Pressure and pivot: This is how I think about the swing to make it easier for my students to learn the relationship between turning and managing weight, which must be synced up to hit the ball solidly and avoid most swing errors.
Here’s the deal: You create pressure before you pivot on both sides of your swing. So, as you start the club back [1], drive your trail foot into the ground. As you create that base, you’ll find that your body turns behind the ball smoothly with your arms naturally lifting to the top. Same thing as you transition to your downswing.
Here, you add pressure on your front side, driving your front foot into the ground [2] to create the base your body needs to begin unwinding [3].
When you add pressure before pivoting, you create massive loads of potential energy, and, even though you’re rotating back and through, you remain centered over the ball, which is a huge bonus.
You’ll end up tracking the ball in your finish, watching it fly straight and far [4]. Who doesn’t want that?
Erika Larkin is a GOLF Top 100 Teacher and is the director of instruction at The Club at Creighton Farms in Aldie, Va.
