Power Package: 11 Ways To Get Longer

By Keely Levins

October 23, 2013

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Photo By: Illustration by David Plunkert

Photo By: Photo by Eddie Berman

Photo By: Photo By Dom Furore

Photo By: Photo by J.D. Cuban

Photo By: Photo By Nathaniel Welch

Photo By: Illustration by Jim McQueen

Photo By: Photo by J.D. Cuban

Photo By: Christian Petersen/Getty Images

Photo By: Illustrations by Christian Northeast

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We had 9 amateurs get fit for drivers, and 8 of the 9 gained an average of 21 yards off the tee. You may feel like you're swinging the right club for you -- but you could be robbing yourself of distance without even knowing it.More: Fitting = Instant Success →

Photo By: Illustration by David Plunkert

The head of your driver tells you what degree it's set at, but that number is only indicative of the loft at the sweet spot. Loft increases above the sweet spot and decreases below. The different lofts make the ball behave differently. Depending on the conditions, you're going to want to tee it either higher or lower to maximize your distance off the tee.More: How High To Tee It Up__→__

Photo By: Photo by Eddie Berman

There are good ways to get your body involved in the takeaway, and there are bad ways. To do it right, you want to coil. Without the coil, you can over turn and put yourself in a weak position at the top. Wind the upper body against the lower body. Sometimes it's alright to shorten the turn to increase the coil. You should feel a stretch in your left lat. Think in terms of coiling, not turning, when taking it back.More: Coil For Power__→__

Photo By: Photo By Dom Furore

In the take away, feel tension to know the coil is working. When you start your downswing, there should be separation between your lower body and upper body: your lower body starts the down swing and the action of the coil brings the upper body, and the club, through with force.More: From Backswing To Downswing__→__

Photo By: Photo By Dom Furore

The downswing requires a lot of coordination between the upper and lower body since a well-timed, full weight shift can generate a lot of power. A good drill to try is to take a dynamic step as you hit to get a feel for this move.More: The Step & Swing Drill__→__

Photo By: Photo by J.D. Cuban

The longer you keep your feet planted on the downswing, the more leverage and power you can create. When you shift your weight at the beginning of the downswing, shift from the inside of your back heel to the ball of your front foot. This will keep your feet on the ground so your hips can move through the ball at the correct angle. This way, you'll have more power at impact.More: Bigger Drives__→__

Photo By: Photo By Nathaniel Welch

Swing into the ball with a shallower angle and a swing path that comes inside to hit it more solidly. This also produces more clubhead speed -- which leads to greater distance.More: Go Deep For A Power Draw__→__

Photo By: Illustration by Jim McQueen

A lot of amateurs are told to stay in the same posture throughout the swing. While this keeps you from popping up, it could be taking away some distance. Squatting as you swing into the ball is an athletic move, like the small squat a basketball player makes before jumping up for a rebound. Getting lower and pushing off the ground is an explosive action that increases your force. Staying in the same posture doesn't allow you to do this.More: Squat For Power__→__

Photo By: Photo by J.D. Cuban

Most of us naturally move the ball either slightly right to left (draw) or left to right (fade). There are times when your stock shot doesn't set up well for a certain hole. In those moments, it's easy to want to try and leave your natural draw in the bag and force a fade. Tom Watson's advice? Don't.More: Find More Fairways__→__

Photo By: Photo by J.D. Cuban

Dustin Johnson is currently the third longest player off the tee on the PGA Tour. While doing his workouts aren't going to guarantee you an average of 305 yards off the tee, training strength, power and coordination in the gym will help you gain distance on the course.More: Train Like Dustin Johnson__→__

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The golf swing is about 1.5 seconds long: it's an explosion. While you need to be explosive, you also need to have the endurance to get through an entire round. Check out these exercises to train for both.More: Strength vs. Power__→__

Photo By: Illustrations by Christian Northeast

A lot of people associate Jack with being a power player. We're not saying he wasn't, but we are saying that there were a lot of guys on tour at the same time as him that were longer off the tee. It's fun to hit it long, but clearly you don't have to be the biggest hitter to be the best player.More: The distance advantange__→__

Photo By: Photo by Robert Riger/Getty Images

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