The position of the body during the set-up and impact phases of the golf swing are strikingly similar. The golf swing should work in a pendulum-like manner, with the arc of the club returning on the same plane as it was taken back, legendary golfer Ben Hogan explains in his book "Five Lessons: The Modern Fundamentals of Golf." If you look at video of some of golf's best players, just a few key changes will have taken place between the set-up and impact.
Set-Up
The purpose of the set-up in golf is to facilitate a smooth backswing and to reinforce a solid impact area during the downswing. Your hands and grip should be slightly ahead of the ball and your shoulders should be parallel to the target. Your knees should be slightly flexed as if about to take a seat on a barstool, and your feet should be about shoulder-width apart. Hogan took an exceptionally wide stance, and also pointed his left toe slightly toward the target to allow for his hips to clear during the downswing .
Upper Body
Your hands, arms and shoulders should be in about the same position as your set-up during impact. The biggest difference is that your hands and grip should be quite a bit farther ahead of the ball than they were during your set-up. This is a result of both the momentum of the swing, as well as the lag created between your hands and the clubhead during the wrist-cock phase in the backswing, according to teaching professional Mitchell Spearman.
Lower Body
The most noticeable differences between the set-up and impact are in your legs and hips. The force of the downswing should cause your hips to both extend toward the target, as well as begin to rotate toward the shot. Your right knee foot should lift off the ground and pivot toward the target to help allow the hips to clear. Your hips are one of the most important components of the swing, according to Hogan, and hip rotation generates a large source of power through impact.
Head
The one remaining constant throughout the golf swing is the location of your head. You can watch professional golfers' swings on a video screen and draw a circle around their heads. Their head positions will have moved just fractions of an inch from set-up to impact. Golfer Jack Nicklaus, in his book "Golf My Way," was particularly exceptional at maintaining his head position during impact, and felt the head should remain even slightly behind the ball. While the head shouldn't move ahead of the ball during impact, you should still keep your neck relaxed, according to Nicklaus.
References
- "Five Lessons: The Modern Fundamentals of Golf"; Ben Hogan; 1957
- "Golf My Way"; Jack Nicklaus; 1974
- "A.I.M. of Golf"; Mitchell Spearman; 2004
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