​A Good Golf Swing Hinges on Your Lower Body

A golf swing needs to be both precise and powerful. You may be able to hit the ball far, but not in the right direction. On the other hand, your aim might be directly on point but the ball lands not very far from the tee.

To achieve both accuracy and power, your whole body needs to work together. In a swing, the power targeting the ball comes from the lower body, and the direction is determined based on your angle. The next time you tee off, be prepared to thank your feet, knees, and hips just as much as your arms!

Best Feet Forward

Our feet connect us to the ground and give us a powerful golf swing that can be replicated again and again. To harness more power from the ground, a golfer should shift their weight and angle their feet as they move through their swing. It may sound like a lot to remember, but it is actually quite a natural movement.

As you swing back, your lead foot should be tilted upward, into eversion. Your opposite foot, the trail foot, should be tilted inward, in inversion. Then as you swing through, your lead foot should tilt inward into inversion while your trail foot tilts upward into eversion. Picture the feel like a pendulum. This motion will give you the most power and result in a swing that will be easy on the rest of your body.

Give it Up for the Knees

Unlike mobile ankles, the knees should stay put. Knees provide stability during the golf swing. Avoiding twists at the knees will ensure you golf pain-free whenever you hit the links. Remember, when it comes to your knees stability equals consistency in the swing! Focus on your front knee in a swing and try not to move it much, because if every other part of your body is moving through, your knees will move the way they should naturally. Don’t force it!

Hips Don’t Lie in Golf

Your hips are quite complex and have multiple muscles attached to move them the way you want to go. In a golf swing, practicing proper hip motion is the best way to avoid back pain and access successful power throughout the swing. The hips should be mobile, the hip movement is what causes the knees to appear to be moving. As a golfer is swinging, the hips should rotate as your feet stay firmly at the correct angle.

Picture your hips working with your feet to look like a corkscrew, twisting through the swing for ample power. Your hips should reach a full range of motion from an external rotation to an internal rotation from the backswing, all the way to the follow-through. Doing this will help eliminate lower back pain the next day.

Yes, it is true that we do not kick any golf balls, the actual swing and contact with the ball comes from the arms. Yet, let’s not forget where the power comes from. We need our whole body, especially our lower body to get the ball moving far and in our desired direction.