Casting far and straight

Growing up fishing left lasting memories as my father taught me the movement needed to cast my line far and straight. He then taught me how to swing a golf club on the golf range using the same technique.

He was a fine golfer in his day and inherently new that the back arm was the key to delivering a powerful strike on a golf ball. He spoke about the back arm often, its position and movement pattern and he believed that all great golfers must have discovered its magic.

As a PGA Golf Professional for almost 30 years, I think my father had it right. There is in fact several common swing faults associated with the back arm. In the coaching world they are known as early release/scooping, over the top, and trapped. Golf coaches today spend a great deal of their efforts helping their students overcome these faults as they rid us of power, consistency, and accuracy.

The video above is a position technique that my father taught me, I hope it works for you as well. For a closer study of swing faults associated with the back arm, continue the article below.

EARLY RELEASE / SCOOPING

This occurs on the downswing and is a premature release of the back arm angles; the result is a weak impact position with the left wrist being bent the wrong direction at impact. This adds loft to the face of the club and as a result we see a loss of power and consistency. Early release can be evaluated with high speed video from the front angle by observe when the forward arm is in line with the shaft. Scooping happens when the club head passes the hands before impact.

OVER THE TOP
This is perhaps the most common swing fault among high handicap golfers. It occurs due to the back arm straightening out too early on the downswing and being thrown outside or above the intended swing plane striking the ball from the outside. This in turn creates a pull if the clubface is square or a slice if the club face is open.

TRAPPED
This occurs when the back elbow gets behind the right hip on the downswing and is often caused by the lower body moving closer to the ball in the downswing. The result is a feeling that the body is in the way and the back elbow is stuck behind. The result is two typical miss hits, the block to the right and a hook to the left.

About: Grant Garrison began his career as a PGA Golf Professional in 1984 and won a dozen professional events throughout the following 6 years. He left his playing days behind to became a Golf Club Director and managed 2 exclusive country clubs in Southern California from 1990-2000. During this period, Grant was elected as a board member of the Professional Golf Association of America and managed several "Grow the game" projects.