Proper wrist cock spawns more speed, distance, control (1)
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By Kim Jeong-kyoo
Korea Times Golf Columnist
The golf swing comprises two moves: a lateral move performed by body rotation and vertical move carried out by arm swing. To hit your ball farther and straighter, you need to blend these two into one harmoniously. Importantly, you need to let your body and your arms do their own business.
You need to avoid swinging your club sideways with your arms and hands. Similarly, you need to avoid trying to swing your club up and down with your body. Letting your arms and hands do what your body has to do, you will be in hot water. Letting your body do what your arms and hands have to do, you’ll equally have trouble swinging your club effectively.
You need to swing your club up and down with your arms and hands, not with your body. To do this successfully, you need to hinge your wrists correctly so they work like a flail.
The conventional theory dictates you need to hinge your wrists straight up and down like when you’re using a mini-hammer or mallet. In theory, the most natural and strongest way for your wrists to hinge is straight up and down. Hinging your wrists sideways places too much strain on your hands and arms. This makes it hard to use your wrists properly.
However, you don’t need to stick to this prevalent theory. When you throw a ball underhand, you don’t cock your wrist straight up and down. You hinge your wrist sideways. You also hinge your wrist sideways when you skip a stone on the lake. That feels just natural.
How you grip your club decides your wrist hinge. To let your wrists hinge straight up and down, try gripping your club with your left-hand V pointing right of your right shoulder. Critically, grip your club so your right-hand V points vertically toward your chin or left ear. Your strong left-hand grip will help you close the clubface sooner through your shot, promoting beautiful draws. Your weak right-hand grip will help you cock your wrists up and down.
To hinge your wrists sideways like when you swing a baseball bat, let your right-hand V point toward your right ear or shoulder.
To hinge your wrists freely and fully, you’d better tighten only the last two or three fingers of your left hand. You need to feel you’re gripping your club with your pinky and ring fingers, and perhaps your middle finger.
You’d better experiment with whatever grip position helps you hinge your wrists the way you want. Once you find your right grip, you will start hitting your ball longer and more consistently.
Don’t try to take your club away from your ball too low to the ground by using your hands. That delays proper wrist hinge until too late. Also, don’t try to swing your arms too far back to widen your swing arc. That causes a breakdown in your posture, often inflicting a reverse pivot on you. That also prevents your proper wrist hinge, causing poor shots and a lack of distance and control. Typically, you’d better start hinging your wrists at the end of your takeaway, when your left hand reaches in front of your right thigh.
Three simple ways here will help you hinge your wrists correctly, allowing you to swing your arms and club properly. Hinging your wrists better, you’ll hit your ball longer and more accurately. You’ll swing your club on plane and on the correct path.
Press down on your club handle with heel pad of your left hand
Swing your clubhead back, fixing your mind’s eye on your target. Once you’ve moved your clubhead, push down on your club handle with the heel pad of your left hand. Done this correctly, the butt end of your handle will quickly point toward the ground.
That allows you to hinge your wrists correctly upward, enabling you to swing your club back on plane. That also helps you set up your backswing correctly so your club, arms and body reach the top simultaneously.
Coming down, you need to unhinge your wrists downward fully through your shot. Whack your ball full tilt with a downward blow, using your left hand. You’ll effortlessly hit your ball farther and straighter.
Equally important is pressing down on your club handle with the heel pad of your left hand through your shot. Start doing this before your left hand goes past your left thigh. That ensures you re-hinge your wrists upward correctly. This helps you gain extra speed.
Briefly, press down on your club handle as you swing your club back and swing through your shot. To do this properly, you’d better grip your club firmly with the last two or three fingers of your left hand.
Let your left thumb point at your right shoulder quickly
During the takeaway, let your hands stay close to the ground, allowing your clubhead to move up quickly. That allows you to hinge your wrists properly.
To this end, try to let your left thumb point at your right shoulder as soon as possible. You’ve hinged your wrists properly if the club shaft is at right angles to your left arm about chest-high. That helps you stop swinging your arms too far back, making your golf swing more compact.
Chop down a tree
Imagining a familiar motion, you can easily hinge your wrists correctly and swing your arms properly. Imagery sets you completely free from complicated swing mechanics, enabling you to make a fluid, effortless swing.
Picture yourself swinging an axe to chop down a tree. Once you’ve swung your club back by turning your body, swing your arms up as if you’re cutting down a tree. Start cocking your wrists at the end of your takeaway. You will hinge your wrists right, swinging your club on plane.
Picturing you’re chopping down a tree, you’ll add a powerful snap to your swing. You’ll instinctively extend your spine to create power going back. Importantly, you’ll unhinge your wrists downward at a timely moment coming down.
Critically, unhinge your wrists fully so your clubhead stays below your hands about hip-high.
A few words of emphasis: Hinge your wrists again after you hit your ball. Take care to cock your wrists straight upward the way you did going back.
Undoubtedly, proper, full wrist hinge is important, but more important is swinging your club rhythmically at your natural tempo. Granted, you need to keep your balance throughout your swing. Without good rhythm and tempo, plus balance, there is no whacking your ball solidly.