Downswing Step Drill – Lesson by PGA Pros Pete Styles & Matt Fryer
Downswing Step Drill – Lesson by PGA Pros Pete Styles & Matt Fryer

In this videotape PGA golf professionals Pete Styles and Matt Fryer will enable you to start your golf downswing with a much smoother and more balanced transition. By talking you through a step by step process where your feet move throughout your swing. This should result in a body weight movement that drives better towards your target and ultimately improve the consistency and the fluidity of your golf downswing.

Matt would it be fair to say that quite often you see golfers get to the golf club in the top position quite nicely but then coming down to the golf ball they don't quite move correctly. Yeah definitely in transition from back swing into downswing there's something not quite right there and we need to try and figure out and help the people get it right. So we've understood that we've addressed the ball correctly we've turned to the top nicely. You highlighted the key word there transition some people get stuck in transition they make the incorrect motion in transition that leads to poor shots poor strikes poor follow through. How do we get transition? Right OK so what we need to understand is how are we going to start off and what will see most commonly in our lessons is that it started from the top of the swing which is as we know incorrect we actually want to start it from the ground up. So generally the incorrect one is something where they've made a pretty good back swing but then it's the idea of hitting it so all the sudden it's the hands or the arms that come quickly thrown over the top gets a little bit steeper and then from there to trouble. OK So if we're not going to start it from the top of the swing you mention starting at lower down if you've got a drill to reach just utterly like so we want to get some weight transferring towards the target we want to start from ground up forwards and what we want to be doing is shifting our weight from maybe being slightly in the trail side more into the lead side. So what we're going to do is give you a step drill to trying to get that sorted for us. So what we're going to be doing is something where we start with the ball just in line with our lead foot here then we'd be swinging up to the top of our back swing and our first motion now is actually to make a step and then start the downswing.

From looking at you with the amusement how much you expect us to walk into this shot you tell me you know walk into a shot. Yes because what we're doing is you're walking into this golf shot now that weights now going forward you get that into that left foot into your lead foot. What it's not doing but we say a lot of the time it's something where it's over the top from here and then we're coming back behind the golf ball seeing all kinds of problems so what we're looking for in the drill is the sensation of transferring that weight forward to give us a better weight transfer and get the transition started correctly. Definitely yes so I've got one on the peg here have only got a 7 iron now and it's not that I'm trying to hit it to my full distance it's just that I'm going to go sort of a slower motion sort of 60 percent of my normal swing speed. Maybe a three quarter swing but more focused on this starting movement the the actual moving of to the golf ball. You given me a tee peg as well so the tee peg makes life a little bit easier so we can see this ball up a relatively short club we're not trying to hit full power shots and certainly this step in doesn't actually sound that tricky because it definitely does get that body were moving in the right direction. So a few practice swings we can feel it happen it's going to show us one. I am going to give it a go so like a side narrowest stance good set up still once we are in that it's the feeling that we're swinging it three quarters halfway back a little bit smoother and then start it with a step to get the strike so we'd be here, and a really nice crisp contact down and we can see it's ball then divot. The really important point of that exercise and is that he did still hit the floor but you very much hit the floor As soon as you struck the golf ball and that was because you moved your body weight correctly. You had to move your body weight you know hit the ground behind the ball for fat shot thin shot.

Exactly like you say want to get this poor transition starting from the top with them playing catchup with the rest of the body the club is going to out race the rest of the body and what we will see something where the club is now bottoms out early or if we know that's going to happen we'll get one where we'll jump up lean back get a thin shot will get you know a whole lot of different shots as we're going. So something where we get the step drill it's just getting this starting of the transition more into something where we go from the bottom and work upward. If we were doing that step drill on the driving range 25 balls doing that? Yeah definitely it's like you know when it first adjusted it seems a little bit crazy so allowing us to get a feeling of this new weight transfer going forwards. Even just having small practice swings here just getting used to each time starting with a little step once were comfortable with that hit a few, go through sort of 20 to 25 balls then give a few where we're going to go again just smaller swing just getting used to this new feeling. Once you've changed to a new shot with your wider stance it will be feeling a little press in that lead for as you start down just a little press into your lead heel, and that's going to give you the feeling of transferring the weight as opposed to starting with the hands from the top. So even when we go back to the normal stance we physically take a step but it feels like we really move into the left side as if we would step into it move into the left side turn through and we keep the same body weight transfer as if we're stepping even though we're not doing that any longer. I think that's a really fantastic drill and I think that's going to help an awful lot of golfers. Any golfers that feel like they're getting on the back foot. Any golfers that feel like the reverse pivoting anyone that ever follows through and thinks I should be on my front side but I'm not too much. That little stepping exercise sounds like it could be really helpful. Next time you're at the range or the practice ground tee up 25 balls as much suggested a little 7 iron shots pointing out there at about a 100 yards. See if you can build that stepping exercise and that body weight into your fall swings for crisper straighter longer and shots.

