Drills geared to correct right-hand move (1)

By Kim Jeong-kyoo

You need to have a good grasp of how to use your right arm and hand throughout your swing. Using them wrongly causes a range of poor shots such as fat or thin shots, slices and hooks. Critically, this robs you of power and distance, plus accuracy. Here are three drills that can help the correct use of the right hand.

1. Picture you’re hitting a forehand in tennis

The dynamics of a golf swing resemble that of a forehand shot in tennis. Think of a tennis player hitting a hard, baseline forehand with topspin. Picture the ball just barely clearing the net and curving back down towards the ground. A forehand is a shot in which the palm of your right hand faces the direction where you hit the ball.

Thinking of a forehand will help swing your right arm correctly, promoting timely forearm rotation through the shot. Rotation of your right forearm encourages draws and launches the ball with lower spin. Low spin equals more roll and longer distance, especially when you hit into the wind. Hitting a topspin forehand creates great forward energy.

Thinking of producing a forehand also prevents too early a weight shift to the forward leg. This, in turn, allows you to swing from inside the target line. Importantly, this purges your mind of the complicated mechanics of the swing, helping you hit better shots with improved technique.

Next time when you practice, pretend you’re hitting a forehand in tennis with your right hand, every time you swing. You will soon master the correct way of using your right arm and hand. This drill will work wonders especially for players that struggle with big slices and pulls to the left.

2. Swing with your right arm alone

Make a normal swing with your right arm and hand only. Make sure that your arm is free of tension. Feel your club head lag behind and then catch the ball as you swing through the ball.

This will give you a feel for how your right arm should work during the swing. This will also help carry out the correct way to hinge your wrist, allowing you to fold your elbow properly. Also, you’ll feel pressure correctly in the end three fingers of your right hand. To produce solid strikes, you need to avoid holding the club between the thumb and forefinger of your right hand. Also, you will stop picking the club abruptly straight up. You’ll swing your right arm back and around your body as if you’re throwing a ball.

3. Toss the ball underhanded to an intended target

To use your right hand correctly, you need to make an athletic movement. A great way to do this is just practicing tossing the ball underhand to an intended target.

Pick up a golf ball and create an imaginary address position. Then, toss the ball underhanded toward a target about 10 yards away. Simulate a golf swing, allowing your weight to shift naturally to the right as you wind up. Also, turn your back to the target and release the ball the way you’d release the club at impact.

Critically, toss the ball toward your intended target. Take care to avoid tossing the ball to the left. Committing this fault, you will have slices thrust on you. Flinging your right arms across your body means an outside-to-in swing path. That brings about pulls and pull-slices.

Also, avoid allowing your right foot to spin out. You need to shift your weight to your left foot at the start of the downswing. But you must do it without letting your right heel come off the ground.

Just fold your right arm in an ‘L’ position at the top and open your right palm at impact. Also, let your ball start slightly right of the target. For solid strikes, you need to do the same when you swing for real.

Importantly, avoid trying too much to hold your club firmly or securely with both hands as you finish your swing. It is all right even if you finish your swing with your left hand mainly gripping the club. It is not a bad move to finish with only your right-hand fingers touching the handle. Don’t be afraid to complete your swing with your right palm off the grip. That shows you have used your right hand correctly to release the club fully. You will stop plunging into a lunge of your upper body forward ahead of the ball.