One of you best tips yet, since it is a bad habit of mine to be very inconsistent with my lower body movement. Imagining the arrow between the belt buckle and the ball is allowing me to make not only better shots, but more solid shots which is adding some travel distance. Thank you Paul!!
Hi Paul, Another great tip for us to remember. I know that I have excessive hip movement because I don’t feel the torque all the time. But when I do it right even if my shoulders don’t reach 90 degrees the power is amazing. I will continue to work on this along with my positions.
Thanks, Mike
Stabilizing the lower body allows people to feel that tight coiled up feeling in the backswing they have never felt before. I’m glad you are getting. Once you do, you won’t want to stop.
Paul,
This is a great tip. When working on one of your earlier tips explaining the importance of torque , as opposed to just turning as far as possible in the backswing,I tried deliberately to restrain my hip turn by thinking of not turning my hips at all. This concerned me a little and I thought I would have to revert to turnining my hips.But of course I realise now from this tip that my hips have turned without even having to think about it. The added torque has made a tremendous difference to my distance,off the tee especially.
I am a new member to IG and whilst I have a lot to work on,not least which trigger to use to start my downswing, my game is progressing already and much more enjoyable.
That’s great news. Torque can certainly give you distance because you are now getting that spring-like effect. It’s not about how far people go back. It’s about the torque. Just keep trying to feel this tight feeling and keep working on it.
To choose the right downswing trigger just throw a few balls over hand out in front of you or do some practice swings off the ground. When you do take note of where the power is coming from (do you feel it from the left or right side). Once you feel it then look to this side for the trigger. Once you do, keep focusing on it for every shot.
Hi Paul Love this tip ,one question , if you are getting to a decent top of backswing position can you over due this tightness feeling. The more i use that resist the hip moving feeling the more tightness i feel on my left side, will i be more consistant with a tighter feeling on left side as oppose to not so tight. and if this tighter feeling causes me to shorten my backswing a little will this make for more consistant shots. can repeat this tight feeling consistantlly now ,much better shots .just wondering is tighter better
You can overdo this tightness. This would occur if you were holding the lower body so stable you did not shift your weight or allow your hips to turn half the amount of the shoulders. If you are all the way to the top and feeling tight this would be a good feeling. Remember, you are only feeling this for a split second. Once you feel it you should be going the other way. Maybe you are up there too long. Just feel it then fire the lower body. This should be repeatable.
i wonder if i bend my right knee to much as i resist the shoulder turn and shift my weight? i seem to either hit behind the ball digging up turf, or in the middle of the ball. There are very few times when i pick it off the ground as cleanly a you. If i could do that, i’m sure my distance would improve. My direction is very straight, so at least i have that going for me.
I don’t know if this will help any other members but this tip was the key for me to getting powerless arms. I’m still pretty flexible for my age and what I found is that if I rotate my lower body too much, there is not enough spring or tightness in the lower body and my arms want to take over. When I keep the feeling of the belt buckle pointed at the ball I can fire the lower body and keep the arms powerless. Can’t say I do it every time yet, but usually my bad swings now are either over rotation of the hips, or not keeping my eye on the back of the ball. Those bad swings are much more infrequent since reading this tip. Interestingly, applying this thought when hinging on pitch shots has also improved my accuracy there as well. Keep the great tips coming!
This was a good tip for a lot of members. I will re-post it again it future. This is how I got it many years ago. Sounds like you are close to a breakthrough. The spring-like effect is vital. Keep at it and I will keep posting tips.
Many thanks for your knowledge and this site – I am a 7.8 Index and I have wasted an insane amount of time just pounding balls at the range trying to get to the next level to no avail. I continue to struggle with hip over rotation, but keeping my back foot perpendicular to the target line seems to be an effective solution. Must I have my back foot out 5 degrees or can I keep it perpendicular?
Glad you found us. I appreciate the feedback. I too went through 10 years of confusion many years ago. Not fun.
Be careful with the back foot. You turn it out a little to accommodate the coil. Too straight and you may not be able to fully coil. Too open and you will not create the coil. So vary the foot position and do a few backswings. You should be able to determine how open you can have it while fully coiling in the backswing.
Typically, if I get someone moving the back foot too much in the through swing I have them hit about 20 balls flat footed. After about 20 balls in a row I tell them to forget the foot and voila it’s fixed. It comes up to a vertical position instead of over-rotating. This should work for you too. Give it a try.
Hi Paul,
At the very end when demo swing, you sais turn the buckle and turn the shoulders!
Yes touch the knees,but do we physically
turn the shoulders or is centrifugal force turning them for us and shoulders are along for the ride?
The shoulders are moving do to the turn of the hips. The are all connected. Coil the top of the spring. Uncoil the bottom. If you did what would happen to the top of the spring?
