Create a Longer Runway for More Distance

The key to longer drives, besides making solid contact, is swinging the clubhead faster. But that doesn’t mean you have to swing harder. The smoother and more deliberate you are on the backswing, the more you’ll turn your upper body and the farther you’ll swing the club back. This not only gives you additional time to square the clubface for impact but also shifts your downswing path more to the right—from the inside—where you’re able to generate more clubhead speed and even hit a draw.

Here’s a simple thing you can do on practice swings to give your drives a power boost. Make a couple of swings feeling as if your backswing isn’t necessarily slower but more drawn out—like you’re giving yourself a "longer runway" (above). However long it takes you to normally complete your backswing, try to double it. You still want your arms and club moving in one continuous motion and your body turning in tandem. The difference is, you want to gradually build speed, not jerk the club back and then rush it down to the ball.

When you step up to hit your actual tee shot, try to replicate that feeling of a drawn-out backswing. Note how the more deliberate you are going back, the faster the clubhead travels through the ball. That’s effortless power! Tap into this feeling, and I bet you’ll see a big difference in your driving distance.

Dan Carraher teaches at the Golf Club at South Hampton in St. Augustine, Fla.