Often, the root cause of this type of early extending is the club position at the top of their backswing – especially when they are ‘flying their elbow’ out from their body. The reason why is this: When the right elbow is internally rotated, or ‘flying’ out from your rib cage, as your turn the club will be pushed into a steep position
Are You struggling with early extension in your golf swing?
Lots of golfers struggling with early extension think this way. They look at their swing on video, see lots of good things up to a point, and then: the hips move toward the ball, they lose their spine angle, and they curse this stupid game. They try hitting balls with their backside against a wall.
Why do golfers early extend their spine?
If they could hold everything else in their golf swing constant and simply maintain their spine angle, they’d be lucky to hit the ball. And the reason is actually pretty simple: early extension is a symptom, and not a swing flaw. If you early extend, it’s because you have to.
How do I get rid of early extension in my swing?
One of the easiest drills you can do to address early extension is to get physically closer to the golf ball in your setup. If you take a golf ball-sized step closer to the ball, your hips will be forced to move away from the ball to create space for your arms. This is the exact feeling you want to train to rid your swing of early extension.
Why does my head lift with early extension in golf?
Your head will lift with early extension, but only in an effort to maintain your balance – the root cause of loss of posture is poor hip movement. Even better golfers often suffer from early extension, usually because they have the wrong concept of how to use their lower body in the golf swing.
What causes early extension in golf swing?
2:037:04How to Fix Early Extension Golf Swing - YouTubeYouTubeStart of suggested clipEnd of suggested clipBehind it or you're hitting thin shots.MoreBehind it or you're hitting thin shots.
What is causing my early extension?
Early extension, in a nutshell, is when your pelvis moves towards the ball during your downswing, which you can see GOLF Top 100 Teacher Dave Phillips demonstrate below: The cause of early extension is caused by a physical limitation. Your hips may be inflexible, for instance, or you may have weak core muscles.
How do I stop early extension in my golf swing?
2:519:54Two Moves To Stop Early Extension And Stay In Your Posture - YouTubeYouTubeStart of suggested clipEnd of suggested clipEarly that is a means to square up the face. Because releasing the club. Early actually closes theMoreEarly that is a means to square up the face. Because releasing the club. Early actually closes the club. Face right so if we have this space open and then we have to close it late.
Does early extension cause slice?
One of the most disruptive tendencies in golf is the dreaded two-way miss. Golfers who have a tendency to hook OR slice the ball can manage their game, but golfers who have a tendency to slice AND hook are in trouble. One of the most common swing inhibitors associated with a two-way miss is called Early Extension.
How do you get rid of an extension early?
A common drill used by our GOLF Top 100 Teachers to prevent early extension is to make swings with your rear end against a wall. Keep your rear against the wall as you swing and you'll feel what it's like to stay in your posture and not extend early.
Does standing too close cause early extension?
Early extension, Phillips explains is often an effect caused by an unbalanced setup. Specifically, standing too far from the golf ball. “If you're close to the golf ball, that actually puts you in position where you need to move [your trail hip] out of the way and work the club out in front of you.” he says.
Does early extension cause a shank?
Early extension can certainly cause shanks. When you early extend, you thrust your pelvis towards the ball, often dropping the club way under the swing plane. This severe in-to-out club path may cause the hosel to make contact with the ball first, rather than the club face, resulting in a shank.
Can early extension cause fat shots?
Early Extension is one of the most common swing faults. It can cause heavy shots, thin shots, pushed shots, hooked shots, high ball flight and inconsistency.
How can I improve my golf swing extension?
3:1212:573 Keys to Better Extension - YouTubeYouTubeStart of suggested clipEnd of suggested clipAs we start the downswing. I want to keep those legs flexed. And as I go straight through to theMoreAs we start the downswing. I want to keep those legs flexed. And as I go straight through to the straight line release or releasing this club where it's fully released 45 degrees in front.
What is the second issue in golf?
The second main issue is when you don’t complete the turn in the backswing. This leaves you in a bad position where you will more than likely start to come out over the shot and order to stay to the inside and have a fighting chance to hit the ball you will early extend to keep the club more to the inside.
How to get a 90 degree turn?
Go ahead and try to make a 90 degree turn with the shoulders and at least 45 degrees with the hips. Make sure you turn and don’t slide back. It is ok to extend or straighten your trail leg to allow the hips to turn. This will put you in an ideal backswing position.
What is an early extension, and how does it affect your golf swing?
Early extension occurs when a golfer’s hips and spine thrust forward or straighten up too early in their downswing. Controlling the pelvis is critical for optimally transferring power from your lower body to your upper body.
What is the cause of early extension?
For most, the cause of early extension is an inability to control their pelvic tilt due to a lack of mobility in the lumbar spine (lower back), weak core/glute muscles, and/or poor coordination.
How do you fix early extension in the golf swing?
Strategies for correcting early extension will vary from person to person.
What is early extension golf?
It’s the silent swing killer you didn’t know you have. Early extension is any movement of your hips toward the ball in your downswing. Seventy percent of all golfers suffer from early extension, but 99% of Tour players don’t according to the Titleist Performance Institute. That should tell you something about just how big ...
What does it mean when your swing is extended?
When early extension is a physical issue, it usually means you have limited mobility in your ankles, knees, hips and/or spine.
How to do a squat test?
To perform this squat test, stand with your feet pointing straight forward, about hip-width apart and with your thumbs on your shoulders and hands behind your head. From there, squat down as far as you can. A Titleist Performance Institute coach demonstrates the early extension squat test. Titleist Performance Institute.
Early Extension
Beginners may think this has something to do with the wrists on the downswing when we “uncock” the wrists too early and lose power! No!
How to Overcome Early Extension
As with many swing problems, it all starts at Address. I like to use an analogy from the great Johnny Miller, who said, “if you don’t aim the rifle at the target how can you expect to hit it?”
Some Swing Thoughts for Countering Early Extension
It is never a good idea to have too many swing thoughts in your head while attempting to play a shot. Most of the swing thoughts should be cleared when you address the ball. Don’t overcomplicate this process as it will leave you standing over the ball too long and negative thoughts will prevail. Use an Acronym and do a quick check at set up.
Why do people struggle with early extension in golf?
The reason why so many people struggle with early extension in golf is because they don’t understand the problem. They think the primary issue is the early extension itself. But early extension is not a swing fault! It’s actually a swing solution. Let me explain.
What is early extension golf?
Early extension is like lag’s negative counterpart. Golfers know they shouldn’t early extend. So when they do it, they try to stop it by trying to maintain their spine angle. But like lag, early extension is a result of something else. It’s not something you can eliminate by focusing on it directly.
Do early extenders hurt?
And the reason is actually pretty simple: early extension is a symptom, and not a swing flaw.
What Is Early Extension in Golf?
Should We Try to Fix Our Early Extension?
- Sorry, but the answer is kind of: Yes and no. Because the thing is, extension isn’t necessarily a bad thing. I’ve already explained that we early extend because we have to in order to hit the ball. And guess what: That extension also creates speed, and speed in golf is good right? Extending through the hitting zone can add some serious zing to your strikes. In fact, it’s what most of the …
Wrapping This Up
- Early extension is probably something that you’re never going to completely eliminate. At least on camera. And without it, you might even play worse golf with your current swing. But less thrusting towards the ball, and hips that are more open at impact is definitely something you should strive for. The 5 drills above are highly recommended, and should help you get there. Here’s a side-by-s…
Recommended Reading
- Early Extension (Goat Humping) [Monte Scheinblum]
- Early Extension Discussion [GolfWRX]
- Early Extension [Adam Young Golf]