One of the hardest lessons for amateur golfers to learn is that the golf swing is not controlled by the arms.

At least, the golf swing should not be controlled by the arms. Yes, your hands and arms are the direct link that you have to the club during the swing, but that doesn’t mean they should be in charge. If you are going to hit quality golf shots on a regular basis, you need to rely on your bigger muscles to get the job done.

Specifically, chest rotation is going to play an important role in the golf swing. Golfers who are able to turn their chest back and through effectively during the swing will hold a big advantage over those who do not. You’ve probably heard that making a full turn is important when it comes to generating power, and that is true. However, a good turn is also important when it comes to accurately striking the ball, as your big muscles are more reliable than your small muscles in this regard. For a swing which repeats itself nicely time after time, using the core of your body is essential.

In this article, we are going to discuss the basics of chest rotation. Why is it important? How should it be executed? We’ll cover these questions and more in the content that follows. If you don’t think you are doing a very good job of rotating your chest currently, working on this point during upcoming practice sessions would be a smart move. Making even a small improvement in this area can lead to notable gains on the course.

All of the content below is based on a right-handed golfer. If you happen to play left-handed, please take a moment to reverse the directions as necessary.

The Power of Chest Rotation

There is a lot going on in the golf swing. If you don’t know where to look, you can easily get distracted by the movement of the club itself, without noticing everything else that is going on. When you get a chance to watch some golf on TV, do your best to watch how the best players in the world use their bodies to move the club back and through. You are sure to see that the pros do a great job of making a full chest rotation both in the backswing and the downswing. It is this kind of chest rotation which you should be trying to put into place in your game.

What is it about chest rotation that makes it such an important piece of the golf puzzle? Let’s take a look.

• Build the potential for power. The backswing is all about creating potential for your downswing. During the backswing, of course, you aren’t going to hit the ball. You aren’t even going to be able to carry any speed over from the backswing to the downswing, since you have to stop at the top and change directions before swinging down.
• So, the goal of the backswing is simply to put your body – and the club – in a position to produce a powerful strike when impact rolls around. A big chest turn to the right is the biggest element to watch during this phase of the swing. Basically, by turning properly away from the target, you’ll be giving yourself plenty of room to swing down with authority.
• Players who fail to make such a good turn can’t generate power in the downswing because there is very little distance between the club and the ball. A good chest turn creates space, and you can use that space for acceleration. You can think about this concept in the same way you would think about a car speeding down a race track.
• If you give a race car only 100 yards to accelerate, it is going to be limited in terms of the speed it can reach. If you stretch that distance out to 200 yards, however, the car will be going faster when it hits the finish line. It’s the same with your golf swing. You want to maximize speed at the moment of impact, and one of the best ways to do that is to lengthen the ‘runway’ that you give yourself in the downswing. By making a big chest turn going back, you’ll have plenty of room to work with and your swing will be able to reach higher speeds than it could have achieved otherwise.
• Establish rhythm. Turning your chest effectively during the golf swing is as much about building rhythm as it is creating power. There is a wonderful tempo that can be established when you learn to turn away from the target and then turn back toward it, all without having any dramatic changes in pace along the way.
• This should be a smooth action, with only a pause at the top of the backswing to change directions. When you see golfers on the course or at the driving range who seem to struggle with tempo, it’s very likely that they aren’t doing a good job of turning their chest. Think of the rotation of your chest as the piece of the puzzle that holds your timing together. Whether you are just hitting shots on the range or you are out on the course in a pressure-packed situation, the rotation of your chest should be something that you can rely on.
• Keep your body in position for a clean strike. It’s easy to overcomplicate this game but keeping it simple to the best of your ability is a wise idea. One of the simplest things you can do to play at a high level is to strike the ball cleanly as often as possible. You can worry about your targets and shot shapes all you want, but those things aren’t going to come into play if you can’t even make clean contact.
• To give yourself a good opportunity to achieve a clean strike, using chest rotation to keep your body in a great position. Good chest rotation will keep you over the ball, making it easy to hit down through impact and swing on into the follow through. If you don’t turn your chest, the only other option to make the swing happen is a lateral slide from side to side. This type of swing creates big problems. Not only will you struggle to hit the ball cleanly when sliding from side to side, but you will also fail to generate much power. If you want to be a consistent ball striker shot after shot, chest rotation is something that should be seen as a requirement.

