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How to cure golf’s No. 1 swing flaw

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If you are a player who is plagued by this swing flaw, then no doubt you’re a tortured golfer who believes there is no cure for your ills. What is this troublesome move? It is called the hip sway, and it’s connected to a term I’m sure you’ve heard before: reverse pivot.

Hip sway is also a well-known term, but many golfers don’t see it and reverse pivot as part of the same fault. Suffice to say, they both cause massive inconsistency and the inability to hit solid shots. A golfer with hip sway may hit a few good drives from time to time, but when it comes to hitting the ball solid off the ground it’s a struggle.

Photos 1, 2

Photo 3

The hip sway/reverse pivot is difficult to cure because when the afflicted player becomes irritated enough to attempt to change their swing, any single modification in the technique won’t affect impact in a positive way. For example, the player could try making a shorter swing, a longer swing, hitting more from the inside, hitting more from the outside, etc., but none of these ideas will work on a consistent basis.

This type of swing flaw will take two ideas or phases to cure it; first fixing the body motion in the backswing and then fixing the downswing and impact. One of my mentors, Jim Hardy, calls this a two-fix, due to the fact you have to fix two things in order for the player’s swing to function properly. It has been my experience over the years that most golfers do not know there is such a thing as a two-phase swing cure.

Sometimes in a lesson, it can be very difficult for a student to hang in there long enough to cure the body motion (pivot) in the backswing and also cure the ball flight. But I assure you, it always works. Once you’ve cured the pivot, you will make progress. The reason this system works is it fixes hip sway, the root of the problem. Once that happens, the player changes categories and moves out of the group of golfers that need two phases to cure their shots. They become part of the group of golfers who need just one adjustment to create better impact and ball flight.

To help golfers cure this problem, I first teach them how to turn properly and not sway their hips. This usually involves working in a mirror so that they can see and feel a correct pivot. If a player is a former baseball player or tennis player, they can be battling an old habit that causes them to shift to their back foot. Once they learn the correct body turn, they are ready to try it on the range, first hitting some shots off a tee. This will build confidence, and once they are turning well and hitting good shots, we can then move to hitting good shots off the grass.

I am very insistent about this process, because if a golfer’s pivot motion does not get cured, the impact and ball flight will not be consistent in the future.

Photo 4

The two photos above show how the downswing and impact are negatively affected by the hip sway/reverse pivot. Notice how the club makes an over-under move on the way to the ball, causing it to be swinging up as it approaches the ball. This up-hit is why these players always struggle with their iron game, but can be somewhat effective off the tee. Notice, also, how the weight is moving toward the back foot, making it nearly impossible to finish with the weight on the front leg.

If you are a player who struggles with hitting solid iron shots and has a variety of misses, then have a friend video your swing and see if you spot a hip sway/reverse pivot. If so, follow this formula and you will be on your way to better iron play and more consistent ball striking.

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Mike Wilson has been teaching golf for 25 years, and is based at SilverRock Resort in La Quinta, Calif. He has coached players who have won tournaments at all levels, including USGA and NCAA Championships, as well as PGA Tour events. He endeavors to teach each golfer as an individual, while keeping in mind the skill level and golf background of each player.

16 Comments

16 Comments

  1. Robert Johansson

    Apr 19, 2022 at 3:18 am

    This isn’t the cause of the reverse pivot, its due to the golf instruction.
    Gurus like Monte cant figure that out

  2. Matt L

    Oct 21, 2015 at 3:29 pm

    Sways occur because a) people don’t “feel” themselves doing it and b) they don’t know what it feels like to do it correctly.

    Get with a good teaching professional that uses video. Look at an example of a good backswing (from your teacher, a tour pro, etc.), work with different “feels” until what you do looks like your good example.

    For some reason, I get people that look like stack n’ tilt on steroids as a result of combating a sway.

  3. Tyler

    Oct 19, 2015 at 11:26 am

    Easy fix is thinking about keeping the right knee pressed inward (for right handed players) in the backswing. That really helped me.

    • Matt L

      Oct 21, 2015 at 3:37 pm

      Tyler, the thing about “Swayers” is, they also tend to be “Sliders.” Kicking your right knee in, while possibly being an effective anti-sway messure, could also amp up that slide, resulting in worse issues.

  4. jakeanderson

    Oct 18, 2015 at 4:58 am

    if you suffer from hipsway like described you need to see a trainer and work on leg and hipstrength and flexibility. the reason for such a hipsway is physical limitation.

  5. Jeff

    Oct 17, 2015 at 5:59 pm

    Mike,
    A video showing this would be helpful. Just saying what to do isn’t all that helpful.

  6. Tanner

    Oct 17, 2015 at 6:28 am

    Thanks, Mike. You said, at the end to follow this process. But, I didn’t see what the fix was to cure this sway? Turn better, I get it. Any more details? What was your suggestion on the downswing for the hip swayers? Cheers, Tanner

    • Al385

      Oct 20, 2015 at 4:04 pm

      I also felt that something was missing here. Two step fix but is just working in a mirror?

