MythBusters
How to hit the ball farther without increasing your swing speed
golfcphoto
Reading the recent MythBusters story on whether you’ll hit it farther by swinging faster or by swinging more efficiently reminded me of a saying my old boss and mentor, Hank Johnson, had: “The quickest way to hit it further is to hit it solid.”
I think that still holds true, and the robot data in the story showed that when the 95 mph swing with proper contact and launch traveled farther than the 105 mph swing with poor contact and launch.
In this massive search for speed that you see all of these golfers going on, I see lots who increase clubhead speed but don’t become better players. Not only do they not get better, but they often hurt themselves as well. There’s a smarter approach to hitting the ball longer—get more efficient to use the speed that you do have. It's kind of like what you see in the table below, taken from the MythBusters robot test. Faster swing speed doesn't always mean farther drives.
The optimized but slower swing produced more distance, a higher launch angle and less backspin.
Here are a few keys that will make you more efficient and hit it further by finding the center of the face, all of which will make you a better player.
Set up balanced and tilted
Notice how my spine is tilted slightly away from the target and the ball position is even with my lead heel.
The more balanced you are, the easier it is to find the center of the face in my opinion. Hip posture is often overlooked at address. Make sure the base of your spine is set slightly closer to the target than the top of your spine. This creates a slight amount of spine tilt away from the target which helps produce a slightly upward blow on the golf ball. I demonstrate this in the image above.
Focus on your ball position as well. Moving the ball up in your stance, even with your lead heel will help make your angle of attack positive (or upward) as well. Getting the posture and ball position correct also makes it easier to get wound up and turned behind the ball which can help you produce more power and speed.
Increase rotation in backswing
When trying to find the center of the face to hit it further, you often need to add rotation instead of lateral movement, especially in the backswing. I see lots of golfers in the quest for speed shifting and sliding their weight or pressure in the swing and having little rotation in their lower and upper body. That's what I demonstrate in the second image below. Notice how in the first image I've made a full turn without sliding my lower body away from the target. In the bottom image, my hips have slid, which limits the backswing rotation.
Make a full shoulder turn, getting your chest behind the ball (above) versus sliding your body in the backswing, which limits your turn (below).
Golfers have been told for years to get behind the ball on the backswing, especially if they’re looking to hit it farther. Many of them do it incorrectly or inefficiently and move their pressure by shifting or sliding their pelvis off the ball, away from the target. This shift and slide does move your pressure to your back foot but it’s inefficient. It prevents you from really loading your trail leg to use the ground as leverage in the downswing.
The setup I’ve described above will help reduce this excessive slide and add rotation in the backswing. Here’s a few simple drills to help you feel the proper loading into your trail leg in the backswing, which will add rotation and reduce slide.
A couple other words of advice…
Get stronger in the gym. Adding strength to all parts of the body, especially your legs, core and chest, will allow you to create more speed and hit it further while remaining in control. It’s a great way to prevent injury as you look to increase speed as well. If you add speed without the necessary strength and stability to handle it, you could hurt yourself.
Finally, remember the robot test results and what my mentor said: proper center-face contact is more important than reckless speed with bad contact. Swing fast but stay within yourself. The key is to hold your finish. It’s an old-fashioned tip but it will really help you find the center of the face.
If you set up correctly, add some rotation, get strong and stay in balance, you will become more efficient and get every yard you can out of your swing.
Tony Ruggiero coaches numerous tour players and is one of Golf Digest's Top 50 Teachers in America.
