arm swing

[The Hud]

I am having big problems with my downswing, my hips seems to start the downswing alright, but my arms come away from the chest in an outside-in swing, which leaves the clubhead behind racing to catch up and ends up with a big slice. I am not doing it all the time, but it is happening more often now.
I feel it is my back swing that causes this but I am open to any suggestions.

[jambalaya]

Re: arm swing

Your problem could be your backswing. I have that problem too and it happens when I let my arms go back ahead of my shoulder turn getting the arms and hands outside my shoulders. We set up with the hands and arms within the width of our shoulders and for me I don't want them to get too much further outside that boundary when I take the club back because I have a hard time getting them in sync with the shoulder turn and the club head back square at impact. One necessarily has to throw the club forward in an attempt to get them back in line therefore the casting or over-the-top move. My cure is to keep the arms passive and let the shoulder start the swing keeping the arms and hands in line until I lift them after rotating the shoulders.

[The Hud]

Re: arm swing

Thanks jambalaya, you have put your finger right on it , yes sometimes I start the swing with my hands as some experts advocate and it looks as though this is the result of that.

[jambalaya]

Re: arm swing

Yes, someone like Jim Flick will tell you to start the swing with the hands but I can't think of it that way. You still have to rotate the shoulders with the hands and not let them get too far behind you. If I start with my hands I get in trouble.

[The Hud]

Re: arm swing

Yes, someone like Jim Flick will tell you to start the swing with the hands but I can't think of it that way. You still have to rotate the shoulders with the hands and not let them get too far behind you. If I start with my hands I get in trouble.

I am still having problems, I now feel its my hip turn that could be the cause. Ben Hogan and just about every pro golfer says turn the shoulders and they will pull the hips around, except J Nicklaus who says turn your hips as far as you can as long as you don't break your right knee. When I turn my shoulders I don't feel they pull my hips around enough to create any real torque, I have tried a part turn of the hips at the start of the swing and hoping the shoulders will drag them around sufficiently to create that recoil effect, but those shots lack distance as well as accuracy. I am now starting my swing turning my hips with my shoulders, with the drives and long shots I am hitting them much crisper and straighter, I am not so sure about the short irons, the jury is still out on them. I would appreciate any input on this hip turn situation.

[bill reed]

Re: arm swing

hi
one other thing is taking the club to the inside to quick, the best way not to do it is to try and feel your elbows are pulling in against each other just as you start your takeaway and stop half way back with the butt of the club looking to the target about waist high and the head off the club away from the target and look and see if the line of the club shaft is inside your toes but outside your heels.
try a few half swings and try and get the club like that on the backswing and then see where the club lies on the follow through, it still should be between your toes and your heels.
its a good drill to do to help your chipping and your pitching too.
i think you will be swinging back to far on the inside and be out side your toes on the follow through.
hope this helps.
bill

[golfndawg]

Re: arm swing

Guys:

You can also keep the arms close together at address and on the way back, the elastic bandage around the arms as Hogan spoke about and that keeps the hands from turning.

The reason I do not do this and many others is because it shortens the Fatboy's Backswing.

I need to feel everything free flowing in the backswing, Loose As A Goose.

If you are tall, flexible, tend to overswing in the backswing, then you may want to focus on the arms.

Breaking the triangle happens if you allow the left hand for right handed golfers to roll back to a 45 degree angle before breast high and I have proven this with golfers of all shapes and sizes.

If you have control of the hands in the backswing you can not swing too far to the inside.

With the thumb up, fingers out as I have shown you, bottom of the hand is facing the ground is a very weak grip. The stronger the grip the less it will point to the ground, but the key is to prevent the hand from further rolling too early on the way back.

The swing is simple, there should never be any forcing of the left arm closer to the body, trying to put the hands in a given position and all this other Non-Sense.

One can truly just walk up to the ball, make a swing and have everything fall into place in the downswing, Mr. Nelson was a fine example of this.

Good stuff again

[bill reed]

Re: arm swing

hi cmays
i find that using the arms and elbows bandage together ( as hogan says) works at keeping your shoulders and arms and hands moving back in one pice and also helps in moving the club head ( works best with the driver) back 10 inches or so still in line with the target line before the sholders start to turn the club head inside and the right elbow start to break and the wrists turn, this all happens naturaly with no thought of doing any it.
i am 5"8 tall and chubby ( short fatboy as you said) and it really starts my swing off in the right way.
what do you think, do you think this is the right way to go for short fat boys as well as tall golfers.
thanks
bill

[bill reed]

Re: arm swing

hi cmays
i think you put that very well and i think understand better the wrist turn under the nipple and what happens now and about the wrist above the nipple and what happens.
thank
bill

[bill reed]

Re: arm swing

hi cmays
when you say hogen curled his three finger at the top of the swing, is that like pointing the back of the left hand more to the sky and bowing out the left wrist and the right wrist is like an "¬" palm to the sky.
bill

[bill reed]

Re: arm swing

hi cmays
thanks again for all your help. some real good info.
thanks
bill

[The Hud]

Re: arm swing

Many thanks bill reed and cmays, I know for a fact that I rotate my hands from time to time and end up laying the club off as you described, (for all I know a lot more than that) I never knew what caused it or how to cure it, now you have given me that information I will continue to work on it. I played on Sunday and tried keeping the elbows together but did not play so well, I think I was trying to hard and it made me stiffen up the arms too much, so after the the first three holes I loosened the arms up and tried to concentrate on keeping the bottom of my hand facing the ground and played fairly well from then on. I will have to get to the range when the weather improves (a lot of rain for the next few days) and experiment, thanks again for giving me benefit of your knowledge.

[bill reed]

Re: arm swing

hi hud
i only try and keep the arms together for the first 10/15 inches the clubhead moves back, after that i dont think about it all all, maybe your keeping them together to long, i'm glad your hands down is helping and like most things the more you do it the better and easer it gets.
good luck
bill

[bill reed]

Re: arm swing

hi cmays
thanks for your kind words, one thing i have been playing about with is my left wrist at the start of the swing. i find if i press forward and bow out my wrist so i show one knuckle my left elbow bends more on the back swing, if i try and bow my left wrist in so i show 4 knuckles my left elbow seemes to stay locked during the backswing but i dont get a full turn. i dont really understand it but i do know it happens and i try and get a happy medium where i have my forward press and try and not bow out my wrist and and i see 2 knuckes and i find that if my right elbow is relaxed before i start my swing this tends to work really good with me, dont know it would work with other's.
intresting to know your thoughts on this.
thanks again
bill