Golf Tips

Copyright (c) 2011 Jack Moorehouse

Impact is the moment of truth in golf. Impact is where the rubber meets the roadno matter what your golf handicap. Jim Flick, noted teacher and author, provides golf lessons to Tour professionals for a living. He points out two ways to swing the club into and through impact. Each way comes with a set of compatible positions and moves. Neither way is right. Neither way is wrong. It's a matter of personal preference.

Flick refers to one approach as the "from the ground up approach." You see it in players like Jack Nicklaus, Sam Snead, and Vijay Singh. He calls the other approach the "from the center down approach." You see it in people like Anthony Kim and Michelle Wei. The Ground Up approach is the more traditional approach. The Center Down approach is up and coming approach on the Tour. Both approaches work for golfers with all kinds of golf handicaps.

The Ground Up approach, which provides more shotmaking potential, works better with the driver, fairway woods, and long irons. It's better for taller players and gentler on the body. It features a neutral grip, a flexing front knee through impact, a more upright backswing, with the back arm away from the body, and a slower transition. This approach also features active forearm rotation to square the clubface at impact. We see this approach often in golf instructions sessions.

Here's how to tell if you're using this approach:

Set up to a tee with your driver and the sun at your back. Note the position of the shadow of your head. Place another tee or golf ball in the center of that spot. Now swing in slow motion, noting the shadow of your front knee and thigh just past impact. While keeping your head shadow in place, the shadow of your left knee should clearly be bent.

Repeat the drill, clipping the tee with your club until you feel your front foot is stable on the ground, your left knee bent and leaning toward the target through impact, and your left thigh and hip rotating through the hitting area. When this happens, you achieved the impact position of Flick's Ground Up approach.

From The Center Down Approach

The "from the center down" approach is somewhat new. We don't see it as much in our golf instruction sessions as we see the Ground Up approach, but it's getting more and more popular on the Tour. This approach is more repeatable, requires less practice, is better with short irons and wedges, and is less reliant on tempo. It's also generally better for shorter players.

The Center Down approach features a strong grip, with the hands turned to the right (left, if you're left-handed), less active arm rotation, a straightening left knee, and very open hips. With your upper body centered over a fixed axis at address and through impact, your hips must turn not slide. You start this downswing by rotating your hips and shoulders. Strong players spin their hips as fast as possible to achieve power and a reliable shape to their shots.

Set up to a tee with your driver and the sun at your back. Mark your head's shadow with another tee or ball on the ground. As you swing in slow motion turn your hips and chest through so you can see your left knee straightening at "impact." Note if you are swinging around a fixed axis (the ball within your head's shadow). Repeat this drill until you get the feel of your left hip turningnot slidingas your swing through.

The Takeaway

Good swings feature an efficient shallow angle of attack. Both of Jim Flick's approaches accomplish this, but in different ways. The key, as we said before, is not mixing the two approaches. Longer courses, more forgiving clubs, and low-spinning balls make the Center Down approach more popular among today's Tour players. But the Ground Up approach still thrives with the pros.

What's the next step? Try both approaches. Determine which works best for you. After nailing down the best approach, refine that approach by going to the practice range, taking golf lessons, and reading golf tips in magazines. Creating an efficient angle of attack will help you hit longer, straighter shots and chip strokes off your golf handicap.