Let the left forearm rotate naturally
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By Kim Jeong-kyoo
Korea Times Golf Columnist
A sure-fire way to maximize distance is to rotate the left arm clockwise on the way back and counter-clockwise on the way down. For a good backswing, you need to start swinging the club back by pushing the club head with the outside muscles of the left forearm, which naturally rotates clockwise.
This natural forearm rotation helps create an optimum swing arc, allowing the club to work on the correct plane and path. It also facilitates the rotation of the shoulders and hips, presenting a good chance of completing the backswing.
Better yet, it encourages a natural reaction that drops the club into the slot on the downswing.
Crucially, that allows you to catapult the club into the ball, maximizing the clubhead speed through the ball.
Average golfers tend to rotate the left hand instead of the left forearm. For control and consistency, it's imperative to turn the left forearm rather than the left hand on the way back and the way down. The hands need to stay relatively quiet throughout the swing.
Turning hands and wrists results in a hands-heavy or wrist-heavy swing, costing consistency and accuracy. It also decreases the overall swing arc, presenting very little chance of hitting to your potential distance. The hands need to simply hold the club during the entire swing.
Crucial to correct left forearm rotation in the backswing is the proper grip of the left hand, which needs to be neutral. Too strong a grip tends to cause the club to swing back on a path that is overly inside the ball-target line, forcing the left arm to be wrongly above the right prematurely during the early stage of the backswing.
Similarly, too weak a grip tends to cause the club to work outside the ball-target line in the takeaway, making it hard to rotate the forearm effectively. Despite the usual forearm rotation, too weak a grip will spell an open clubface alignment at impact.
The correct feel of the left-forearm rotation is similar to that of a baseball swing. All you have to do for a proper rotation is swing the club back and forth as if you were swinging a baseball bat.
Another way to get a feel for a perfect forearm rotation during the swing is to imagine yourself hitting a backhand with your left hand.
Recreational golfers tend to be afraid to rotate the left arm going back in fear that the clubface is overly open. However, you don't have to worry about that. As an action triggers an equal reaction, so does a clockwise rotation of the left forearm in the backswing bring about the same amount of counterclockwise rotation in the downswing. You will hit the ball with the clubface aligned squarely or slightly closed.
Neglecting to rotate the left forearm can cause the club to move on too upright a plane, resulting in an outside-to-in swing path that causes a slice. That can also cause you to tilt your body to the left into a reverse pivot.
A lot of weekend players tend to fall into the trap of believing that a good backswing means to raise the hands and club high above the head at the top. That's not correct. It is as well to feel that the inside of the left forearm is facing the ground at the top. To get the body to rotate fully and properly behind the ball rather than to be lifted up, you need to turn your left forearm, which enables your body to rotate properly.
In an ideal golf swing, the left forearm rotates in proportion to the shoulder turn, both going back and coming down. Most importantly, it continues to rotate clockwise until the chin hits against the top of the left shoulder on the backswing and counter-clockwise all the way to the final stage when the swing is actually completed into a perfect, balanced finish.
A great way to get a feel for the proper rotation of the left forearm is to swing without a club. Stand erect and make a level swing back and through. Swinging this way, you should feel that the arms rotate automatically. After doing this a couple of times, grab a club and repeat the same swing a few times.
Now, take your normal address posture and make some swings, feeling the same rotation. Finally, tee up a ball and give it a good whack. You will find it easy and natural to turn your forearms during the swing. You will also find yourself hitting it farther and straighter. On the course, just try to get the same feeling.