A common mistake is getting the spine leaning too far toward the target, as seen on this face-on view( below), which throws the arms and hips out of position. As the spine tilts too far forward, it pushes the hips back and away from the target. From this position, it’ s nearly impossible to rotate effectively, which often causes a reverse pivot— a distance, contact, and directional control killer.
This forward upper-body tilt also angles your front shoulder down while pulling your back shoulder up, making your shoulders too level. As this occurs, your lead arm( left arm for a right-handed player, right arm for a left-handed player) gets stuck outside your chest.
This position leads to several issues:
• Weak lead-hand grip: You’ ll see very little of the glove logo.
• A bent lead arm: It causes an awkward angle for the wrist, making it difficult for the arm to move over the chest on the backswing.
• An over-extended trail arm: A higher back shoulder makes you reach for the grip, locking out the back arm— a very weak position which opens the clubface.
Fixing Your Posture
Let’ s start with correcting your spine positioning:
1. Hold a club down the center of your chest and abdomen, keeping your weight evenly distributed in your feet. 2. Get into your golf posture. 3. Gently bump your front hip towards the target as the back shoulder goes back and down until the club touches the inside of your front thigh.
4. Maintain that position and grip your club.
Bump the hip toward the target and tilt the spine to create proper iron posture.
Improve Your Rotation
Once you have the spine and hips in better alignment, it will be much easier to rotate properly during the backswing.
Now, your spine should lean slightly away from the target, tilting your shoulder to the correct angle:
• Higher lead shoulder: You’ ll have room to get your lead arm on top of your lead pec. This strengthens your lead-hand grip and establishes proper shaft lean, putting your lead arm and shaft close to a straight line.
• Lower trail shoulder: You no longer have to reach for your grip. Your bottom hand now comes in from the underside of the grip, not on top of it, putting your hand in a stronger position to get the clubface square.
• Soft trail arm: Gently bring your trail arm in toward your belly button. This points the front of your elbow out, allowing your arm to fold much more naturally.
Think about it like this: You don’ t grip the golf club with your hands fully together. Your glove hand sits higher on the grip than your non-glove hand. Since your hands aren’ t level, your shoulders shouldn’ t be either. The lead shoulder should be higher than the trail shoulder to match your hand position.
Increase the spine tilt with the driver using the same method.
This move applies to every club for full swing shots, but the tilt will be more pronounced with longer clubs. With a 7-iron, your stance is narrower, so you won’ t have to tilt as far for the club to tap the inside thigh. But your stance with a driver is wider, requiring more tilt to achieve the same position.
To simplify these points: Tilt the spine away from the target, set your lead arm on top, and keep your trail arm soft and underneath. If you do this, you’ ll notice improved rotation, better arm structure, and a more square clubface. Enjoy longer, straighter golf shots— all without a single swing thought.
For more of Bryce Cope’ s content, follow along @ brycecopegolf. vsga. org S e p t e m b e r / O c t o b e r 2026 | V IRGINIA G OLFER
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