DRILL – Head Behind Ball Three Quarter Swings

By | on September 3, 2013 | 24 Comments |


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Paul Wilson is the creator of Swing Machine Golf and founder of Ignition Golf. Paul's golf swing technique is based on the Iron Byron swing machine. YouTube Channels: Paul Wilson Golf and Ignition Golf Tips. Please Join me on Google+

24 Responses to “DRILL – Head Behind Ball Three Quarter Swings”

  1. September 4, 2013

    HermanKoh

    Paul,

    I know you don’t teach impact. However I am curious at impact for irons should the club shaft be leaning ahead(forward) of the ball?

    Thanks.
    Herman

  2. September 4, 2013

    mikeplummer

    Hi Paul,
    Until this tip I thought I might never be co-ordinated enough to feel Swing Machine Golf. Just got back from the range and honestly I started with quite a few fat shots and then I don’t know if your mind and body adjust or what. But staying behind the ball the direction of the shot took care of itself. The ball had a very slight draw to straight! I saw your example the other night of someone who swings with their arms while trying to touch the legs and that would be me. I think I need to stay with this drill before bringing in the legs although I did turn just a little. Right now I don’t plan on distance, just staying behind the ball and watch the direction.
    Thanks for looking for more and more ways to get us to feel the effortless power available through your method. I was thinking that it wasn’t for me, but this gives me hope!
    Thanks,
    Mike

    • September 4, 2013

      Paul Wilson

      Mike,

      When you fire the lower body your body should be staying behind the ball through and past impact. If yours isn’t you would not have using the lower body properly. This tip is just an easy way to feel it. I have done numerous tips in the past about the body tilt affecting the direction of your shots. This is just another way to get it.

      Definitely stick to this for now until you get used to it. Keep watching your ball and it will tell you if you are doing it or not.

  3. September 4, 2013

    AndrewMah

    Hi Paul

    Awesome tip. Will do this one for sure. I know mention if you fire your legs properly, this will automatically help you tilt the correct way, with the result of having your head behind the ball at impact. In the previous tip, you mention, how you have some students who will fire the legs but STILL come over the top. My two questions are :

    a) what is causing you to still come over the top if you fire the legs and initate the swing from you legs? Is it because your upper body overides this by tilting to the left and lunging at the ball?
    b) how do you fix this? a) fire legs even more aggressively? or b) manually focus on positioning and keeping the tilt away and manually keeping head behind the ball?

    I guess, my question is really asking, if you do follow the “touch your knees/touch your head” approach but still hit over the top, what is the best way to fix this? Do you almost need a mental reminder, and even physical muscle memory of knowing what it is like to stay behind it ( hence the need for this drill)

    your advice?

    many thanks
    Andrew

    • September 4, 2013

      Paul Wilson

      Andrew,

      People still come over the top because although they think they are firing the lower body they are also increasing the hitting action with the arms. I am only firing the lower body. If you threw a ball overhand you would do the perfect move. You body would angle back, your arm would be loose etc. With golf the ball is sitting here and you are trying to hit it. I have trained myself not to hit it.

      How to fix this is to do the proper leg action with the arms turned off or manually fix it. The longer you do not have this tilt the longer you are coming over the top. So fix it anyway you can then turn the arms off later.

      The physical reminder would be to watch the back of the ball as you go back and come down. Just get into the habit of doing this.

  4. September 4, 2013

    JaySchwarz

    Paul,

    I hit upon a swing thought last weekend that produced some excellent results, and wanted to run it by you.

    From the top, using my downswing trigger, the thought was for my right hip to turn past the ball before the club head got there.

    I doubt this was really happening, but that thought created solid impact and some real distance. Great divots, too.

    Make any sense?

    Thanks!

    • September 4, 2013

      Paul Wilson

      Jay,

      This is a great thought. Anything the gets the person to get moving their lower body is good. People DO NOT use their lower body because they do not trust it, they do not understand why or how, they are trying to hit the object in front of them and/or they have hit the ball for so many years it is engrained into their swing.

      If this is getting you to fire the lower body harder and faster keep doing it. Remember what I say, “it is an unmistakable feeling of using the legs and hips.”

