What To Feel In The Transition

By | on May 18, 2014 | 36 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+

36 Responses to “What To Feel In The Transition”

  1. Hi Paul,

    Your book has a section on disconnection -nowhere in your tips is this discussed.
    The piece of string comparison effectively means that the hinge is the shoulder not the wrists .
    My understanding is that the left arm needs to remain in the same position relative to the torso as at address . Just as the arm of the iron Byron is fixed thereby making the wrist the hinge.
    I find that by totally relaxing the arms they get left behind ie the shape of the triangle changes.-disconnection
    If my assumptions are correct then when learning the process it seems that a conscious effort is needed to hold the left arm in the correct postion until such time as it is automatic .

    Where am I wrong?

    Cheers

    Ian

    • September 13, 2014

      MM

      Paul
      I have the powerless arms thats what got my hc so low but I do struggle sometimes with the upper torso staying back to long. This can lead to numerous misses. When do you feel your torso coming through the shot ? Not the arms, the torso.Do you personally feel your WHOLE body turning through the shot when you trigger your legs ? or do you feel like your upper torso (shoulders etc.) staying back until the legs pull it through?

      thanks

      mm

      • September 14, 2014

        Paul Wilson

        Mike,

        When I am hitting the ball I am thinking legs and hips. It is an unmistakable feeling of powering the swing with them. So, I hit the top of the backswing. As soon as I set the club, I fire the lower body. If done right, the upper body will uncoil on its own. You never have to think about it.

        If you are staying back too long you are no firing the lower body properly and getting off of the back foot through impact. I would think this foot is flat on the ground at impact and/or your are sliding to start down. The more you slide the more the body angles behind the ball.

        All you have to do is work on getting off this back heel at impact.

        Watch:

        Impact Head Behind Ball: https://ignitiongolf.com/impact-head

        Stop Fat Shots When Working On Moving Your Head: https://ignitiongolf.com/fat-shots-moving-your-head/

        Also:

        Impact Back Heel Off Ground: https://ignitiongolf.com/impact-back-foot

        So, I feel the legs knowing full well if I fire them properly my upper will follow.

        • September 17, 2014

          MM

          Paul
          I do notice the knee working a little inward as im transferring. I wouldnt say Im flat footed but I can see the knee might need to work more “around”. Right now it starts to work around and then dips down and in which could definitely cause the excessive tilt.. hang back. I will give it a go and see what happens.

          m

          • September 17, 2014

            Paul Wilson

            Mike,

            Very good. I like it when people recognize things that need work in their swings. It means you care about developing a great swing instead of just beating balls thinking you are going to be great.

            Keep up the good work.

  2. Great video lesson. This weekend I had bad ball striking and felt like my arms were too involved. Your video shows me exactly what I was probably doing wrong and now I have to get back to the course or range. My only problem with saying your arms aren’t involved is are we actually using them to swing after we start the uncoiling? If not the arms will still be somewhere in the backswing while our lower body is turning towards that target. Is there any particular tip I should watch that will explain what I am probably over thinking?

  3. Hi Paul,

    Great video. During the rare time I can do this properly, that’s exactly what I feel (or don’t feel). The problem is that my body always seems to find a way to bring the arms back in. It’s frustrating because I know this method is the right way but I can not just get out of the way and let it happen. How much resistance is in your lower body as you turn back? Do you conscientiously set the lower body? I do not do that and I believe I lack the resistance needed to pull the swing together. Without the resistance i get zero power and can barely drive it 200 yds.

    Paul S.

    • Paul,

      You just have to keep telling yourself not to hit. Tell yourself to not be the hero and swing easy and hit the fairway. We all fight it … me included. Once you keep hitting fairways you get confident. Confidence breeds distance. So although when you first tone it done your friends may not idolize you they will in the future once you can do it faster.

      I feel tightly coiled as it hit the top. This is only for a split second though. As soon as I feel the tight coil I apply my trigger to go the other way.

      Consciously set the lower body? Not sure where you are talking about. I coil and consciously load onto the instep of the back foot. Then I consciously uncoil with the lower body. If I do not feel the weight shift I pull it.

      I worked hard on resisting the lower body rotation while coiling the upper body. I wish I was more flexible but I am not so I it takes effort to coil going back.

