Arm position - Driver and fairway metals

[Mech8T7]

I would be greatful for some views on the correct position for your arms (in relation to the club shaft) at address, particularly when you are playing a driver or fairway metal.

At one time, I was tending to hold my hands higher and angling my arms away from my body such that my arms seemed like they were an extension of the end of the club. I was told that this was incorrect and that I should be allowing my arms to hang from my shoulders and creating an angle (looked at from the side) between the shaft and my arms.

I have since seen someone on the golf channel suggest that you should hold your hands away from your body with the driver and not let your arms just drop down because it helps to promote wrist hinge.

I think it would be odd if there are different schools of thought on this because it seems to me that how you hold your hands would affect whether the bottom edge of the club would be parallel to the ground at impact.

Thoughts?

[gord962]

Re: Arm position - Driver and fairway metals

My belief is to have your arms hang loosely from your shoulders with ALL clubs.

[msklar92]

Re: Arm position - Driver and fairway metals

agree with gord962, reaching for the ball reduces the connection between your arms and body and promotes an inside take away. I have no idea why reaching for the ball would promote wrist hinge. I think it would actually do the opposite.

[LowPost42]

Re: Arm position - Driver and fairway metals

Any time I'm reaching for the ball, I invariably hit off the toe, including, but not limited to, toe shanks.

[paterick]

Re: Arm position - Driver and fairway metals

i think the confussion here lies in the new disscusions regarding two plane vrs one plane. one plane, which refers to reaching and bending over more. i tried it, its very powerful, but requires your upper body to be in excellant shape

[ubizmo]

Re: Arm position - Driver and fairway metals

This has been a real issue for me lately. My experience is the same as LowPost42's: the more I reach, the more likely I am to hit the ball off the toe, resulting in bad shots. I believe the reason is, the more you reach for the ball at address, the more likely you are to pull back a bit when you swing. I'm sure one could train oneself not to do this, but I think the natural instinct is to pull back.

There's another issue here that may not be mentioned as often. If one has a sizeable belly, one might *have* to reach out more, because in that case if the arms hang freely at setup, they won't clear the belly during the swing.