Golf Pro JB Holmes: Short Powerful Swing (Video) - by Pete Styles
Golf Pro JB Holmes: Short Powerful Swing (Video) - by Pete Styles

JB Holmes is another golfer who has a slightly less than conventional golf swing. He makes a very short back swing, but JB Holmes is renowned as one of the longest hitters on the tour, so how does he achieve this? And can you learn from it?

So Holmes is a very short, stocky, powerfully build player. He only turns the golf club back to a short position, without a massive or deep wrist hinge. So he’s not long around the back, like maybe an Ernie Ells or somebody like that, he’s a very short, stocky player round here. Drives the ball incredibly far by holding a very, very late wrist hinge, lagging the golf club quite a lot, and then releasing right at the last minute. His big power comes from his transition, how he’s short to the top, drive down to the golf ball here with a big pull of the hips, a big late wrist hinge and a then nicely releasing on the way through.

There’s a couple of errors in here I think. If you’re a golfer who struggles with accuracy, but not distance, so you hit the ball far enough, but you don’t hit the ball very straight, actually shortening your golf swing could be a positive step for you. If you’re getting to long, particularly if you got the old bent left arm at the top, a shorter swing may give you a little bit more control. But don’t then make a short swing and try to leather the ball as hard as you can, because that would upset your rhythm and your balance. So if you’re going to make a shorter, more controlled action, just trust that there is enough power in this action to hit the ball a long way.

The other area that I’d like you to concentrate at is that if you leave your wrist too late to the golf ball, you need to have incredibly good hand action to square that up. And particularly when you’re hitting a driver, I don’t think having a deep wrist hit you this late on in your swing is that beneficial. I’d rather you swing with width and not to short, and then get your arms back out away from you again, to turn through. Much more of a one piece connected impact position.

So, this movement works for J B Holmes, but I'm not convinced that most golfers, and I spend practicing a lot to get that movement right, but I don’t think many people will find it beneficial. But a shorter swing could be a key to keeping the ball straighter, but not too much distance.

 2012-04-25

JB Holmes is another golfer who has a slightly less than conventional golf swing. He makes a very short back swing, but JB Holmes is renowned as one of the longest hitters on the tour, so how does he achieve this? And can you learn from it?

So Holmes is a very short, stocky, powerfully build player. He only turns the golf club back to a short position, without a massive or deep wrist hinge. So he’s not long around the back, like maybe an Ernie Ells or somebody like that, he’s a very short, stocky player round here. Drives the ball incredibly far by holding a very, very late wrist hinge, lagging the golf club quite a lot, and then releasing right at the last minute. His big power comes from his transition, how he’s short to the top, drive down to the golf ball here with a big pull of the hips, a big late wrist hinge and a then nicely releasing on the way through.

There’s a couple of errors in here I think. If you’re a golfer who struggles with accuracy, but not distance, so you hit the ball far enough, but you don’t hit the ball very straight, actually shortening your golf swing could be a positive step for you. If you’re getting to long, particularly if you got the old bent left arm at the top, a shorter swing may give you a little bit more control. But don’t then make a short swing and try to leather the ball as hard as you can, because that would upset your rhythm and your balance. So if you’re going to make a shorter, more controlled action, just trust that there is enough power in this action to hit the ball a long way.

The other area that I’d like you to concentrate at is that if you leave your wrist too late to the golf ball, you need to have incredibly good hand action to square that up. And particularly when you’re hitting a driver, I don’t think having a deep wrist hit you this late on in your swing is that beneficial. I’d rather you swing with width and not to short, and then get your arms back out away from you again, to turn through. Much more of a one piece connected impact position.

So, this movement works for J B Holmes, but I'm not convinced that most golfers, and I spend practicing a lot to get that movement right, but I don’t think many people will find it beneficial. But a shorter swing could be a key to keeping the ball straighter, but not too much distance.