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My question is does this drill help with lag. I have a problem with loosing the L or lag in my swing too early. Also I am learning a swing that is more of a release through the ball rather than a hit. Is this still a good drill for me to work on? Thanks guys.
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Re: Right Hand Drill and Lag
Hello:
The Right Hand Drill "could" certainly help with lag because it promotes the proper action of BOTH wrists in the golf swing. Do not assume, however that this drill "will" create lag on its' own as it will not.
Lag is a dynamic principle created by correct timing and motion in the swing, particularly that of the transitional move. The correct transition is promoted with the correct leg and body motions in the back swing. The back swing begins with a slight shift of weight to the rear foot, then a stabilizing of the lower body while the upper body smoothly rotates around that stable lower body. As the back swing nears completion, your lower body should begin the transition to down swing by shifting back towards the target. This change in direction if timed properly, will move the lower body and balance towards the target while the upper body muscles get stretched slightly further away from the target (opposite movement of upper and lower body, simultaneously is the transition). The upper body will eventually change direction to follow the lower and it is this change of direction and motion of the upper body that creates the lag. Think of the upper body (torso, arms and hands) as gently hitting a wall at the top of the back swing as if you were to toss a rubber ball against a wall gently. The ball would bounce slightly off the wall and gravity would quickly send it downward. Your arms and hands represent this downward action of the rubber ball in the analogy. As the arms and hands are allowing gravity to move them downward, the club, if allowed by proper wrist action but not forced (RHD), will lag momentarily behind the arms and hands trying to catch up. The opposite, and incorrect approach would be overusing the upper body to create the down swing motion by either using the lower body ineffeciently or not at all. By doing this, the club is thrown from the top of the back swing. Now the analogy would be the torso, arms, hands and club being a rubber ball being bounced off a wall at high velocity at the top of the backswing. Because of this velocity of force, gravity is overcome and the downswing becomes an out swing. Worse, this "out" swing is going the wrong direction (away from the target). You cannot create lag with this motion and in fact all you do is affect the opposite reaction (hit early, hit with a bent left wrist, swat, scoop etc...) because the club head was won the race to the ball.
Use the correct transition priciples in which the first move in the downswing is actually powered by the legs, hips and abdominal muscles. (this is why the tour pros work out so much on the stomach area). This allows the action of the arms and hands "down" and not out in the "down" swing. This is often termed "dropping in the slot". One issue that I hear from golfers concerning this move is that they do not feel they can get any speed or power by letting the club just "drop". When I ask to see their swing they almost always lack the correct transitional move and use the upper body heave to start the down swing. They have no concept of the right sequence, leading with the lower body, and by the way, they have no lag either.
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