How far apart should your feet be when playing golf?
In a wide stance, your feet will be furthest apart from each other while still allowing for a full golf swing to be performed comfortably. In that setup, the inside of your feet line up with the outside of your shoulders.
Why are golfers with wide feet so far apart?
With feet this wide, you can get a lot more stability in your swing, which usually results in faster swing speeds. The wider stance sets players up for a wider arc and, in turn, makes them able to create more clubhead speed. This is why when you see golfers like Bryson Dechambeau teeing up to hit a big drive, his feet are rather far apart.
What is a good wide stance in golf?
Specifically, a good wide stance sees the outside of your shoulders line up with the inside of your feet. Adopting a wider stance lowers your center of gravity slightly, allowing you to become more stable on your feet as you address the club on the ground and as you execute your swing.
What foot do you Put your weight on in a golf swing?
Transfer your weight back to your left foot as you swing down and through the ball to your finish. Finish with your left foot flat and your right heel directly over the toes of your right foot. Your weight should be almost entirely on the left foot at the finish of the golf swing.
How wide apart should your feet be in golf?
shoulder width apart1) Start from the feet up Your feet need to be shoulder width apart, with the weight on the balls of the feet. This will help provide good stability. Stand too narrow and you'll fall over - or subconsciously swing less to stay balanced. Stand too wide, and your body won't be as free to strike the ball powerfully.
How wide should your golf stance be for driver?
With the driver, the longest club in the bag, you should aim for a stance width similar to the width of your shoulders. In general, the stronger you are, i.e. the wider your shoulders, the harder you will probably hit a golf ball.
Is a wide stance good in golf?
A wide golf stance is typically categorized as a stance where your feet are wider than shoulder width apart. With feet this wide, you can get a lot more stability in your swing, which usually results in faster swing speeds.
What happens if golf stance is too wide?
The wider your golf stance, the bigger the shift, and the more time it takes. When the golf stance is too wide, you'll typically be pushing off the right side, which will drive your hip into the ball and cause you to lose your spine angle in the downswing.
How far should feet be apart from driver?
shoulder-width apart4. Width of stance: Your feet should be shoulder-width apart. 5. Weight distribution: You want 50 percent of your weight on your front foot and 50 percent of your weight on your back foot.
Is it better to have a wide or narrow stance in golf?
The widest stance should be taken with your driver, while the narrowest stance should be for putting and chipping. Because not all golfers look the same or have the same height and shoulder width, the stance may be different for each of us.
What is the best stance for driving a golf ball?
1:209:40Proper Golf Stance for Driver vs Irons - YouTubeYouTubeStart of suggested clipEnd of suggested clipBasically shoulder width apart is a good guideline. For almost all golfers. So go back to theMoreBasically shoulder width apart is a good guideline. For almost all golfers. So go back to the process. Here feet together ball in the center. Little separate separates from about shoulder width apart.
Should I narrow my golf stance?
Narrowing your stance will allow for a better rotation in the back swing, which in turn will allow you to get your arms more around your body at the top, this will give you more chance of approaching the ball with a path to the right.
Can a wide stance cause a slice?
A stance too wide will restrict lower body motion and inhibit weight transfer. This can cause the upper body to become overly active resulting in a slice or pulled shots, like you can see in the image above.
How does a wider stance affect your swing?
Adopting a wider stance lowers your center of gravity slightly, allowing you to become more stable on your feet as you address the club on the ground and as you execute your swing.
How to assume a wider stance?
Wide Stance. In order to assume a wider stance you will need to position your feet further away from each other that you normally would. Specifically, a good wide stance sees the outside of your shoulders line up with the inside of your feet.
What is a very narrow stance?
Very Narrow Stance. Certain types of shots require a narrower stance still. In order to adopt a very narrow stance you will need to position your feet so that the width of your shoulder dwarfs the distance between them.
What effect does lowering the center of gravity have on a driver?
Another effect of lowering your center of gravity is that it tends to lower the bottom of the swing arc. This in turn can lead to greater odds of hitting fat shots – where the club penetrates the ground before making impact with the ball.
Why should shoulders line up with feet?
Because this is the default athletic position in golf in can be used for most ‘normal’ shots. Erring away from that position is done in order to achieve specific objectives or ...
