Weight Shift (How/Why/When ~ Bottom up or Top down)

[jambalaya]

Re: Weight Shift (How/Why/When ~ Bottom up or Top down)

I think I have finally got some confirmation on what you have been talking about in shifting the weight in the swing more naturally. It all came from coaching my girls softball team and doing some slow motion swinging in my house. In softball, when throwing the ball right handed, one must lead with the left foot, plant and then pivot on it bringing the right side through to the finish. The first move with the right side in the throw causes the left leg to brace itself for the pivot (weight shift done).

It is easy to see this for me when throwing overhanded but can just as easily be applied to an underhand throw that we use for pitching in softball. One leads with the left leg, plants, and then pivots around the left leg and brings the right side through to the finish.

When swinging the golf club with my right arm only, my weight shifts without thought (the plant of the foot) and my head stays behind the ball much better. My conclusion is that somehow in golf my right side is inactive on the first move to the ball. I am leaning in the the ball with my left side and maybe even starting the swing with the left arm, leaving the right side behind, then having the right side play catch up. The left arm leading is a habit that I got from long ago with that bad bit of advise I got when I was young.

Of course all of this is just another one of my silly theories and thought processes. Nothing is proven until I actually try to do something with it. Any thoughts?

[jambalaya]

Re: Weight Shift (How/Why/When ~ Bottom up or Top down)

I hit a small bucket at the range with my new found thoughts in mind. I warmed up without hitting a ball using just my right arm to reinforce my thoughts. I was encouraged. When I did a bad miss I was digging way behind the ball. I also found myself sweeping the ball sometimes, not taking a divot or compressing the ball solidly. The shots were straight and long but a lower trajectory than I would like. Not a thin but close to it. So I have a bottoming out issue to work on. I found myself following through much better. I hit my driver very well. Once again found myself following through better and on plane. As a result I think shots I would have normally blocked to the right were straightened out with a little draw. I am definitely making a transition to a one-plane swing too. This has been going on for about a month. It just seems easier now that I understand it better.

[Golfnla]

Re: Weight Shift (How/Why/When ~ Bottom up or Top down)

hi all i was just going to post if anyone knows any drills to keep from getting up on my right toe very early in the downswing,i cannot seem to stop from doing this. i tried in the office swinging a sand wedge thinking of the right shoulder driving down to the ball and maintaing the right elbow angle and easily stayed on the inside of my right foot not going out on my right toe until the end of the swing, i just hope it works as well on the range as in my office lol thanks for the tip go low, i was looking at your avatar with all the trophies and was wondering if you ever turned pro are those amatuer trophies?

[Golfnla]

Re: Weight Shift (How/Why/When ~ Bottom up or Top down)

just went outside and hit a ball using your advice went straight at the target seemed so natural i always hit thin shot, this was nice divot, i hit it on the heel though does that mean i am to close to the ball?

[Golfnla]

Re: Weight Shift (How/Why/When ~ Bottom up or Top down)

Thanks go low but i got home where i have a mat and net and camera and video taped the new feeling. my downswing is not the problem i can not seem to get a good shoulder turn, i always have the club through my neck i cannot flatten my plane i can on a practice swing but the last quarter of my backswing my right elbow goes up and so does the club, how i shoot in the high 70's is a mystery to me. every swing feels different. except the driver? when my left shoulder goes down toward the ball on the backswing i feel like i am going to fall on my face and my weight wants to stay on my left foot. oh well keep workin i guess .lol

[jambalaya]

Re: Weight Shift (How/Why/When ~ Bottom up or Top down)

Thanks go low but i got home where i have a mat and net and camera and video taped the new feeling. my downswing is not the problem i can not seem to get a good shoulder turn, i always have the club through my neck i cannot flatten my plane i can on a practice swing but the last quarter of my backswing my right elbow goes up and so does the club, how i shoot in the high 70's is a mystery to me. every swing feels different. except the driver? when my left shoulder goes down toward the ball on the backswing i feel like i am going to fall on my face and my weight wants to stay on my left foot. oh well keep workin i guess .lol

At what point in the backswing do you start folding your right arm? Too late in the swing I would guess. I have observed that golfers who keep the right arm straight well into the back swing have a tendency to lift the arms too much and have the right elbow fly out. This is not something I've read about but have experience in my own swing and seen in others so I could be a little off base. Can anyone back me up on that?

[cyc53870]

Re: Weight Shift (How/Why/When ~ Bottom up or Top down)

I have copy-pasted some of the lessons written by Go Low (who I noticed has a lot of trophies indeed, and also a son who is a successful champion golfer). It's time to give credit where credit is due and I would like to thank Go Low for his golf lessons on-line here, some of which I have already applied successfully and will be trying out next practice.

