Hanging Back?!?!?

Have you heard you are Hanging Back in your golf swing?
This is a problem seen in many golfers who are trying to lift the ball and not use the club face to their advantage. It is also seen with golfers who have balance issues or rotation problems...It is often a consequence of early extension and slide.

So what exactly is hanging back?

1. Improper weight shift: Your body is staying with the majority of its weight over the back leg.
   
2. Poor Balance: An inability of your joints and ultimately your brain understanding where your body is throughout the swing path.
3. Inexperience: Often when people begin to golf they don't understand that the clubs have different shapes for a reason and not just to frustrate you. Most beginning golfers think they must consciously life the ball off the turf, which can lead to numerous swing faults.

What can you do Functionally to Improve?

1. Balance: Practice standing with your eyes closed. Be somewhere you can have some support if you are unsteady. Once you can stand with your eyes closed both feet on the ground and stay stable for 30 seconds, open you eyes and try standing on one leg. (Note here according to the Titleist Performance Institute the average professional that they have collected data on can stand for 16 seconds on one leg, eyes closed)
2. Utilize Drills to change weight shift. I have heard golf professionals teach you to push of your back foot as opposed to staying on it. Others drill you by having your actually pick up your feet, which is one of my favorites that I have seen by a local golf professional. Set up five balls and get in a rhythm of hitting the grass in both the front and back swing with appropriate weight changes by picking up your feet...then walk forward hit one ball at a time. It is a fun drill and it really helps hone in on weight shift.
3. Now in the bio mechanical functional approach to improving: IT IS SUPREMELY IMPORTANT to strengthen your core. Often times one simple set of seeming simple exercises can reduce swing faults dramatically as well as decrease chance for injury.

CORE:

• Planks, Side Planks, Reverse Planks: strengthen your entire core in a static plane.
• Chops and Lifts: dynamic movements to improving core.
• Pelvic Tilts: If you do not know how to tilt your pelvis properly your core is not going to be as efficient as it can be.

When you learn to properly shift your weight, have great balance and have amassed and perfected tons of drills. There is one final component to making sure your body and swing can stay coordinated. And that is making sure your head is on straight!