      I worked on these 2 things:

      How To Feel Stability In The Lower Body (back knee flex) https://ignitiongolf.com/lower-body-stability/

      How To Stabilize The Lower Body In The Backswing (belt buckle at ball): https://ignitiongolf.com/stabilize-lower-body/

  4. May 19, 2014

    tommeyer

    Paul, point of interest. It has taken me a year and a half to get to the point of getting my arms to turn off, not there entirely yet but getting closer. Doing your ” favorite drill ” daily has started this process plus the ” ear to ear” wrist drill daily. Hard to stop bad habits but your swing does work and for some of us it just takes longer than others.
    Thanks for making this game more fun to play and giving me the tools to work on to be more consistent, I am having a great time learning new things at 70.
    Tom

    • Tom,

      That’s great that you are feeling it. I find it interesting that people can’t immediately turn the arms off. That ball wants people to hit. The more ingrained it is the harder it is to get rid of it. Plus, personality hampers it too. The more hyper the person the harder it is to slow down. Stick to it. As I said to another member, think about hitting fairways. Once you do you gain confidence. Confidence breeds distance.

  5. May 19, 2014

    PaulKwon

    Hi Paul
    This is a useful confirmation for me.
    I hit a 6 iron for an hour yesterday and was getting the ball to fly straight with a strong grip.
    I was getting into nice finish position with the club shaft in between the ears, thighs tight together and left knee locked.
    When I took a video of of my swing – shock – It was the most out-in swing that I had done for a long time and my sore forearms today confirms it.
    So it looks like I forgot to keep the arms powerless out of the swing and did not realise that I was getting into these nice leg positions well after impact and not before and during impact. It is probably what I do late at rounds when my swings start to break down due to fatigue.
    One step back. Two steps forward.

    • Paul,

      Yes, if you were feeling your arms you were using them. Look at this sore feeling as confirmation or a gauge that you are hitting and avoid it into the future. Also, remember that driving the lower body properly should be tilting your upper body behind the ball in the downswing. So if you see the club swinging over the top immediately start feeling this tilt (even if you have to over do it or tilt manually). Anything to stop it coming over the top would be good so you don’t ingrain it.

  6. Hi Paul
    I find using a trigger to start the hips creates pain in my lower back when trying to separate the top from the bottom part of the body by the 10th lower back tightens up and it’s very difficult for my head to stay behind the ball and let the arms drop powerless sleep into the slot do you have any suggestions other than stretching before and during the round to stay loose in my lower back thanks Bruce

    • Bruce,

      This is probably because you are firing the lower body way to hard without being good at it. I would also suspect you are tuning the hips while staying flat footed on the back foot at impact. If you are do you are just twisting your hips. In no way should my golf swing be hurting your body. If it is you are doing it wrong.

      So slow down. You are not good at it. Get it slowly then gradually speed it up. Video your swing and look at your back foot through and past impact. This foot needs to be off the ground 3-4 inches with irons and 5-6 inches with woods.

      Watch:

      Impact Back Heel Off Ground: https://ignitiongolf.com/impact-back-foot

  7. May 19, 2014

    johnhoyle

    greetings Paul I just finished watching “Getting on the same page”.I have two thoughts ,on my backswing i wait to feel my wrist cock then i think touch on the downswing Yes No Thanks

    • John,

      Yes. You should not even hit it if your wrists are not hinged. This hinging shouldn’t even take more than a few weeks to get them to hinge all the time. Just work on it every day/night in practice swings. Get this so you no longer have to think about it. At this point you base the backswing on the tightness of the coil not the hinge because you know you are going to hinge it.

  8. May 20, 2014

    johnhoyle

    thanks coach

  9. Paul,

    Like many I am sure, the concept of powerless arms and not using the arms is not really a simple concept. I have watched most of your video tips and although it makes sense I have had a hard time grasping the powerless arms. The other day on the range I did the coil and then uncoiled but tried not to swing the club. Well, the arms follow effortlessly. I only had to do that drill a couple times and it all came together. Lower body powers the swing and the arms just go along for the ride. Still not making consistent good contact with the ball, but I think that will improve when I can clear my head of old swing thoughts especially during a round.

    Thanks,

    • George,

      It is a simple concept. It only took me 3 practice swings to get it.

      It is difficult if you do not understand exactly what is going to happen if you turn your arms off. It is difficult if you are inexperienced. It is difficult if you just keep trying to whack away at the ball and keep trying to hit the ball a long way. It is difficult if you do not want to change your swing.

      Most people want to propel the ball and want this strong feeling of hitting something. When you turn the arms off you will feel something totally different than anything you ever felt. In turning the arms off, you are not good at it so you cannot expect immediate results. If you keep doing it though it can be rather quick as I experienced.

      Now that you have felt it keep focusing on powering the swing with the coil and the arms turned off. Know what to expect. Keep understanding that this is totally different and you need to get used to this new feeling. Keep feeling the body coil powering the swing. Keep swinging easy and gradually build it up. As you have found out, this is a great way to swing that you will be able to do for a long, long time.

