
The Grip
While some golfers play well with stronger or weaker grips, a neutral grip is the ideal starting point.
Set-up
A good athletic posture is key to generating power - check out any tour pro’s posture and you won’t see them slouched over the ball. To get your posture correct, let your arms hang freely down from your shoulders to the ball ensuring that your shoulder blades are back rather than hunched forward.
Takeaway
A smooth, fluid tempo in the initial movement away from the ball is critical. Any short, snatchy movement will really throw the sequencing of your swing out. A common error is to over-rotate the hands and arms at this point, which then fans the clubface open.
Backswing
Good rotation of the upper body is the backswing key to storing up power. But while a good shoulder turn away from the ball is important, it will only generate power if the shoulders have something to turn or coil against.
Downswing
Weight transfer is the big key in the downswing Keeping your body weight too much on your right side makes it impossible to achieve good impact. Start your downswing with a shift of your left or lead side towards the target to encourage your weight to transfer to your left side.
Impact
With an iron, you should be hitting down on the ball so the effective loft on the club at impact should be less than it would have been at address.
Finish and follow-through
Good poise, balance and a full flowing finish can be great indicators that what has gone before has also been good. A great thing to focus on as you work through the pointers in this feature is how well-balanced you are once the ball has been dispatched.