What does narrowing your stance do?
Narrowing your stance will lead to a higher center of gravity, at least compared to a normal and wide stance. This adjustment will lead you to feel less stable on your feet than you would otherwise. As such, it is best reserved for smaller clubs or for smaller swings and is best avoided for long clubs and wide swings.
Does a wide stance affect hip rotation?
Finally, a wide stance can also inhibit hip and shoulder rotation or at least it can make those movements slightly uncomfortable. Because of this you should be careful that swaying is not allowed to creep into your golf swing, a golf swing error that replaces hip rotation with unwanted consequences.
Where should the 6-iron be on the golf ball?
This is what helps you create the ideal angle of attack. Now hold the top of the 6-iron next to your left shoulder and let it hang naturally down. It should be in line with the middle of your left foot.
How to swing a golf wedge?
With a wedge in hand, take your normal stance. Now hold the top of the wedge next to your left shoulder and let it hang naturally down . It should be in line with the outside of your left foot. The same goes if you drop the club down from your right shoulder towards your right foot.
How to play a 6 iron?
This is what helps you create the ideal angle of attack. Now hold the top of the 6-iron next to your left shoulder and let it hang naturally down. It should be in line with the middle of your left foot. The same goes if you drop the club down from your right shoulder towards your right foot.
Is the width of a stance the same for every club in the bag?
The width of your stance is not the same for every club in the bag. That’s the first and in many ways, most important element to understand here. The basic rule is the longer the club, the wider your stance needs to be.
What is a wide stance in golf?
In a wide stance, your feet will be furthest apart from each other while still allowing for a full golf swing to be performed comfortably. In that setup, the inside of your feet line up with the outside of your shoulders. Using a wide stance allows for the greatest stability and is normally reserved for shots made using a driver, ...
Why do you use a wide stance?
Using a wide stance allows for the greatest stability and is normally reserved for shots made using a driver , where the clubhead is furthest away from your body. Down on the scale you’ll find the normal stance next. That setup calls for your feet to be as far apart as your shoulders are wide.
How to position yourself for a narrow setup?
You position yourself for such a setup by moving your feet close to one another, almost to the point where they touch each other. Adopting a very narrow setup is normally associated with very delicate shots that are produced using limited swings. Examples for these are short chips a few feet removed from the green.
Can you flare your feet?
Indeed, you can choose to flare your feet (or foot) in what amounts to rotating them outwardly. There are four options available. The first one sees no foot flaring at all. In this instance, your feet will be parallel to each other and they will cross the target line at a 90 degree angle. Or in other words, the line from your heel to your toes ...
How to set your feet when driving?
When using a driver, setting your feet properly is the first step to a correct stance. Approach the ball and stand with your feet about shoulder width apart and your body weight evenly distributed on each foot.
How to play a golf hole?
Playing a golf hole successfully starts with a well-executed tee shot. But ensuring success off the tee isn’t as simple as hitting a 300-yard drive in the fairway. It starts with a fundamentally-sound alignment, grip and stance. When playing a dogleg, a golfer may have to play a slight draw or fade shot, which makes understanding ...
How to align for a fade in golf?
To align for a fade, take your normal stance, but aim slightly left of the target.
What does it mean to hold a driver with a strong grip?
If you hold a driver with a strong grip, it generally means you are trying to swing too hard, which can cost distance and accuracy off the tee.
How to check your golf club alignment?
To check your alignment, place a golf club on the ground along your toes. Leave the club on the ground and walk behind the ball to check that you are aimed correctly.
How to set up for a draw?
To set up for a draw, stand with your feet slightly wider than normal and play the ball back slightly in your stance. Align your body as though you are hitting slightly to the right of the target and swing along your body line. Reverse these instructions if you are a left-hander.
How to put a golf club in a shotgun?
Step 1. Grip the club and step up to the ball with your feet together. Square the clubface to your target before taking your stance, then take a shoulder-width stance and position the ball properly. Position the ball 3 to 4 inches inside the left heel (for a right-handed golfer) for a standard iron shot. Position the ball off the inside of the left ...
What is shoulder width stance?
Golfer with a shoulder-width stance. The way you set up your stance can have a direct effect on your golf swing and shot. Amateur golfers too often set up in a position that makes a proper swing difficult to execute. Many of these amateur golfers can eliminate poor swings just by making an adjustment in the positioning of their feet.
