You’ve been hearing it since you first learned how to swing a golf club – “you gotta keep your left arm straight during the golf swing”.

The trouble is; how do you learn to keep your left arm straight?

A lot of golfers who think they keep their left arm straight during the golf swing are shocked when they see themselves swing on video…their left elbow usually breaks down somewhere during the backswing…or the downswing.

Some golfers are so intent on keeping their left arm straight during the golf swing they become rigid with little shoulder turn.

So, how do you learn to keep the left arm straight during the golf swing?

First, a little lesson on the physics of the golf swing…

Experts on the physics of golf refer to the “Magic Triangle” or “Eternal Triangle” that is formed in an ideal golf swing. This is the triangle formed by the golfer’s left arm, the golf club, and an imaginary line from the golfer’s left shoulder to the center of the club face. For best results, this triangle should be maintained from the start of the backswing to just before the impact area when you release the club head. This will produce a high speed impact with the ball as described in detail by Joe Dante in his top selling golf instructional book – “Four Magic Moves to Winning Golf”.

By focusing on maintaining the magic triangle throughout the golf swing you are taken advantage of a powerful physical force…the conservation of angular momentum…the principal that states angular momentum of an object remains constant as long as no external force or moment acts on that object.

If the object (club head) is brought closer to the axis (formed by the golfer’s stable spine), it speeds up. If the club head is moved further out, it slows down. In a golf swing, as the player rotates the club, the hands move farther from the body or axis and slow down. This reduction in momentum feeds into the much lighter club and increases the speed of the club head in the last part of the stroke, in a whiplash type of effect, increasing the force of impact on the ball.

The truth is, if your left arm does not stay straight during the golf swing, you are losing out on the benefits of centrifugal force because your swing arc is smaller. Think of your left arm as a spoke in a wheel and your swing arc as the circumference of the wheel.

You see, by not keeping your left arm straight you are essentially shortening the spoke thereby reducing the circumference. You are also upsetting the positive effects of conservation of angular momentum and thus reducing the impact speed between club face and ball.

Now that you understand the physics behind the benefits of keeping your left arm straight during the golf swing…

How do you learn to do so?

Assuming your golf swing fundamentals such as grip, stance, and alignment are relatively sound, all you have to do is simply become aware of this magic triangle. Don’t try to force this triangle…just become aware of it next time you go to the range…

Then, just before impact, release all that stored energy you will have in the club head, like cracking a whip!

After a while you will be shocked at how solidly you can strike the ball…

You’ll be surprised how straight your left arm becomes during the golf swing just by shining the light of awareness upon this magic triangle during the golf swing.

You will now have a tiger by the tail so use this new found power wisely!

Hit ’em Long and Straight!

John Lynch

Golf cart accidents can cause severe injuries. These accidents are caused by people who do not take precautions or generally ignore the rules. However simple the rules may be, it is important to adhere to them and help everyone to stay safe.

It is worth noting that as golf cart driver; always give the pedestrians the right of way. This is especially when driving on the sidewalks.

Carrying more passengers than the available sitting capacity is risky. Always ensure that all passengers in the cart are sitting. This helps avoid overloading which is a major cause of overturning. Passengers too should be cautious and always ensure that their hands, legs and arms are in the cart especially when in motion. This will prevent the passengers from falling and getting in contact with stationary objects like trees and stones. Passengers should avoid standing in these carts and remain seated during the whole driving process.

Always ensure that the cart is going at a speed of 10mph when there are people or animals and at a speed of 15mph when there are no people. While in motion, do no attempt to shift gears for it might overturn due to instability. When there are inclines, pedestrians, other vehicles and poor weather conditions, reduce the speed until you are past the scenes or until the weather conditions are back to normal.

Golf cart drivers and operators must have a valid license and follow all traffic rules and should not drive when intoxicated. They should also check in the cart the first time they enter it for warnings and safety labels, read them and ensure that they are followed to the later. Drivers should not also underrate golf carts as small vehicles but should drive them as if they are driving a real car on an actual road.

When entering or leaving buildings, be more careful to avoid hitting walls or gates. Always park in areas designed for golf cart parking and not those with paves. When it is not in use, the driver must place the control lever in park or neutral position, set the parking break and ensure that the key is removed and secured.

Golf carts should be used solely for their functions. You should not fool around in them or drive them in water. Avoid giving them to the children to use as toys and playing instruments.

It is important for the government to consider golf carts as other vehicles that cause injuries and even death to the users or pedestrians and ensure that the set rules are being adhered to guarantee safety to its citizens. It should also notify cart users that the number of wild animals has doubled in the recent past especially elephants, thus precautions should be taken by when golfing in areas with these animals. This will prevent accidents between cart users and animals.

These rules are simple to follow and do not require any cart user to be a rocket scientist to understand them. Always keep in mind that these carts seriously hurt and kill if you are not careful with them.