Golf Digest provided a wonderful Spring Training Tip from Jamie Sadlaowski, two-time long-drive champion. Jamie said that people expect to see a violent swing from him but his 150 mile per hours of clubhead speed comes in part from good fundamentals and smooth sequencing. [Jamie Sadlowski hit one 418 yards to win the 2008 Re/Max World Long Drive Championship.]
Body coil is the difference between hip turn and shoulder turn on the backswing. You can see it clearly in this photo. As we age we lose flexibility but any amount will help you add distance.
For his drive he keeps his head position six inches behind the ball. If you set your head back and keep it there, you can work your right shoulder under your left coming down and launch the ball on the upswing. He may have more cocking action in his wrists than most but holding the wrist lag and releasing through impact is where he and Bubba Watson get so much power and distance.
If you are going to work on anything during your Spring preparation make sure that it includes rotation flexibility and strength in your forearms and wrists.
> For Flexibility, lay on your back with your arms extended straight out from your sides. Bend your knees with your feet on the floor and knees together. Slowly rotate your knees from side to side and keep the back of your arms stretched out and on the ground. Don’t expect to get full rotation to the ground but over time you will gain more flexibility along your spine. Build up from 3 repetitions left and right side on your first attempt.
> A simple exercise for wrist strength is to tie a weight (container of juice) to a rope and tie the other end to the center of a bar. While you watch the Golf Channel (instead of lifting a can of beer) sit forward in your chair, hold the bar with both hands and alternate hands to wind up the rope as you lift the weight. Repeat this many times or increase the weight over time.
> To incorporate a straight leading arm and body rotation, hold the back of your straight leading arm above your elbow (left arm for right handed golfers). Gently rotated to simulate your body rotation for a backswing. You may want to try this wearing your GOLFSTR+ to understand how easy it is to keep your arm straight in the backswing.
Do all of these exercises in moderation or you will strain your muscles. Make sure that you increase the repetitions over time. If you have never swung with a straight leading arm you may need 100 or a 1,000 of these stretches over time to achieve your new backswing but you need to do this gradually.
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[…] all along remembering to keep those arms straight. And once you think you’ve hit the limit, your shoulder coil is as good as […]