A very common cause of loss of power in the golf swing is a
reverse pivot. A reverse pivot occurs when the golfers weight moves onto
the front foot during the backswing, causing the spine to tilt in the wrong
direction. The golfers attempt to "keep the head still" prevents a good
shoulder turn and also prevents the proper weight shift onto the back foot.
Focus on the following two keys while practicing to correct a reverse
pivot.
1. Make sure the hips stay still on the backswing. Imagine that you are
standing inside a barrel and the hips do not touch either side of the
barrel on the way back.
2. The sternum is directly over the back foot at the top of the backswing.
Picture #1 shows me at the address and picture #2 shows me at the top. Note
that the hips are in exactly the same position in both pictures. (relative
to the tree in the background.)
Also note in picture #2 a line could be
drawn down from my sternum to directly over my back foot.
You are now in an
extremely powerful position and should feel "tight". This indicates that
the correct windup has been achieved and you are now ready to start the
downswing as discussed in last months article.
