instruction
The key components to
successful golf this winter
Richard Woodhouse
2013 Qld PGA Teaching Professional of the Year
[email protected]
C
oming into winter, the days are
getting shorter, the mornings are
colder and the motivation to go and
practice can easily fall away. Over the winter
months it is crucial to stay on top of some
key components of your golf game; both in a
technical and organisational sense. What I am
about to share with you would be my most
important keys to success in order to keep
your game in check and competition ready.
Regardless of your ability level I see the
majority of faults in a golf swing stem from
the set-up position, I consider there to be five
key components to the set-up. If all of these
five components are in a sound position the
golf swing can function in an efficient manor
without compensation.
The 5 key components to your set-up
position are;
1. Grip
2. Posture
3. Alignment
4. Ball position
5. Balance
Grip:
As the grip is your only connection to
the golf club it is crucial that we position
the hands correctly in order to control
the position of the club face. The most
common fault we see with the grip
position is where the top hand (glove
hand) positions itself where the club sits
too high in the hand (through the palm).
This “weak” position will limit the amount
of leverage we can create through the
wrists during the backswing limiting the
ability to load the shaft. Due to this we will
see compensation throughout the swing
ultimately leading to slower club speed
and impact face alignment issues.
To achieve a neutral grip position place
the club in the glove hand where you can
see your first 2 knuckles, with the thumb
and forefinger forming a “V” pointing to the
right shoulder (for a