If you don’t currently do a very good job of turning your chest in the golf swing, the points above should have you excited for the possibilities. By learning how to rotate your chest effectively, it’s possible to raise your game to a much higher level than where it is at this point. With so much to gain simply by working on your technique, it should be easy to decide what you are going to focus on during upcoming range visits.

A Simple Move

So far, we’ve established that it is important to turn your chest nicely throughout the swing. But how do you make that happen? Does it require some complicated technique that will take years to master? No – not really. We aren’t saying it is going to be easy, because nothing is easy in this game, but it shouldn’t be too terribly difficult, either.

In this section, we are going to touch on some key points which you should be aware of if you want to improve on your chest rotation.

• Keep your chin up. Believe it or not, we are going to start by talking about your chin, rather than your chest. It might not be obvious at first, but your chin actually has a lot to do with your ability to rotate your chest properly in the golf swing. At address, you need to keep your chin up away from your chest in order to clear a path for your shoulders to turn. If your chin is down and pressed into your chest, your shoulder is going to run into it shortly after the backswing begins.
• This is going to interfere with the freedom of your turn, and it’s likely that your chest rotation will end up falling short. To avoid this issue, simply keep your chin up and away from your chest while getting set to make a swing. You don’t have to hold it high in the air, of course, but you do want it high enough to avoid getting in the way of your shoulder as the swing develops.
• Stay down in your stance. Another tip, and another point which doesn’t actually have anything to do directly with your chest. Instead, this tip is regarding your lower body, which needs to do a great job of supporting your swing back and through. That means maintaining the knee flex that you established at address all the way through the backswing and into the downswing.
• If you give up on your stance and stand up by straightening your legs, your entire body is going to wind up out of position. At that point, you’ll likely need to cut your chest rotation short just to stay on balance and give yourself a chance to strike the shot at all. Sometimes, it is the simple things in golf that make all the difference. Focus on simply maintaining your stance from the waist down and your rotation is likely to improve almost immediately.
• Turn your back to the target. Continuing with the theme of simplicity, a good thought to have in mind as you rotate your chest is to try your best to turn your back on the target. Think about having your back face the target at the top of the swing, especially when hitting a long club like a driver. This works as a swing thought because it doesn’t require you to do anything too complicated. Rather than focusing your mind on a variety of small details through the swing, simply think about turning your back to the target. You can carry this tip easily with you from the driving range to the course, and it should help your swing to hold up nicely under pressure.
• Get all the way through. It would be a shame to make a great chest rotation going away from the ball only to give up on your swing before it is complete. When you turn away from the ball, the job is only half done. You now have to turn down through the ball, toward the target, and into the finish. Just like you can use the idea of turning your back to the target to guide your backswing, you can think about turning your chest to the target to complete your downswing and follow through. When the swing is finished, and you are watching the ball fly, your chest should be facing the target. If you hit that point time after time, you can feel good about the current status of your rotation.

There is no reason to overcomplicate this part of your golf swing. In fact, there is no reason to overcomplicate any part of your golf swing. This is a hard enough game as it is, you don’t need to make it harder by overthinking every small detail along the way. Do your best to keep this game simple and you should achieve better results – and you’ll probably have more fun along the way.

Think About Your Pre-Shot Routine

The pre-shot routine is one of the most powerful elements you can use in golf to raise your level of play. Many amateur golfers overlook this key ingredient, as it doesn’t seem like it should be all that important. After all, you aren’t hitting the ball while going through your pre-shot routine, so does it really matter? Yes, it matters, and a good routine can make you a better golfer.

Consider using your pre-shot routine as an opportunity to improve the way your chest rotates during the golf swing. The best way to do this is to actually include a piece in your routine where you work on turning your chest. This is a great idea because it serves as a reminder right before you hit your shot that you need to make a great turn.

Believe it or not, it is easy to forget about your turn when you are caught up in all of the other considerations you need to make before each shot. For instance, you might be worried about a water hazard short of the green, or you might be wondering if you have chosen the right club. With other things on your mind, it may be that your chest rotation doesn’t wind up getting all the way back – and your swing suffers as a result.

We can’t tell you exactly where in your pre-shot routine to insert a rehearsal of your chest rotation, as the pre-shot routine is a highly personal thing. The best way to go about building your routine is to work on it during practice sessions on the range. Think about the things that you need to remind yourself of before each shot and include those elements in the routine. This way, you should be in a good frame of mind and ready to swing each time you step over the ball during a round.

It is worth noting that you don’t want to make your pre-shot routine so long that you hold up the pace of play for others around you. Golf is a game which already has a notable pace of play problem at many courses. The speed of the game is something that is of great concern to many people moving forward, so do your part and keep things moving while playing your rounds. It is certainly possible to use a pre-shot routine which both serves your needs and doesn’t take too long to complete.

