In this video PGA golf coaches Pete Styles and Matt Fryer will help you understand how far from the golf ball you should be standing for every golf shot including altering your address position to consider different golf clubs and their altering lengths. Understanding how each club should relate to your lead leg is a great technique explained in this video which you should find useful to provide you with a consistent address position for more consistent golf shots.
So one of the questions that we get a still lot by lessons is. How far should I be standing away from the golf ball? Is there a set distance each shot on each club as we actually address the golf ball? If you can explain this one Pete it is a vital piece of information that you could pass on that would help us with that. I think it's a very valid part of everyone's setup is exactly that point how far from the golf ball should a golfer be and quite often we see golfers get themselves into trouble of making mistakes because they don't get this position right. So the important point and the reason why Matt's got 2 extra clubs here is that it's not the same. We can't just measure and say well it's 24 inches away from the golf ball and draw a line and say stand here for the rest of your golfing life because it changes all the time it changes with different shots changes with different clubs. So we need a bit of a a way of checking that position. If we can give a little bit of a highlight point about how we can check this position. So as I set up the golf ball here Matt I've got my 7 iron I take my address position I have a nice relaxed flex of the knee and that's quite important as if I over slump my knees much you'll see me move a lot nearer to the golf ball and this is a bit of a weakness.
Likewise if I lock my legs out I certainly look a lot further from the ball even though my feet they have been checked. Now so as I check my address position here I want to lightly flex my knees so my body weight sits in the middle of my feet and I actually use my club to give me my guidance give me my measurement. If you put the club in there are you just letting it sit is it designed for your holding or or just as your initial address position. I'm going to hold it level to the ground here and I'm going to let it sit down and as it rests against my left leg my front leg it lands around about one to 2 inches above the knee cap. Now that for me is my perfect position. Notice what happens if I move nearer to the golf ball now you can see it lands a lot higher up the thigh, likewise if move further away lands further down right. So as you get in every time place the club in then let it rest on your lead leg to find the thought of 2 inches if you say. Between 1 to 2 inches I always find it's the best place and if I get that consistency I actually sort of always feel hit the same point my knee every time. I don't need to look anymore I just go there we go perfect if I stand further away and do it I know I'm not in the right place I me to shuffle and now I'm in the right place again once you've got that spot you. Then can build your set up around the arms hanging in the same manner same and from the hit you in the same position every time. It's exactly that it's like consistency as a golfer we want consistency we want to be able to swing down to the right point, but if I set up an inch further away I maybe don't feel it's a problem until I hit it. On a hit it out the toe an inch closer I hit out the heel but if I can check my position I know that's good. Just one little caveat with that point is make sure you don't accommodate it by bending your knee too much so if you took the set up and you were too far back in you and it works or if I was too close I would go there or it worked perfect like I'm adhering to the checkpoint but I'm doing it in the wrong fashion.
So if you were to throw a driver at you. Perfect that my 7 I'm done and dusted driver thank you is it the same rule of thumb you do the same thing obviously would have kept it you're exactly right you have it on a tee peg I get myself comfortable in if I drop that down like magic it lands in the same spot clearly up further away but it's on the same point in my kneecap. As you've done that I think oh as well as do you feel that the weight as you do that in your feet now is at the same position every time you not leaning too much as you are you know what touched on earlier. Exactly that I feel comfortable I don't feel like I'm a tip toe is wrong heels too much I actually always feel like I'm holding myself in but the club just gets longer but my stance is the same I'm not up here or down here too much. So with a wedge as well same thing? Yeah much shorter to the ball this time clearly I'm going to be standing a lot nearer to the golf ball but actually as I go ahead and take my set up I get myself comfortable. I dropped the club down again just on to my knee and it's still up same wanted 2 inches above my knee cap good posture good balance position and I feel like I'm still holding my 7 iron on my driver it's a very simple tip isn't it and like you say you put it in that spot every time you get to go into the same position obviously that's going to allow you to deliver the club hopefully on a similar spot and make a constant impact if you're going through. It's the consistency that we want to see because golf is difficult enough and particularly when we're changing between 3 different clubs if I take all 3 in one go you can see that although the same point is on my knee hitting with every club there that gives me 3 very different ball positions. Yeah getting in close or so as you go down the ball positions. Exactly but driver furthest away wedge nearest but I can actually stand here now and take the same swing and make the same impact position the club does a different job for me. Rather than me standing with my wedge like this and I driver like this and that inconsistency that you mention sort of. So when taking your set up let's check that the club is falling onto the lead at the same point which in turn will help you create this same posture every time and help you deliver a better strike with every club.