swing very nice and slow ... according to other ppl.
but once a ball is placed there ... everything goes out .....

smallhorse wrote:

My personal note on this.
If you swing fast, what happens is that you get inconsistency and will tend to hit the ball with your arms and hands. And after a while your hands and arms will be painful.

If you "slow' your backwing, you actually rotate your body (ensure that the chicken wing is not there), and that's when you get consistency. (with practice).

Hitting the ball with a rotated body will get you > 50m than hands and arms.

Excellent and key comments. These points pointed out above are constructive, and refreshingly positive, and they moving the discussion forward.

Bro smallhorse knows what he's talking about, and his desire to contribute is commendable.

"There is no Ball"

my current swing tempo seems to be 1 back ... 2 front ...
I've tried counting "1 and 2" den swing down .... but I miss the ball ...

Used to have a coach ...
he said ... slow down your swing. ...
i said .. "orh, how?"
he said "just slow down"
I said ... "orh...." den the swing went fast backwards again ...

It seems like .... I've to hit 100 balls at the range ... with misses and lousy shots ... before I can "tire" myself out enough to attempt a slower swing....
like that how to play on the green?

Anyone had these problems before?
what did you do to correct it ?
Does it mean I need heavier clubs ?

MrBig wrote:

LOL~!
Thanks alot everyone.

hai .... you see ... the problem is ... "how to correct a fast backswing?"
coz ... if there is no ball on the mat ... i can swing very nice and slow ... according to other ppl.
but once a ball is placed there ... everything goes out .....

That's why bro smallhorse said,

smallhorse wrote:

Just one to add one more thing.

Swinging fast is normal, going slow takes practice and patience.
...

You need to train out the 'hit impulse' that we all have in the beginning. We think/feel that we need to take a mighty whack to make the ball fly.

Later you will discover the reverse is true. A more deliberate move through the ball will yield more distance and accuracy. Once you get that feeling, the impulse to 'kill the ball' will reduce.

MrBig wrote:

my current swing tempo seems to be 1 back ... 2 front ...
I've tried counting "1 and 2" den swing down .... but I miss the ball ...

Used to have a coach ...
he said ... slow down your swing. ...
i said .. "orh, how?"
he said "just slow down"
I said ... "orh...." den the swing went fast backwards again ...

It seems like .... I've to hit 100 balls at the range ... with misses and lousy shots ... before I can "tire" myself out enough to attempt a slower swing....
like that how to play on the green?

Anyone had these problems before?
what did you do to correct it ?
Does it mean I need heavier clubs ?

It means you need to learn to sense/feel the club. You feel it with certain parts of your hands and to a somewhat lesser extent, your body.

I presume your coach taught you the grip. A correct grip is important, whether it is strong, weak or neutral. A correct grip will help you sense/feel the club, and what it is doing in the entire swing, and whether you are on plane or not.

With the right set up, grip and pivot, you won't get tired with 300 balls, let alone 100.

What is your body type? Are you more on the heavier/muscular side? A more muscular person will make a faster backswing because their muscles are shorter and tighter. This is not a problem. Just choose the right type of swing to go with it.

lol~!
Big and Fat ~!

Theres a different swing for diff body type ?

MrBig wrote:

Hi everyone...

Quite new to golf ... and been at the range quite abit.
well... there's always a comment made... "slow down your backswing"...

Honestly ... I know my backswing is too fast ... which causes the clubs to bend before my downswing.
so .... how do I correct this?

I've tried to slow down.... and could hardly hit the ball 50m with a driver, assuming I managed to make contact with the ball.

Seeking your kind advice

Hello Mr. Big,

To be honest with you. I had this problem a few years ago.

Not many Golf coach will teach you how to slow down your back swing.

The only way you can slow it down is finding a Golf coach or teacher who can teach you ....how to swing Using your Big Muscle

before, I used to used my arms to make a back swing....and I used my dominant right hand to do the back swing.

A good Golf coach will teach you that by using your arms to make a swing will "make your swing....FAST"

And to slow it down, you must not used your arms to make a back swing. But you must used your Left big Muscle to make the back swing.

Just like Ai Miyazato does...she has the slowest back swing in LPGA.

if you look her swing. Her arms and hands are "silent" .
Meaning....

There is no Wrist Action involved...
There is no "Tension" in her muscle....
Its just her Big Left shoulder doing the turn....until it reaches her peak
then she makes the down swing

Some others would used this method....

By using the left shoulder to make the turn...The Back swing...
then using your Dominant Right Hand to make the Down swing.

Some mentally count....3 - 2 - 1 then hit

Stewart Cink...uses the 1-2-3-4-5 before hitting the ball

You have to seek a Golf coach ....
Ask them....these questions....

What is Big Muscle? if they can show you what it is...
Let them swing and see how he/she does it....