  5. Hi, I do exactly what Jay explains in the last question because I learned this before I knew about your method and it works so very well. No arms at all. Nice straight shots, flush and high. But I cannot get enough distance…my pro says to add the arms after the hips start off but I can’t get the timing… Thanks. Michelle

    • September 4, 2013

      Paul Wilson

      Michelle,

      To gain power you need loose wrists and faster rotational speed of the body. With looser wrists comes more lag. More lag and the club whips faster. I have seen your swing and I think you need more lag. You should be working on all of the different lag drills I have on the site. This one especially:

      Lag And Release Drill: https://ignitiongolf.com/lag-release-drill

      Find the other ones under SWING TIPS > FULL SWING > LAG

  6. September 4, 2013

    johngatti

    This is one of the best tips in a long time. This one is great

    • September 4, 2013

      Paul Wilson

      John,

      I spent 6 hours editing the tip on the body tilt with different clubs. You didn’t think that was good? I guess I need to take less time. Glad you liked it.

  7. September 5, 2013

    RaymondCHASTEL

    Paul ,This drill exemplifies the instruction to keep the chin, and therefore the head ,directed towards a point behind the ball well after impact , almost until the swing is completed (I said “almost “). The chin turns in an opposite direction of the movement of the body ,while avoiding to forward bend the neck.
    I know this instruction is not popular with “modern “players ,but that ‘s the way it was taught to me 65 years ago by the then “classical ” and “orthodox “golf Teachers .Most players let their head swivel forwards much to early:DAVID DUVAL and ANNIKA SORESTAM ,both very great players ,stroke the ball this way!It did work well though for them.

    • September 5, 2013

      Paul Wilson

      Raymond,

      This is nothing to do with the chin and everything to do with staying behind the ball. Rotate your chin all you want I don’t care as long as you don’t lift out of the spine angle.

  8. September 26, 2013

    barrybower

    Hi Paul still not getting the daily golf tips, my question here is the feeling when you practise the 3/4 swing and then do normal swing.in the normal downswing should you physically feel the lower body starting first and then feel the upperbody catch up as you continue the downswing, in my practise swings i can feel this but in swing at ball its hard to distinguish lower and upper body movement which makes me think still using upperbody at start. is the slow swing drill 50% swing a good one to be doing to get the right feel.

    • September 26, 2013

      Paul Wilson

      Barry,

      You are going to b focused on the lower body. I am consciously not trying to hit the ball with my arms but I am not necessarily feeling like it is following. Keep in mind I have done his for so long I know it is happening. When it doesn’t my ball goes left.

      You should be watching your ball flight. If your ball starts left you are using your arms. If you are starting it at the target or right of target you are using your lower body. Slowing down is great to get the arms out of the swing because you cannot swing slowly if you are trying to hit hard with the arms. Getting used to this slow speed is critical. I would be starting out every practice session like this. Then as you go to increase your power you do so with the legs. Feel them start driving a little harder and watch the ball fly farther. Then do it again. If the ball starts going left slow it back down.

      I get the feeling your are close so keep doing the practice swings holding the club in the air and get used to this feeling. Keep watching your ball so you know if you are getting it or not. Keep working on mastering the swing positions so you look like a great golfer and incorporate the right fundamentals into your swing.

  9. September 28, 2013

    Tom

    Hi Paul, firstly absolutely love the site, your swing and your great golf instruction, thanks!

    I had this problem at the range today, keeping behind the ball. Funnily I spotted this tip a few times but didn’t think it was important and so never bothered to watch it.

    The pro at the range looked at my swing with video and pointed out that I was sometimes doing a reverse pivot and coming over the top with a steep angle of attack. I was also suffering with a low pull hook with my driver. He thinks I should have more weight on my back foot to keep behind the ball. Also my takeaway has creeped a little so need to revisit your takeaway tip.

    So I plan to practice this tip to keep behind the ball more. Should I also look at the related tips above or do you have any specific recommendations?

    Thanks, Tom

  10. October 9, 2013

    jasonstanley

    To me, this is a really important tip/drill, I missed this tip and have completely wasted the last 6 weeks practicing the wrong swing.

  11. October 9, 2013

    BillyCrouch

    Paul just finished reading the comments and your answers on this drill I think I got what I needed to know so I will keep working on this.

    • October 10, 2013

      Paul Wilson

      Billy,

      Very good. Give it a try and focus on staying behind it. This is vital in a good golf swing.

  12. October 15, 2013

    davidlockwood

    Hi Paul,
    Why oh why didn’t I pay attention to this tip when I first saw it? What a difference it’s made! But you were dead wrong about one thing in the video – I hit the ball further and straighter with better contact than ever before AS SOON as I started to tilt 🙂 Only the occasional fat shot when I didn’t move my lower body enough to get through the shot. Thanks!

    • October 16, 2013

      Paul Wilson

      David,

      Perfect. There is so much information on this site you just have to watch it and hear it. This is a huge breakthrough. Once this happens most people want to go harder and harder. When you go too hard it will fall apart so take it easy. Stay focused and repeat. Once you are used to it you can speed up (only the body rotation) in the future.

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