How to get weight shift on left foot?
Turn your left foot out toward the target about 20 degrees, relative to the target line. This will allow your hips to turn toward the target at impact and during the follow-through. This will also promote a proper weight shift to your left foot on the follow-through.
Why is a wide stance important in golf?
The biggest benefit of the wide golf stance is the stability . When you have a wide base, your lower body is going to be well planted into the ground, and you will have a stable base of support to get the speed that you need.
What are the disadvantages of wide stance golf?
The main disadvantage of the wide golf stance is going to be in the short game. It is nearly impossible to hit a small chip shot with finesse if your feet are more than shoulder width apart. The stance allows for too much power and too wide of an arc and that will not be necessary.
Why is a narrow stance better?
The main benefit of the narrow golf stance is that a golfer can have a much better rotation. Since your feet are not all that far apart, you can turn your body back and through the ball quite a bit easier . This type of rotation can also help some golfers start to hit the ball quite a bit straighter.
Why is the wide stance not good?
Another problem with the wider golf stance is that it can make it even more difficult to rotate around the ball. If you have a hard time transferring the weight in your golf swing and getting your complete turn back and through the golf ball, tan the wide stance is not for you.
What is a golf stance?
The standard golf stance is about shoulder width apart with your feet; n arrow stance golfers will have their feet even closer than this. Something you will notice about golfers with a narrow stance is that they tend to stand a bit more upright when they address the golf ball.
Why do you have to widen your stance when hooking a golf ball?
This is because with your feet being closer together, you will have an easier time wrapping the club around your body. For a golfer that slices the ball, the narrow stance is a great fix. However, if you happen to hook your golf ball, you will want to widen the stance just a bit.
What happens when your feet are shoulder width apart?
When your feet are shoulder width apart, you can have the perfect combination of flexibility and stability to hit ball long and straight. However, since golf is never an easy or simple game, your stance width will likely change as you change the club that you have in your hand.
Why do people have their feet touching when hitting wedge shots?
Many people will have their feet almost touching when they are hitting certain wedge shots around the green. Having some flexibility in the width of your feet while taking your golf stance is quite important . 2. Posture. Having great posture can lead to other positives in your golf swing like swing plane and balance.
What is the stance of a wedge shot?
The stance for a wedge shot is much more narrow, and the ball may appear closer to the back foot, but it should still be close to the middle of the stance. 4. Balance and Weight Distribution. An essential part of a proper golf stance is making sure that your body weight is distributed correctly.
Why is posture important in golf?
The most important thing about posture is to ensure you have the proper spine angle and that your arms can hang freely.
Why do you put weight in the center of your golf ball?
Having the weight in the center will help your stance to stay more in control, and it will cause a lot less leaning forwards and backward as you get into the impact position. When you set up to hit a golf ball, it is ok to have just a little more weight on the right leg (for right-handers).
How to get into proper golf posture?
The best way to get yourself into the proper posture is to stand tall, holding the golf club out in front of you.
What happens when your feet are shoulder width apart?
When your feet are shoulder-width apart, your body will have the proper mix of rotational ability and balance. These two factors are most significantly affected by how wide your golf stance is. When your feet are more than shoulder width apart, you will have a lot more balance, but it is difficult to rotate and transfer weight properly.
Where do you play the ball with a wedge in your hand?
The ball moves towards the front foot as clubs change. Generally speaking, with a wedge in your hand, you will play the ball right in the middle of your stance.
What happens if you set up too wide?
Here’s what happens: If you set up too wide at address, you’re going to have a doozy of a time opening your hips through impact and transferring your weight to your lead side , especially if you’re not as flexible or athletic as you used to be.
What happens if your stance is too narrow?
Conversely, if your stance is too narrow, your lower body becomes way too active — good for the dance floor but not when you’re looking to catch shots solid on the course. An overactive lower body throws off your timing and balance.
Should you put your feet in the correct position before starting the club back?
It should never happen in the first place, because let’s be honest: Setting your feet in the correct position before you start the club back is probably the easiest thing you can do in this game. After 30 years of teaching, I’m still amazed how most recreational golfers choose to ignore fundamentals such as stance width.
