Increasing driver distance means increasing club head speed through impact but many senior golfers are not sure how to go about doing this.

The first thing senior golfers need to understand about the golf swing is that the club continues to accelerate from the top of the backswing to about 8-12 inches after the ball. In fact the fastest point of the golf swing occurs just after the ball when the arms and wrists are fully extended.

This mays sound slightly counter intuitive but the same principle applies in most hitting sports – players accelerate through impact, not until impact. Imagine a boxer throwing a powerful punch. At impact with the opponent, the boxer wants their hand to travel onwards not simply hit and retract, they want the feeling of power flowing through the shot (unfortunately for the other guy). It’s the same with golf, the driver punches through the ball, it doesn’t retract at impact, it flows through with power.

Many senior golfers lose distance when they accelerate too quickly during the downswing and reach the fastest point before the ball. This will only waste potential power waiting to fly through impact.

This peaking of power too early normally happens when the wrists unhinge too quickly during the downswing. To help stop this happening, golfers can use the two-tee drill.

The drill

1. Place a tee in the ground and then place another about 8 inches further towards the target. This second tee nearer the target will become the aim of the through swing.

2. Take some practice swings addressed to the first tee but swing through and hit the second. Keep practicing until you feel the club is accelerating into the second tee.

3. Once the senior golfer has become accustomed to accelerating into the second tee, place a ball on the first.

4. Now swing through the ball but continue the swing on to the second tee, striking that one from the ground as well.

5. If the swing is good the ball will fly away into the distance and the second tee-peg will follow.

This drill should ensure the wrists are not unhinging to early during the downswing and the club is continuing to accelerate through impact giving the senior golfer the maximum amount of club head speed and distance.

Club head speed translates into more ball speed and more ball speed leads to greater distance giving the senior golfer extra distance off the tee.