Golf Swing Help For the Older Golfer

As you get older you lose some of your ability to turn your torso on your back swing, so it’s important to replace that power loss with a power gain elsewhere. You can accomplish this by making a freer arm swing which doesn’t depend so much on flexibility. The following drills teach you to use your arms as major source of power.

Turn your shoulders, swing your arms.

Hang your arms. At address, your arms should hang freely from your shoulders. If they start too close to your body, they won’t have enough room to swing freely. Extending your arms too far, on the other hand, causes tension, which in inhibits a free swing. Make sure you have 6 inches of clearance between the butt end of the club and your body.

Turn, then finish. Don’t start your back swing with your arms. Take the club from address to hip by height by rotating your shoulders. Your arms simply follow. That’s a classic one- piece take away. Focus on rotating your shoulders as you start the club back along the target line. Once the club head reaches your hips, your arms takeover, swinging the club to the top

Here is a drill. Take a 5-iron, swing it back to hip height, and stop. Now pretend you’re starting your swing with the club at hip height. Swing to the top, then swing down and hit the ball. You should have the feeling that your arms are generating most of the clubhead speed. The trick is that your shoulders are helping too, but the second half of the back swing is where your arms take over.