Also, be sure to practice your pre-shot routine on the driving range, just like you would practice any other part of your game. Once it is designed and you have a plan for how it is going to work, don’t just assume that you’ll be able to put it into action on the course without any trouble. By going through your routine prior to most of your swings on the range, it will be easier to mindlessly execute the routine while playing rounds.

Is it absolutely necessary to include something related to chest rotation in your pre-shot routine? No – it is certainly not required. You could manage to play golf just fine without including this point. However, if you continue to struggle with chest rotation, you may want to give this careful consideration. If something as easy as altering your pre-shot routine could unlock a new level of play for you on the course, you would be foolish to ignore it.

Avoid This Trap

To finish up our article, we are going to make the assumption that you have managed to learn how to turn your chest more effectively during practice. With a solid swing in place on the range, your task is now clear – learn how to use the same swing that you produce in practice effectively on the course. And, as every golfer knows, this is much easier said than done.

When you head out onto the course with your new and improved chest rotation, there is one trap specifically that you will need to avoid falling into – rushing your tempo. Without a doubt, this is the biggest issue that golfers face when they leave the comfort of the range and head out onto the course itself. On the range, there is nothing on the line, so you swing with freedom and you feel relaxed enough to take your time.

Those feelings change, however, when you hit shots on the course. Most likely, you are going to feel a little bit nervous, even if you are playing alone or with close friends. This is natural – those nerves usually come from nothing more than the excitement of wanting to play your best.

Unfortunately, that nervous energy often winds up in a rushed tempo that doesn’t allow your chest rotation to be completed. Even though your swing will feel mostly the same as it does on the range, the results will be diminished, and you will get frustrated. Some players may even give up on their new chest rotation, thinking that it isn’t working out like they hoped.

Don’t give up on the changes you have made if they are already working out nicely on the range. The progress you have made in practice is proof that the technical side of your changes are on track – now, you just need to learn how to take it with you out onto the course. That is a little bit easier said than done, but you can get there in time.

The biggest thing you can do to work on this skill is simply to be aware of the issue and do your best to slow down before each swing. Take a deep breath, focus on the target that you have in mind for the shot, and believe in your preparation. You’ll still get nervous from time to time, of course, but hopefully you’ll be able to maintain your rhythm in spite of those nerves.

We hope you now have a clear understanding of why chest rotation is important in the golf swing, and how you can use it to your advantage. As you work on this fundamental, do your best to incorporate it with the other things you already do well in the swing. It isn’t going to be productive to improve this part of your technique if you sacrifice other parts along the way. Blend an improved chest turn with other solid mechanics and you’ll be on the right track.

Update:

Your chest should rotate throughout your golf swing in a smooth, controlled manner. The amount of rotation will vary depending on your individual swing, but it is important to make sure that your chest rotates along with your shoulders and hips.

Here are the key things to keep in mind about chest rotation in the golf swing:

• In the backswing, your chest should turn away from the target. This will help you to create power and also set up your body for a good downswing.
• At the top of the backswing, your chest should be pointing behind you. This is the maximum amount of rotation that you will achieve.
• In the downswing, your chest should rotate back towards the target. This will help you to deliver the clubhead to the ball with power and accuracy.
• At impact, your chest should be facing the target. This is the ideal position for impact.

Here are some drills that you can do to practice chest rotation in your golf swing:

• Cross-arm drill: This drill helps you to feel the rotation of your chest and shoulders. Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart and your arms crossed in front of your chest. Make a backswing and downswing, keeping your arms crossed.
• Wall drill: This drill helps you to learn how to rotate your chest without moving your hips. Stand facing a wall with your feet shoulder-width apart. Make a backswing and downswing, keeping your back flat against the wall.
• Mirror drill: This drill helps you to see how your chest is rotating during your swing. Stand in front of a mirror and make a backswing and downswing. Pay attention to how your chest is turning.

With practice, you can learn to rotate your chest smoothly and efficiently throughout your golf swing. This will help you to generate more power and accuracy in your shots.

Here are some additional tips for improving your chest rotation in the golf swing:

• Keep your spine tilted slightly away from the target in the backswing. This will allow your chest to turn more freely.
• Keep your head still throughout the swing. This will help you to maintain your balance and alignment.
• Practice swinging with a weight or club in your back pocket. This will help you to feel the rotation of your chest and shoulders.