  7. marcel

    Oct 15, 2015 at 8:46 pm

    easy FIX – this 2 steps process will FIX your swing issues. 1. GET A FREAKING GOLF COACH 2. HIT A GYM!!! there is also 3 step – DONT LISTEN TO YOUR BEST PAL WITH NO SWING

  8. Philip

    Oct 15, 2015 at 3:46 pm

    But what causes the hip sway in the first place?

    • Si

      Oct 16, 2015 at 4:40 am

      People thinking that moving the weight to the trail foot, they can then force that weight to the lead foot, thereby thinking THAT is what is called weight-transfer that helps hit the ball harder and makes it go faster, in their un-athletic body.

    • Tom

      Oct 16, 2015 at 11:26 am

      Alcohol.

  9. Tom

    Oct 15, 2015 at 2:12 pm

    Hey if I’d known you gonna take photo’s of me for this article I would of smiled…

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Instruction

Clement: Stop ripping off your swing with this drill!

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Not the dreaded headcover under the armpit drill! As if your body is defective and can’t function by itself! Have you seen how incredible the human machine is with all the incredible feats of agility all kinds of athletes are accomplishing? You think your body is so defective (the good Lord is laughing his head off at you) that it needs a headcover tucked under the armpit so you can swing like T-Rex?

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How a towel can fix your golf swing

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This is a classic drill that has been used for decades. However, the world of marketed training aids has grown so much during that time that this simple practice has been virtually forgotten. Because why teach people how to play golf using everyday items when you can create and sell a product that reinforces the same thing? Nevertheless, I am here to give you helpful advice without running to the nearest Edwin Watts or adding something to your Amazon cart.

For the “scoring clubs,” having a solid connection between the arms and body during the swing, especially through impact, is paramount to creating long-lasting consistency. And keeping that connection throughout the swing helps rotate the shoulders more to generate more power to help you hit it farther. So, how does this drill work, and what will your game benefit from it? Well, let’s get into it.

Setup

You can use this for basic chip shots up to complete swings. I use this with every club in my bag, up to a 9 or 8-iron. It’s natural to create incrementally more separation between the arms and body as you progress up the set. So doing this with a high iron or a wood is not recommended.

While you set up to hit a ball, simply tuck the towel underneath both armpits. The length of the towel will determine how tight it will be across your chest but don’t make it so loose that it gets in the way of your vision. After both sides are tucked, make some focused swings, keeping both arms firmly connected to the body during the backswing and follow through. (Note: It’s normal to lose connection on your lead arm during your finishing pose.) When you’re ready, put a ball in the way of those swings and get to work.

Get a Better Shoulder Turn

Many of us struggle to have proper shoulder rotation in our golf swing, especially during long layoffs. Making a swing that is all arms and no shoulders is a surefire way to have less control with wedges and less distance with full swings. Notice how I can get in a similar-looking position in both 60° wedge photos. However, one is weak and uncontrollable, while the other is strong and connected. One allows me to use my larger muscles to create my swing, and one doesn’t. The follow-through is another critical point where having a good connection, as well as solid shoulder rotation, is a must. This drill is great for those who tend to have a “chicken wing” form in their lead arm, which happens when it becomes separated from the body through impact.

In full swings, getting your shoulders to rotate in your golf swing is a great way to reinforce proper weight distribution. If your swing is all arms, it’s much harder to get your weight to naturally shift to the inside part of your trail foot in the backswing. Sure, you could make the mistake of “sliding” to get weight on your back foot, but that doesn’t fix the issue. You must turn into your trial leg to generate power. Additionally, look at the difference in separation between my hands and my head in the 8-iron examples. The green picture has more separation and has my hands lower. This will help me lessen my angle of attack and make it easier to hit the inside part of the golf ball, rather than the over-the-top move that the other picture produces.

Stay Better Connected in the Backswing

When you don’t keep everything in your upper body working as one, getting to a good spot at the top of your swing is very hard to do. It would take impeccable timing along with great hand-eye coordination to hit quality shots with any sort of regularity if the arms are working separately from the body.

Notice in the red pictures of both my 60-degree wedge and 8-iron how high my hands are and the fact you can clearly see my shoulder through the gap in my arms. That has happened because the right arm, just above my elbow, has become totally disconnected from my body. That separation causes me to lift my hands as well as lose some of the extension in my left arm. This has been corrected in the green pictures by using this drill to reinforce that connection. It will also make you focus on keeping the lead arm close to your body as well. Because the moment either one loses that relationship, the towel falls.

Conclusion

I have been diligent this year in finding a few drills that target some of the issues that plague my golf game; either by simply forgetting fundamental things or by coming to terms with the faults that have bitten me my whole career. I have found that having a few drills to fall back on to reinforce certain feelings helps me find my game a little easier, and the “towel drill” is most definitely one of them.

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Instruction

Clement: Why your practice swing never sucks

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You hear that one all the time; I wish I could put my practice swing on the ball! We explain the huge importance of what to focus on to allow the ball to be perfectly in the way of your practice swing. Enjoy!

 

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