IT'S GOOD FOR YOUR GAME

Wrist hinge opens door

to powerful swing

One of the most important angles in your swing is the one created by your trail wrist as it bends into a “hinged” position at the top of your backswing. Relax your arms, and your wrist will do this naturally in response to the momentum of your backswing.

During the downswing, strong forces pulling on the clubhead can cause golfers to lose the crucial trail wrist hinge much too early. To avoid this power loss, practice holding your trail wrist angle in place from the top of your backswing all the way through the impact zone.

At first, keeping your wrist bent (concave) longer than you’re used to will feel like you can’t square the clubface in time for impact. But you’ll soon realize that doing so will allow you to square the clubface to the ball with power, not by manipulating the clubface with your hands, but through the proper rotation of your body.

At the top of the swing, Boo Weekley folds his trail wrist so his palm faces the sky. But many golfers lose the angle formed by their trail wrist too early on the forward swing. The remedy is to practice holding your trail wrist angle in place all the way down to the ball, as Fred Couples does in the photo at right.

A word of caution: while focusing on keeping your trail wrist bent, make sure to allow your trail elbow to straighten naturally as you swing the club toward the ball.