Lifting left foot

[keiko]

When folks are not able to pivot on a given day, I see them lifting that front foot to get extra but all they get is off balance.
When asked recently by a player why they seem to be struggling to gain or re-gain balance during the swing, I noticed he was lifting the front foot on the backswing. This little move, although permitted by some teachers(I am not one of them), can help someone to get more pivot, most players fall into a habit of lifting it and throwing themselves out of balance.
Also, I have always maintained this is a major power leak; failing the have the torque between upper and lower body loses many players big yardage.
Stretching properly before playing so that one can turn the upper against the lower body, having great posture, and good tempo in the swing, will produce a great amount of power and accuracy.
Just wanted to mention this especially for the larger and older players as they seem prone to lifting and turning problems.
Feedback would be appreciated.

[BrianW]

Re: Lifting left foot

Yes, some top golfers have lifted the left foot in the backswing, Bobby Jones and Jack Nickolaus come to mind. As you suggest this action can be beneficial to some people, especially those with reduced flexibility, it helps them to make a full shoulder turn.

Golfers that have good flexibility should be careful with this move as it can lead to overswinging. I prefer to see a rolling in of the front foot as to a lifting of the heel. The move can assist some with transferring their weight in the downswing by replanting the foot firmly during the transition.

[keiko]

Re: Lifting left foot

Exactly. Where players get into trouble is the timing of the re-plant. I think of it this way: one has just a millisecond to re-plant that heel just in the right position during the downswing, what are the chances?
Instead of taking the gamble, why not get more limber or be satisfied with the turn one has, afterall, it is not necessary to have a big pivot to hit a decent shot-mainly drives.
I think of it this way also, if I can hit my 4 iron 210 or 215 yards; I sure as heck can hit my driver(given its added length of shaft etc.) 250 without taking much more of a backswing.
In fact, doing the feet together drill, one will find that by keeping balance and having good tempo, one can hit driver flush more often and get that distance they seek without all the hoopla involved in thinking they need such a big turn.
Often the body will respond to our demands for torque by producing what we are asking it to do, namely, turn upper against lower. How much we are limited in producing torque may just lie in what and how we are asking our bodies to do for us.

Yes, some top golfers have lifted the left foot in the backswing, Bobby Jones and Jack Nickolaus come to mind. As you suggest this action can be beneficial to some people, especially those with reduced flexibility, it helps them to make a full shoulder turn.

Golfers that have good flexibility should be careful with this move as it can lead to overswinging. I prefer to see a rolling in of the front foot as to a lifting of the heel. The move can assist some with transferring their weight in the downswing by replanting the foot firmly during the transition.

[KrudlerAce]

Balance

Great thread Keiko.

It's interesting because I have a golfing buddy who does this particularly with his tee shots (he is quite large). He always seems to blame his shoes for not having sufficient traction. The result always seems to be a push or a block way right.

I think he has mostly fixed the issue now but it still comes back every now and again. I have never suffered from this problem myself but then again I am a lot smaller in stature.

[keiko]

Re: Balance

Good point. Larger chested guys(and women) feel the need to compensate for not turning with ease so they lift the left heel. This leads to getting stuck on the right foot-larger mass is harder to transfer back and re-planting takes perfect timing to do it well.
Getting off balance leads to those blocks/slices and sometimes trying to recover with the hands at the last moment=hooks/pulls.
I was a weightlifter and know how I struggled 30 years ago; I was young and had good timing but as one gets older, it takes more than that.
When I learned to move and control my mass I became a very strong and accurate player; I finally figured out that my strength allowed me to swing smooth and still get awesome distance.

Great thread Keiko.

It's interesting because I have a golfing buddy who does this particularly with his tee shots (he is quite large). He always seems to blame his shoes for not having sufficient traction. The result always seems to be a push or a block way right.

I think he has mostly fixed the issue now but it still comes back every now and again. I have never suffered from this problem myself but then again I am a lot smaller in stature.