I also appreciate the other contributors and this site itself as it is free and I have learned more from this site than from some of the golf pros in the driving range. I am grateful indeed.

[Golfnla]

Re: Weight Shift (How/Why/When ~ Bottom up or Top down)

thanks go low i tried your shoulder drill and it put me on a flatter plane, also thinking about the hands not having to travel very far is good also the trevor pic where you put your right hand under your left arm and turn puts you right on plane, i appreciate your help very much. i too have been to local pros without much satisfaction. one pro just made me swing out to a golf ball for 30 minutes without any instruction at all.. trying to get me to swing inside out. i work very hard at the game and i like to know what and why i am doing his or that. i am very excited about starting the downswing with the right shoulder, that feels so good and natural like the right side can now be involved in the swing. thanks again Andy

[jambalaya]

Re: Weight Shift (How/Why/When ~ Bottom up or Top down)

I have copy-pasted some of the lessons written by Go Low (who I noticed has a lot of trophies indeed, and also a son who is a successful champion golfer). It's time to give credit where credit is due and I would like to thank Go Low for his golf lessons on-line here, some of which I have already applied successfully and will be trying out next practice.

I also appreciate the other contributors and this site itself as it is free and I have learned more from this site than from some of the golf pros in the driving range. I am grateful indeed.

I've saved a few posts myself. This part of one of the posts says a lot for me:

So much has been made of the importance of the left side in the golf swing that golfers have become far too left side oriented in my opinion. The left side is indeed very important to support (brace) "the upper body’s movements and intentions", and to give width and extension to the swing radius - however right side dominant golfers are (a) attempting to use the left arm to direct the club's arc plane without using the more dominant structured right side. Also, golfers (b) attempt to power the early stage of the downswing with their left side...and then they attempt to apply their more dominant right side to power and manipulate an already out of plane swing arc...and it upsets any centrifugal force swing they may have been able to produce using the left side. (Think what would happen if you were swinging a weight on a string and your arm was bumped. The same thing happens when you introduce right side power "after" the left arm was controlling the swing.) By the time the right side power is applied half way down or near the bottom of the downswing the structured framework of the right side has long since collapsed and can only add manipulative forces to whatever swing was being made. Throw in a good dose of manipulation to square the clubface at impact and its no wonder many golfers can't stike a golf ball with any consistency of distance, direction, height or ball flight.

Being left side oriented for so long in my golfing life has made weight shift a big problem. It is so amazing that I played as well as I did for so long before my game fell apart completely.

[bill reed]

Re: Weight Shift (How/Why/When ~ Bottom up or Top down)

hi Go Low
i just want to agree with what Cyc said and thank you for your interesting threads.
i think you have made people think and i know I have re-read some of my book and looking at things from a different point of view sometimes can help you understand something you think you know but only understand half of it.
keep up the good posts and keep me thinking and learning.
thanks
bill

[Golfnla]

Re: Weight Shift (How/Why/When ~ Bottom up or Top down)

go low do you ever look at a persons swing through e mail i have mine on a avi and was wondering i am in shreveport la not to far from you. was just wondering. you are indeed very savy on the golf swing

[Golfnla]

Re: Weight Shift (How/Why/When ~ Bottom up or Top down)

i understand i just thought for a fee of course you might i am going to try incorporate alot of your ideas and was just wanting to see if i might be doing some things right already that i dont need to mess with

[Golfnla]

Re: Weight Shift (How/Why/When ~ Bottom up or Top down)

hi Mr Low i went to the range this morning and with your advice was hitting it really sweet keeping the hands traveling only 18 to 24 inches was a really new feel for me also leading with the right shoulder was good too.. still had some impact problems, when i got back i had a normans secret waiting that i had ordered went home and played with it in the net and while it felt like my chip shot i was making solid contact, my question though is it semmed to make me really open my hips more like from the top i felt to hit the ball i had to turn my hips first b4 firing the right shoulder down. do you think that the secret is good for the full swing ? thanks

[Golfnla]

Re: Weight Shift (How/Why/When ~ Bottom up or Top down)

Thanks i think it just confirms i was not turning my hips near enough relying on my hands to square the club up at impact, my videos confirm that i dont have a lot of hip rotation. thanks for your help i will keep working on it

[Golfnla]

Re: Weight Shift (How/Why/When ~ Bottom up or Top down)

well i played this morning with not to desirable results i think the secret really played a big part. i know thats the impact postion but i just can't seem to stop squaring my hands when i try to keep the right wrist cupped it causes my left hand to be pointing out to the right. my question is at impact should the left wrist point down the target line ? thanks