Fantastic tip thanks. I just tried it in front of the mirror and it is amazing. I would bet money that my belt buckle is not moving until my backswing is finished, but when I look in the mirror it moved exactly 45 degrees and my knees half. So far when I look at my videos my hip turn and my knees were always way too much out of line but I could not get rid of my old habit turning my hips too much.
Now I have hope and it feels really great. Thanks. I will practise that.
Here my question: I would like to see your exact knee movement during the swing. Could you do a tip in short pants if that is ok for you? Or maybe show it on a student.
This is a great tip. Until I saw this tip, first of all I did not understand what to stabilize the lower body means, secondly I did move my hip too much I had not realized before. Actually I did video my swing the other day and realized I did over swing at the top of backswing. Then I started looking for tips in your website to fix my problem, which it did work.
Many thanks for your teaching and the information in the site. The membership fee is well spent and worthwhile.
In my sixth year with Ig Golf and it’s proven I MUST continue!! So, 2 to 4 years ago came across one of your several lessons on torque, and what I found in my coil was hips were turning 60 degrees! Yes, did the drills in the great room to fix my swing, yep it WORKED. Recently, swing just didn’t seem correct and weather since last November seldom let anyone on the course or range to see what is or is not happening. Couple days ago at 45 degrees outside range opened and after 75 balls with 7 iron and driver my Swing Caddie consistently said 7 iron was around 120 yds and driver 140 degrees. Yep, I’m nearly 78, but, come on! I had no clue my issue, but, “swing” just felt mushy. Got home, turned computer on and opened to a PW tip on “pros know when they are torqued”. Ha, torque, what torque – yes, I let that requirement escape in my checklist somewhere in the last 2-3 years such that my hips are 60 degrees minimum turned thus, ZERO torque. So, I’m back in the great room, up in the air drill swings and today with 55 degrees and no wind off to the range. Thanks for keeping me on track, Paul.
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19 Responses to “How To Stabilize The Lower Body In The Backswing”
August 8, 2012
Carlosde JesusOne of you best tips yet, since it is a bad habit of mine to be very inconsistent with my lower body movement. Imagining the arrow between the belt buckle and the ball is allowing me to make not only better shots, but more solid shots which is adding some travel distance. Thank you Paul!!
August 8, 2012
Paul WilsonThanks Carlos. I appreciate it. I did this one just for you.
August 8, 2012
mikeplummerHi Paul, Another great tip for us to remember. I know that I have excessive hip movement because I don’t feel the torque all the time. But when I do it right even if my shoulders don’t reach 90 degrees the power is amazing. I will continue to work on this along with my positions.
Thanks, Mike
August 11, 2012
Paul WilsonStabilizing the lower body allows people to feel that tight coiled up feeling in the backswing they have never felt before. I’m glad you are getting. Once you do, you won’t want to stop.
August 8, 2012
AlanFrancePaul,
This is a great tip. When working on one of your earlier tips explaining the importance of torque , as opposed to just turning as far as possible in the backswing,I tried deliberately to restrain my hip turn by thinking of not turning my hips at all. This concerned me a little and I thought I would have to revert to turnining my hips.But of course I realise now from this tip that my hips have turned without even having to think about it. The added torque has made a tremendous difference to my distance,off the tee especially.
I am a new member to IG and whilst I have a lot to work on,not least which trigger to use to start my downswing, my game is progressing already and much more enjoyable.
August 11, 2012
Paul WilsonThat’s great news. Torque can certainly give you distance because you are now getting that spring-like effect. It’s not about how far people go back. It’s about the torque. Just keep trying to feel this tight feeling and keep working on it.
To choose the right downswing trigger just throw a few balls over hand out in front of you or do some practice swings off the ground. When you do take note of where the power is coming from (do you feel it from the left or right side). Once you feel it then look to this side for the trigger. Once you do, keep focusing on it for every shot.
April 26, 2013
barrybowerHi Paul Love this tip ,one question , if you are getting to a decent top of backswing position can you over due this tightness feeling. The more i use that resist the hip moving feeling the more tightness i feel on my left side, will i be more consistant with a tighter feeling on left side as oppose to not so tight. and if this tighter feeling causes me to shorten my backswing a little will this make for more consistant shots. can repeat this tight feeling consistantlly now ,much better shots .just wondering is tighter better
April 27, 2013
Paul WilsonBarry,
You can overdo this tightness. This would occur if you were holding the lower body so stable you did not shift your weight or allow your hips to turn half the amount of the shoulders. If you are all the way to the top and feeling tight this would be a good feeling. Remember, you are only feeling this for a split second. Once you feel it you should be going the other way. Maybe you are up there too long. Just feel it then fire the lower body. This should be repeatable.
September 1, 2014
terrybadgeri wonder if i bend my right knee to much as i resist the shoulder turn and shift my weight? i seem to either hit behind the ball digging up turf, or in the middle of the ball. There are very few times when i pick it off the ground as cleanly a you. If i could do that, i’m sure my distance would improve. My direction is very straight, so at least i have that going for me.
