No matter what sport you analyse good posture is vital. A good horseman is quickly noticed just by the way they sit in the saddle; a good pool player stands with poise; a baseball player looks ready to spring into action as they watch the pitcher. When it comes to golf a good player stands with balanced athletic posture ready to wind up the body for a powerful swing.
Unfortunately working on better posture is one of the most neglected aspects of golf. Every club golfer can improve their stance and consequently their swing, but few spend time on their address position. Because the golf swing is a chain reaction if you can learn to stand well to the golf ball with better posture it greatly improves your chance of making a good swing.
Better Golf Posture
- The most important fundamental of a good swing is a good turn of the shoulders, and to turn the shoulders well you have to have a straight spine.
- Look at the stance and posture of a tour pro and it is clearly visible how straight the spine is, but if you study a club golfer often their shoulders are slumped and the top of the spine is bent forward as they intently look down at the ball.
- Looking down at the ball with the head, rather than with the eyes, is the most damaging fault a golfer can have at stance and the most common cause of poor posture.
How to Take up your Stance for Better Posture
- Stand up straight looking forward and put a tennis ball under your chin pinning it to your chest.
- Take hold of a golf club and hold it out in front of you.
- Bend from the waist and place the club behind the golf ball keeping the tennis ball pinned to the chest. Using this method the head angle stays the same relative to the spine. . .
- If you have done this correctly the only way for you to see the golf ball is by looking down with the eyes, not by inclining the head more as the tennis ball prohibits it.
- Relative to the spinal angle the head should have hardly moved.
- If you bend forward correctly it will feel as though your backside is sticking out.
A Good Swing from Good Posture
- While there are many aspects of good posture a straight spine is the most important.
- Learn to look down at the ball with your eyes rather than with your head, and you will be able to turn much easier on the backswing.
- Lift your chin up, look down at the ball with your eyes and then turn round your spine for a much more athletic swing with more power, a wider swing arc and consequently more accurate shots.
See Also: Exercise to Make a Good Golf Turn or Golf Swing Head Position for Better Ball Strike
John Hoskison - John is a class 'A' member of the British PGA and author of the acclaimed book 'Inside - One Man's Experience of Prison'.