If you see a nice consistent shot...
then...get him/her to teach you "Golf"

The proper Golf swing is not about "Body type"

whether your lean & muscular like Camilo Villegas
or whether your body is similar to John Daly or Angel Cabrera.

If you know them. Both three names have won some tournaments.

Going back to our topic.....

You must not think becoz your body is Big that your muscle are tighter and you make a fast swing.

No. Its not body mass type that makes the Back swing....Fast

But its about doing the wrong action that makes your swing Fast.

Lean Golfers can make a Bigger shoulder turn than Big Mass Golfer.
Some of the Back swing looks like....making an Over Swing. ( John Daly look a like Golf Swing }

And when you see them hitting the ball crisply....
Its not about slow or fast. But its about doing the Right swing. the correct hand action upon impact.

AJ Bonar teaches you how to hit the ball using your Dominant hand.

this is what I learned and have improved my game of golf

at the practice / Golf range.

While others start using the Wedge & irons first.

Why dont you start differently.

Try hitting your driver first!

This is the first club you used upon tee off.

You dont used a sand wedge or pitching wedge right?

You either used a Driver or 3 fairway wood off the tee.

So try worked on htting your driver first...make 3 shots
then goto your Wedge...and Pw before you hit again on your driver.

Your last set must be your wedge....why?

When your arms & shoulders are tired... you must learn to hit a consistent shot in those important...10, 20 , 30 40 50 to 100 yards

I've realized that slowing down my backswing (as taught to me by my golfing coaches, Blee and Mizzy) is really to have me get better rhythm. The speed at which I swing my club makes me ineffective as I tend to rush the shot and that can lead to coming outside-in.

I'm trying to play a bit more like Ernie. Love his swing. It's so graceful and really, shows that the sport doesn't require brute strength or speed, but really a steady and consistent rhythm. Once you have the rhythm ironed out, you can slowly tweak the power

One more thing....

sometimes...we make those fast back swing becoz....

we rarely play....like if your a sunday golfer or recreational golfer.

I used to be like that.

Playing only on sunday's will not helped.
It makes us to eager and so tight that you wanna smashed the ball.
thereby making those Fast Back swing.

When you play more often...like playing 9 holes twice a week and an 18hole on sunday
will improved your game of golf.

I have a 68year old golf buddy who plays 4 to 5 times a week.

and his game of golf has improved tremendously. altho his swing is not those Picture Perfect Golf swing.

MrBig wrote:

lol~!
Big and Fat ~!

Theres a different swing for diff body type ?

There are various ways to categorize the different types of swings out there. For the purpose of this discussion, I shall use the categorization of whether you are a 'hitter' or a 'swinger'.

A 'hitter' develops power over a smaller range of motion, relying on musculature. The power is more behind the club, more of a push, or a punch. The backswing is smaller. Lee Westwood is a good example. This type of swing is suitable for mesomorphs.

A 'swinger' uses height and length over a bigger range of motion, relying on leverage. The power is applied in more of a pulling manner rather than a pushing manner. The backswing is bigger. Bubba Watson is a good example. The swing suits ectomorphs well.

A person with more mass and more muscle, and less flexibility, may employ a 'hitter' type of swing, while a taller, leaner, more flexible, less muscular person may emply a 'swinger' type of swing. And various degree of variation in between. This is not a hard and fast rule, but more of a useful guide.

Then there are people who are both muscularly powerful, and tall, fast, and flexible, ie combining the strengths of the two types above. Then they can both swing and hit, ie. pull and push. Tiger is a good example. This type of swing is the most complex to master but yields very good result if mastered.

That is not to say one cannot choose a type of swing of any type and make it work, it is certainly possible. But Charl Schwartzel (tall, lean) probably will not be as effective is he tries to swing like Lee Westwood (stocky, muscular) and vice versa.

Here's an excerpt on the muscle stretch and shorten cycle.

Stretch-shortening Cycle
============
Muscular forces can be enhanced when the muscle is stretched (causing eccentric tension) immediately before concentric contraction. This stretch-shorten cycle (SSC) occurs naturally in running, jumping, and all other activities in which muscles are suddenly stretched by impact or other external forces. The stretch-shortening cycle saves energy by temporarily storing potential energy through elastic recoil resulting from an external quick stretching force.
============

If your muscles are big and flexibility is less, then you might be limited in your ability to stretch before the muscle wants to fire already. Which might explain why others find your backswing 'fast'.

Your musculature and flexibility will determine the range of motion that you have. Will helps determine the type of swing more suited to you.

I would suggest finding a player on tour with a body type similar to yours and study their swing videos. That way you will see how they make full use of their body type.

Would be interesting to know which player on tour you are more similar to in terms of body type. More of a KJ Choi perhaps? Colin Montgomerie? Or Kiradech Aphibarnrat?

Peace.