  10. May 21, 2014

    Dumas

    Paul,

    If your trigger for the start of the downswing is straightening your left knee, should you still be feeling a push off the right foot.
    The knee trigger is good for me, but I do not feel and push off the right foot. The knee trigger alone gives me a good turn with hips. Do I sacrifice power by not feeling the push off my right foot?

    • Dumas,

      If your trigger is the left leg you will not feel the right foot. This is because you are focused on the left leg. Even though you are focused on the left leg the weight should still be coming off this foot regardless of whether you feel it or not. Sounds like you have found your trigger. Keep using it.

  11. Paul

    Not sure you saw it but ESPN analysed the science of Mcllroy’s swing. They demonstrated much of what you are teaching relative to the rotational speed of the hit turn or uncoiling. Rory mention his power advantage as a result of his uncoiling speed. One point they also mentioned that I see in your swing and Rory’s is how your head drops down slights as you step into the ball. In the above video you can see the slight dip on your downswing. Can you do a lesson on this? Seems like a lot of Pros has similar move as they step into the shot.

    • Bill,

      I know about the head dropping. In no way am I thinking about doing this and you shouldn’t either. This will occur due to having the right lower body action in the downswing. You start thinking of this and you whole swing will fall apart.

  12. Paul

    Thanks for the quick response. That’s what I suspected ….I am a big fan of your approach and effort to keep it simple.

    I am still working hard with some success. My good drives are much better. As with most golfers I struggle with consistency and too many swing thoughts particularly with my driver. I don’t seem to have as much of a problem with my irons.

    Thanks again for your help
    Bill

    • Bill,

      There are lots of elements in the swing. Try to keep it as simple as possible otherwise you will get overloaded and not make progress. You turn, you hinge, you turn the other way, you re-hinge all while doing it on an angle. This is the swing in a nutshell.

      You gain consistency by creating torque (spring-like effect) with your body. You let the mass (club) swing undisturbed. This allows the forces to act on the mass. Forces repeat 100% of the time. Stay focused on these things.

  13. September 23, 2014

    KeithBowles

    I also don’t feel my right leg pushing however I do finish in a good B position most of the time. I also don’t feel my arms when I am swinging well. I do feel my shoulders turning much faster. Is the fast shoulder turn feeling an indication of a mistake in the process?

  14. September 20, 2015

    wallylitwa

    Paul,

    I’ve noted that your head lowers what appears to be several inches on the downswing.
    Have you done a tip on this?
    Thanks.

    Wally

  15. September 21, 2015

    wallylitwa

    Paul,

    Thank you for the helpful explanation.
    I must have a weird swing or something because my head stays well back (actually tilted too much) but doesn’t lower.
    Pete did a great video lesson for me on Sept 9 and emphasized I eliminate sliding.
    I guess I must be standing up on the downswing. I was always taught to “hit up against a firm left side” as a teenager in the 1960’s.

    • September 21, 2015

      Paul Wilson

      Wally,

      Hitting into a firm left side would be my Touch The Legs position. This is a good thought and important but it is not a jump. You turn and they touch.

      Watch:

      It’s a Turn Not A Jump: https://ignitiongolf.com/turn-not-jump/

      • September 22, 2015

        wallylitwa

        Paul,
        Thanks for the clarification. We hear things like compress into the ground and push off (up) into impact . Your method seems logical and doable. I’ll keep practicing the positions to see if I can get it to work for me.
        Wally

  16. August 21, 2016

    Tom

    Hi Paul, as always thanks for the lesson. I’m coming around to this tip again and it is a great reminder. As a right handed golfer but left handed, I find that at the top of the backswing if I feel any tension in my left hand/wrist then I’m using my arms and left rough here I come. My current thoughts are keeping loose to coil & left hand tension. Thanks Paul

  17. December 10, 2019

    Chris

    Hi Paul
    Great stuff. Definitely helping with my swing. For me tho I need to feel along with my right knee turning in the downswing the sensation of starting to roll my forearms. If I don’t I have a tendency to pull the club shaft down with an open face and will hit bad slices.

    • Avatar photo

      December 14, 2019

      Paul Wilson

      Chris,

      You do what you need to do but by doing the roll over drill enough you should master this rolling, releasing of the club. I am not thinking about this. I just let it go because I have rolled it many times over the years. In other words I have mastered one element of the swing. This allows me to think of the other (body) which is no a singular thought.

      I would be rolling and rolling just at home every night until you rarely ever put slice spin on it. If so, you have it mastered so you too can focus on the body.

      The Ultimate Goal: https://ignitiongolf.com/the-ultimate-goal/

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