October 19, 2017
SteveWeberPaul,
I don’t know if this will help any other members but this tip was the key for me to getting powerless arms. I’m still pretty flexible for my age and what I found is that if I rotate my lower body too much, there is not enough spring or tightness in the lower body and my arms want to take over. When I keep the feeling of the belt buckle pointed at the ball I can fire the lower body and keep the arms powerless. Can’t say I do it every time yet, but usually my bad swings now are either over rotation of the hips, or not keeping my eye on the back of the ball. Those bad swings are much more infrequent since reading this tip. Interestingly, applying this thought when hinging on pitch shots has also improved my accuracy there as well. Keep the great tips coming!
October 19, 2017
Paul WilsonSteve,
This was a good tip for a lot of members. I will re-post it again it future. This is how I got it many years ago. Sounds like you are close to a breakthrough. The spring-like effect is vital. Keep at it and I will keep posting tips.
October 20, 2017
StevenFarberPaul,
Many thanks for your knowledge and this site – I am a 7.8 Index and I have wasted an insane amount of time just pounding balls at the range trying to get to the next level to no avail. I continue to struggle with hip over rotation, but keeping my back foot perpendicular to the target line seems to be an effective solution. Must I have my back foot out 5 degrees or can I keep it perpendicular?
Cheers,
Steve
October 22, 2017
Paul WilsonSteven,
Glad you found us. I appreciate the feedback. I too went through 10 years of confusion many years ago. Not fun.
Be careful with the back foot. You turn it out a little to accommodate the coil. Too straight and you may not be able to fully coil. Too open and you will not create the coil. So vary the foot position and do a few backswings. You should be able to determine how open you can have it while fully coiling in the backswing.
Typically, if I get someone moving the back foot too much in the through swing I have them hit about 20 balls flat footed. After about 20 balls in a row I tell them to forget the foot and voila it’s fixed. It comes up to a vertical position instead of over-rotating. This should work for you too. Give it a try.
September 12, 2018
STEVENKlineHi Paul,
At the very end when demo swing, you sais turn the buckle and turn the shoulders!
Yes touch the knees,but do we physically
turn the shoulders or is centrifugal force turning them for us and shoulders are along for the ride?
September 12, 2018
Paul WilsonSteven,
The shoulders are moving do to the turn of the hips. The are all connected. Coil the top of the spring. Uncoil the bottom. If you did what would happen to the top of the spring?
Shoulders in downswing: https://ignitiongolf.com/shoulders-downswing/
December 4, 2018
MichaelSchererHi Paul,
Fantastic tip thanks. I just tried it in front of the mirror and it is amazing. I would bet money that my belt buckle is not moving until my backswing is finished, but when I look in the mirror it moved exactly 45 degrees and my knees half. So far when I look at my videos my hip turn and my knees were always way too much out of line but I could not get rid of my old habit turning my hips too much.
Now I have hope and it feels really great. Thanks. I will practise that.
Here my question: I would like to see your exact knee movement during the swing. Could you do a tip in short pants if that is ok for you? Or maybe show it on a student.
Thanks again,
all the best from Munich,
Michael
December 5, 2018
Paul WilsonMichael,
Glad you liked it. Here is the top down of the lower body:
Lower Body Through Impact (top View): https://ignitiongolf.com/back-knee-impact/
Just make sure the forward knee is not restricting the coil (some people do that):
Forward Knee Behind Ball: https://ignitiongolf.com/forward-knee-behind-ball/
October 8, 2021
LennyPaul,
This is a great tip. Until I saw this tip, first of all I did not understand what to stabilize the lower body means, secondly I did move my hip too much I had not realized before. Actually I did video my swing the other day and realized I did over swing at the top of backswing. Then I started looking for tips in your website to fix my problem, which it did work.
Many thanks for your teaching and the information in the site. The membership fee is well spent and worthwhile.
Lenny
March 12, 2023
DanKueblerIn my sixth year with Ig Golf and it’s proven I MUST continue!! So, 2 to 4 years ago came across one of your several lessons on torque, and what I found in my coil was hips were turning 60 degrees! Yes, did the drills in the great room to fix my swing, yep it WORKED. Recently, swing just didn’t seem correct and weather since last November seldom let anyone on the course or range to see what is or is not happening. Couple days ago at 45 degrees outside range opened and after 75 balls with 7 iron and driver my Swing Caddie consistently said 7 iron was around 120 yds and driver 140 degrees. Yep, I’m nearly 78, but, come on! I had no clue my issue, but, “swing” just felt mushy. Got home, turned computer on and opened to a PW tip on “pros know when they are torqued”. Ha, torque, what torque – yes, I let that requirement escape in my checklist somewhere in the last 2-3 years such that my hips are 60 degrees minimum turned thus, ZERO torque. So, I’m back in the great room, up in the air drill swings and today with 55 degrees and no wind off to the range. Thanks for keeping me on track, Paul.