Welcome to Play Smart, GOLF.com’s regular game improvement column to help you become a smarter, better golfer.
A term you will hear often in golf instruction is “forward shaft lean.” Like “you need a forward shaft if you want to hit the ball hard.” I know it’s something I’ve written about many times, and it’s something many golf coaches say, too.
That’s why the Athletic Motion Golf video hook (below) stuck out so much when I scrolled past it on Instagram. “Is the shaft dependent on the touch just a myth?” it asked. At first I scoffed at the idea. But after watching the clip (and later, the full video on YouTube), it makes perfect sense.
The illusion of the shaft depends
When golfers feel they need a forward shaft, they often try to achieve it by stopping their release until their hands are past the ball.
“That’s where the trick lies,” Shaun Webb said. “Because the way to create that image is not what you think.”
Although it is true that your hands it should be in front of the ball when you reach the result, when you break it, it doesn’t happen just by pushing your hands towards it. Instead, it comes from several moving parts throughout the swing.
To see what happens, get your body positioned at the right point of impact. Your hips should open at about 45 degrees, and your shoulders slightly open. Your weight should be on your front foot, and your hands should be slightly in front of the ball on the floor. In face view, this shows the shaft leaning forward.
This is where the “fake” comes in. Turn your waist and shoulders into a square, and let your arms and hands follow.
“His hands, the club and everything is far away back when his waist is square to the target than when they are at address,” Mike Granato said.
The only reason the hands are in front of the ball and the shaft is leaning towards the target is because of the hips and shoulders turn on when you reach impact. Body rotation that makes the shaft lean forward, not pressing the hands towards the target.
Get the feel of the body opening up and the hands and arms following, and you’ll hit the ball better than ever.
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