With a good understanding of chest rotation and regular practice, you can improve your golf swing and hit the ball farther and more accurately.

Q&A:

Q: How Should My Chest Rotate Throughout My Golf Swing?

A: The rotation of the chest, or upper body, is a crucial element in achieving a consistent and powerful golf swing. Here's a Q&A addressing how your chest should rotate during the different phases of your golf swing:

Q: Why is chest rotation important in the golf swing? A: Chest rotation plays a key role in generating power, accuracy, and consistency in your golf swing. Proper rotation helps you coil your body for potential energy during the backswing and then release that energy through controlled rotation during the downswing.

Q: What should be the focus during the backswing in terms of chest rotation? A: During the backswing, your chest should rotate away from the target while maintaining a stable lower body. This rotation creates torque and stores energy in your core muscles. It's important to avoid over-rotating your hips or shoulders, as this can lead to swing inconsistencies.

Q: How does the chest rotation change during the transition from backswing to downswing? A: The transition is a critical point where the upper body starts the downswing motion. Your chest should lead the way by initiating a gradual rotation towards the target. This sequence helps create a smooth transition and sets up your body for a powerful downswing.

Q: What about chest rotation during the downswing and impact? A: As you begin the downswing, your chest should continue its rotation towards the target. This movement helps maintain the proper sequence of motion and promotes an inside-out swing path, leading to more accurate shots. At impact, your chest should be facing the target, promoting a solid strike.

Q: Are there any common mistakes with chest rotation? A: One common mistake is excessive lateral movement (swaying) instead of rotating. Another mistake is losing posture by standing up during the downswing. Both errors can lead to inconsistent ball striking and loss of power.

Q: How can I practice proper chest rotation? A: To practice chest rotation, try the following:

• Use a mirror to observe your chest rotation in the backswing, downswing, and follow-through.
• Use alignment sticks or clubs placed on the ground to ensure your chest remains on the proper swing plane.
• Work with a golf instructor to receive personalized feedback and drills to improve your chest rotation.

Q: How can I feel the correct chest rotation during my swing? A: Focus on keeping your chest facing the ball at address. During the backswing, feel your lead shoulder rotating under your chin. In the downswing, initiate the movement with your lower body while allowing your chest to follow naturally.

Q: Is chest rotation different for different types of shots? A: While the fundamental principles of chest rotation remain consistent, shot type may influence the degree of rotation. Shorter shots may involve slightly less rotation, while longer shots require a more complete rotation for maximum power.

Remember that chest rotation is interconnected with other elements of your swing, such as hip rotation and arm movement. Finding the right balance and sequence among these components is essential for a consistent and effective golf swing. Working with a qualified golf instructor can help you refine your chest rotation and overall swing mechanics.

How should my chest rotate throughout my golf swing? Now there are many different moving parts of the body that actually kind of swing around, they move on different planes and different paths, when you are actually swinging the club. But focusing in on the centre of your chest is a great way to move the bigger muscles more consistently and actually get some better shots away.

Now focusing in on the sternum or the centre of the chest throughout the golf swing is a fantastic way to achieve this. On the backswing the chest should begin to rotate as the shoulders actually turn away from the target. So if you imagine a point in the centre of your chest as the club is taken away and the shoulders begin to rotate. As you reach the top of your backswing the chest should be facing pretty much straight away from your target. Then as the club is swung down the chest should be pointing again pretty much straight forward. And then after impact the chest should be facing pretty much down towards the target.

And you can use your chest as a great driver of your swing it takes your thoughts away from many of the technical aspects that you may have got bogged down. And just focus it on that one area can bring a lot of different moving parts together quite easily. So we are over that ball, chest pointing forward and then I do a very slow motion swing, get the chest pointing away, back straight impact and then to the target when I have actually hit the ball. And it is just a great way like I said to power the core of the body and to take your mind away from lots of the moving parts in the swing.

A lot of – actual mistake a lot people make when they are thinking about the chest is, it should stay quite static in the golf swing just to kind of improve a little bit of consistency. However if you keep your chest quite static and pointing forward you run the risk of your swing becoming very handsy and very armsy.

So keeping the chest pointing forward but just moving the arms and the shoulders it will become a very kind of narrow very constricted swing. Have the confidence to actually move it a little bit more freely and you should get a lot more consistency and as a nice bonus a lot more distance on your shots. So and the golf swing drive it with the chest back, chest centre, chest forward nice and easy nice and simple, but hopefully some nice easy simple ball striking as well.