2018-11-15

In this videotape PGA golf professionals Pete Styles and Matt Fryer will enable you to start your golf downswing with a much smoother and more balanced transition. By talking you through a step by step process where your feet move throughout your swing. This should result in a body weight movement that drives better towards your target and ultimately improve the consistency and the fluidity of your golf downswing.

Matt would it be fair to say that quite often you see golfers get to the golf club in the top position quite nicely but then coming down to the golf ball they don't quite move correctly. Yeah definitely in transition from back swing into downswing there's something not quite right there and we need to try and figure out and help the people get it right. So we've understood that we've addressed the ball correctly we've turned to the top nicely. You highlighted the key word there transition some people get stuck in transition they make the incorrect motion in transition that leads to poor shots poor strikes poor follow through. How do we get transition? Right OK so what we need to understand is how are we going to start off and what will see most commonly in our lessons is that it started from the top of the swing which is as we know incorrect we actually want to start it from the ground up. So generally the incorrect one is something where they've made a pretty good back swing but then it's the idea of hitting it so all the sudden it's the hands or the arms that come quickly thrown over the top gets a little bit steeper and then from there to trouble. OK So if we're not going to start it from the top of the swing you mention starting at lower down if you've got a drill to reach just utterly like so we want to get some weight transferring towards the target we want to start from ground up forwards and what we want to be doing is shifting our weight from maybe being slightly in the trail side more into the lead side. So what we're going to do is give you a step drill to trying to get that sorted for us. So what we're going to be doing is something where we start with the ball just in line with our lead foot here then we'd be swinging up to the top of our back swing and our first motion now is actually to make a step and then start the downswing.

From looking at you with the amusement how much you expect us to walk into this shot you tell me you know walk into a shot. Yes because what we're doing is you're walking into this golf shot now that weights now going forward you get that into that left foot into your lead foot. What it's not doing but we say a lot of the time it's something where it's over the top from here and then we're coming back behind the golf ball seeing all kinds of problems so what we're looking for in the drill is the sensation of transferring that weight forward to give us a better weight transfer and get the transition started correctly. Definitely yes so I've got one on the peg here have only got a 7 iron now and it's not that I'm trying to hit it to my full distance it's just that I'm going to go sort of a slower motion sort of 60 percent of my normal swing speed. Maybe a three quarter swing but more focused on this starting movement the the actual moving of to the golf ball. You given me a tee peg as well so the tee peg makes life a little bit easier so we can see this ball up a relatively short club we're not trying to hit full power shots and certainly this step in doesn't actually sound that tricky because it definitely does get that body were moving in the right direction. So a few practice swings we can feel it happen it's going to show us one. I am going to give it a go so like a side narrowest stance good set up still once we are in that it's the feeling that we're swinging it three quarters halfway back a little bit smoother and then start it with a step to get the strike so we'd be here, and a really nice crisp contact down and we can see it's ball then divot. The really important point of that exercise and is that he did still hit the floor but you very much hit the floor As soon as you struck the golf ball and that was because you moved your body weight correctly. You had to move your body weight you know hit the ground behind the ball for fat shot thin shot.

Exactly like you say want to get this poor transition starting from the top with them playing catchup with the rest of the body the club is going to out race the rest of the body and what we will see something where the club is now bottoms out early or if we know that's going to happen we'll get one where we'll jump up lean back get a thin shot will get you know a whole lot of different shots as we're going. So something where we get the step drill it's just getting this starting of the transition more into something where we go from the bottom and work upward. If we were doing that step drill on the driving range 25 balls doing that? Yeah definitely it's like you know when it first adjusted it seems a little bit crazy so allowing us to get a feeling of this new weight transfer going forwards. Even just having small practice swings here just getting used to each time starting with a little step once were comfortable with that hit a few, go through sort of 20 to 25 balls then give a few where we're going to go again just smaller swing just getting used to this new feeling. Once you've changed to a new shot with your wider stance it will be feeling a little press in that lead for as you start down just a little press into your lead heel, and that's going to give you the feeling of transferring the weight as opposed to starting with the hands from the top. So even when we go back to the normal stance we physically take a step but it feels like we really move into the left side as if we would step into it move into the left side turn through and we keep the same body weight transfer as if we're stepping even though we're not doing that any longer. I think that's a really fantastic drill and I think that's going to help an awful lot of golfers. Any golfers that feel like they're getting on the back foot. Any golfers that feel like the reverse pivoting anyone that ever follows through and thinks I should be on my front side but I'm not too much. That little stepping exercise sounds like it could be really helpful. Next time you're at the range or the practice ground tee up 25 balls as much suggested a little 7 iron shots pointing out there at about a 100 yards. See if you can build that stepping exercise and that body weight into your fall swings for crisper straighter longer and shots.