By Kim Jeong-kyoo
Achieving a solid, powerful strike greatly depends on starting with a correct setup. This consists of establishing four proper body angles: a forward tilt of the spine toward the ball from the hips, side tilting the spine to the right away from the target; hips inclined and knees flexed.
To hit the ball far and straight on a consistent basis it's essential to create these four angles properly at address and maintain them during the entire swing. Provided that these four body angles are created, the rest of other setup fundamentals will look after themselves.
No doubt, the first element of a sound setup is a forward bend of the body toward the ball. Correctly leaning the body forward toward the ball allows the shoulders, knees and feet to be stacked so they line up vertically. That means a balanced posture.
Too much upper-body inclination toward the ball sets the shoulders too far forward. When this happens, the shoulders cannot be properly positioned forcing you to stand up during the downswing, with the end result being a thin shot.
Worse yet, an excessive forward bend of the upper body restricts body movement, making it hard to swing the club freely. That also inhibits square delivery of the clubface to the ball, causing wayward shots.
Equally crucial to sound setup is the side tilt of the backbone to the right away from the target. That presets the upper body in the desired backswing position, allowing you to slot the club into the downswing path. You will deliver the club through the ball on the correct path that is from inside to out, clearing the way for added power and precision.
Likewise, for a correct setup that encourages greater distance and accuracy you need to bend the hips correctly. Hip positions determine the forward tilt of the spine and vice versa.
Recreational golfers tend to bend from the stomach rather than from the hips. This causes a roundness in the upper back, bringing about a variety of swing faults.
In the golf swing the spine functions as a fixed central axis and the main key to solid strikes is a full shoulder turn around the axis. After all, allowing the back to become rounded at address means a bent or twisted axis. There is no way that you can turn properly if you have to rotate your shoulders around a crooked axis.
Another requisite for a sound setup is bending at the knees. As with all other angles, the knee flex created at address needs to be maintained during the entire swing, at least till the end of the impact.
You'd better bend the knees as slightly as you can. Bending the knees too much at address tends to cause you to straighten them on the downswing. This means a superfluous knee movement, also meaning less-than-solid shots. For a simple, repeatable golf swing your knee and hip movements need to be as simple as possible so that your swing becomes compact.
It's true that you need to use the lower body to produce power and distance, but basically, the lower body does nothing but assist the upper body in delivering the clubhead squarely to the ball on the proper path.
Standing taller with a slight bend at the knees is better than overly bending the body forward. A good setup position demands that the forward tilt of the shins approximates to that of the spine.
A good way to get a feel for a correct setup is to stand over the ball as if you were walking on the fairway.
To set up properly by establishing the four body angles correctly, start with an upright standing posture, bend forward from the hip sockets with the bodyweight on the balls of the feet, then slightly bend your knees.
You need to be sure that your pelvis bends, not your stomach. Also essential is sticking out your rear end behind the heel line so the spine remains straight. To rid the back of roundness you need to bend the hips first and then flex the knees, not the other way around.
Finally, to complete the setup, tilt your spine slightly to the right away from the target so that your right side ― right hip, shoulder and knee ― are all lower than their respective equivalents on the left.