Key Points To Help You Stay Behind The Golf Ball (Video) - by Pete Styles
Key Points To Help You Stay Behind The Golf Ball (Video) - by Pete Styles

If we now start to look at some of the key movements within the swing that are going to help you to keep your head back behind the golf ball, we’ve started with the setup position. We've now got a good wide stance, right shoulder a bit lower, hands a little bit forwards. This is a great position now to start the swing from to make sure we return with our head behind the ball. But this could all go very badly wrong if during the backswing, we sway to the right hand side. This is an awkward position. Now where I've got my bodyweight too far to my little toe on my right side. The problem from here it’s generally going to look like a sway back to the left and my head had ended up too far forwards. Or I’ve swayed so far I’ll end up all on my back leg, not clearing, not getting my body through the ball that's going to cause problems. So the sway is not a good thing in the back swing.

What it should look like is a turn. We should turn into the right leg. So I am putting pressure on the instep of my right foot. Yes my head is moving back slightly and it's well back behind the ball. But it's in a balanced control position. One other area we’ve got to be careful of here as I move back nicely but then as the golf club comes up it goes too far. And as it comes too far, I start to sway and lean back on to my left hand side too much. So we end up with a sort of reversing pivot where I'm on my left leg. The only way to go from here would be back to my right. That's going to cause problems as well. So it's a nice balance of putting pressure on your right side, loading up, letting the head move back slightly but not swaying. Now in the downswing drive from the hips, rotate through to the left hand side, rotating the hips this way. Notice that’s not a slide back to the left hand side too much. The hips move a little bit laterally. And then they rotate very aggressively and quickly. My left leg, my front leg at the point of impact is actually going to be quite straight. Some people refer to this as posting the left leg or snapping the left knee. So as we swing down, that left side will post back and snap out, then I've got my head back behind the ball for impact on a good strong release through. So it's nicely to the top, snap it back, head behind the ball, bodyweight through the ball. It’s more bodyweight here than there is here and I'm driving and moving that way. Now my head will finish a long way forwards. But at the point of impact my head stays back behind the ball and then it’s up through to a nice big finish. And hopefully utilizing those techniques, you can start to feel your impact is getting better. Your distance is getting further and better quality strikes because your head is now behind the ball for impact. 2016-08-17

If we now start to look at some of the key movements within the swing that are going to help you to keep your head back behind the golf ball, we’ve started with the setup position. We've now got a good wide stance, right shoulder a bit lower, hands a little bit forwards. This is a great position now to start the swing from to make sure we return with our head behind the ball. But this could all go very badly wrong if during the backswing, we sway to the right hand side. This is an awkward position. Now where I've got my bodyweight too far to my little toe on my right side. The problem from here it’s generally going to look like a sway back to the left and my head had ended up too far forwards. Or I’ve swayed so far I’ll end up all on my back leg, not clearing, not getting my body through the ball that's going to cause problems. So the sway is not a good thing in the back swing.

What it should look like is a turn. We should turn into the right leg. So I am putting pressure on the instep of my right foot. Yes my head is moving back slightly and it's well back behind the ball. But it's in a balanced control position. One other area we’ve got to be careful of here as I move back nicely but then as the golf club comes up it goes too far. And as it comes too far, I start to sway and lean back on to my left hand side too much. So we end up with a sort of reversing pivot where I'm on my left leg. The only way to go from here would be back to my right. That's going to cause problems as well. So it's a nice balance of putting pressure on your right side, loading up, letting the head move back slightly but not swaying. Now in the downswing drive from the hips, rotate through to the left hand side, rotating the hips this way. Notice that’s not a slide back to the left hand side too much.

The hips move a little bit laterally. And then they rotate very aggressively and quickly. My left leg, my front leg at the point of impact is actually going to be quite straight. Some people refer to this as posting the left leg or snapping the left knee. So as we swing down, that left side will post back and snap out, then I've got my head back behind the ball for impact on a good strong release through. So it's nicely to the top, snap it back, head behind the ball, bodyweight through the ball. It’s more bodyweight here than there is here and I'm driving and moving that way. Now my head will finish a long way forwards. But at the point of impact my head stays back behind the ball and then it’s up through to a nice big finish. And hopefully utilizing those techniques, you can start to feel your impact is getting better. Your distance is getting further and better quality strikes because your head is now behind the ball for impact.