What is early extension in the golf swing?
What Is Early Extension In Golf? Early extension is when a golfer’s pelvis moves closer to the golf ball during the early part of the downswing (or indeed while completing their backswing).
What percentage of golfers suffer from early extension?
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 of a swing killer this bad habit can be. Early extension in the simplest terms is any movement of the lower body toward the golf ball during the downswing.
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.
Is early extension a swing killer?
That should tell you something about just how big of a swing killer this bad habit can be. Early extension in the simplest terms is any movement of the lower body toward the golf ball during the downswing.
How do you fix early extension in golf swing?
5:547:04How to Fix Early Extension Golf Swing - YouTubeYouTubeStart of suggested clipEnd of suggested clipIt flex it a little bit. And then extend so let me see if i can combo that together here we go setMoreIt flex it a little bit. And then extend so let me see if i can combo that together here we go set up i got my hip hinge. I'm going to load into. It. I'm going to flex. It.
Can you play good golf with early extension?
3:037:10Early Extension Golf Play Your Best Golf Ever - YouTubeYouTubeStart of suggested clipEnd of suggested clipSo it's a good reason why you're doing it if you're if you come down steep the only way you can hitMoreSo it's a good reason why you're doing it if you're if you come down steep the only way you can hit the golf ball if you come down steep like that and you stay in posture.
Does early extension cause a 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.
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.
Does early extension cause a hook?
Early Extension usually causes two typical miss hits, the block to the right and a hook to the left. And as most competitive players know, having two misses, one to the right and one to the left, can be disastrous in tournament play.
Does 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.
Does early extension cause flipping?
0:398:49GOLF: Eliminate Early Extension With This One Feel - YouTubeYouTubeStart of suggested clipEnd of suggested clipSo when you get an impact your pelvis and hips from the top will kick in towards the ball. YourMoreSo when you get an impact your pelvis and hips from the top will kick in towards the ball. Your chest gets farther from the ground and your arms. Straight now that's an early extension pattern.
Can 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.
When should I extend my golf swing?
0:503:38Golf Swing Extension - How to Release your Arms & Hands after ...YouTubeStart of suggested clipEnd of suggested clipThrough impact and extends away from my body. So just have a few practice swings swinging that clubMoreThrough impact and extends away from my body. So just have a few practice swings swinging that club letting the golf club feel like it's very heavy and pulling your arms away.
Does early extension cause flipping?
0:398:49GOLF: Eliminate Early Extension With This One Feel - YouTubeYouTubeStart of suggested clipEnd of suggested clipSo when you get an impact your pelvis and hips from the top will kick in towards the ball. YourMoreSo when you get an impact your pelvis and hips from the top will kick in towards the ball. Your chest gets farther from the ground and your arms. Straight now that's an early extension pattern.
Can early extension cause shanks?
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.
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.
What is the silent swing killer in golf?
2:3810:25The #1 Silent Swing Killer And How To Fix It - YouTubeYouTubeStart of suggested clipEnd of suggested clipHigher handicappers the butt comes in off the line the hips work too far forward either on the wayMoreHigher handicappers the butt comes in off the line the hips work too far forward either on the way back or on the way down again today we're looking at the hips not working as far forward on the way.
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 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.
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.
What does Monte say about squatting?
I’ve seen him say that if you’re squatting in the downswing, you better be extending in the backswing. Which makes a lot of sense really.
How to wedge under right heel?
Wedge Under The Right Heel Drill. This is a good drill from Dan Whittaker that gets you to engage the lower body in transition by pushing down with the right heel. Basically, you stick a wedge under your right heel and keep it there during transition and the early part of the downswing.
Why do we extend early?
In a nutshell: we early extend because we have to in order to hit the ball. There’s a flaw in our backswing, transition, or downswing which means that if we didn’t stand up and raise the handle we wouldn’t hit the ball. Or if we did hit the ball, we’d hit it a lot worse.
What is early extension?
Early extension is one of the most common faults in golf. In this guide we’re going to deep dive into early extension, looking into the causes, the problems it causes, and the best drills and fixes you can use to cure it. Let’s get started. Contents [ hide]
Is a squat the intent?
Or at least it may look like we squat on video, but the squat shouldn’t be the intent. Or if it is the intent, it should be a particular kind of squat (more of a sit into the left side). And then there are other instructors such as George Gankas who are all about the squat.
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 ...
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.
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.
Can you break parallel?
If you can’t break parallel, or get your thighs past your knees in this position, without rounding your back or leaning forward, you are likely an early extender. Once you’ve diagnosed your early extension, there are a ton of simple drills and exercises you can do to address it.
How to identify early extension in your golf swing
Let’s start off by defining the issue. It’s about your spine angle, the relation of your spine to your hips, and getting that angle correct. On top of that, even when you do get it absolutely right, it can be tough to maintain that angle.
Strength and technique
Most of our power is in our lower body; this is where the biggest strongest muscles are. Golf is about taking that power and accurately applying it to the golf ball through the medium of the golf club. To do this correctly, we need both strength and technique as a golfer. If these two things are not in place, then you will mis-hit the ball.
Simple drills to fix early extension in a golf swing
Going back to basics is essential. The relation between your hips and your spine is what counts, so focus on that in your practice. Start with this straightforward exercise, which you can do at home.
Keeping up the good work
Unfortunately, the tendency to early extend in golf is a problem which can slip back unless you keep practicing. If you find you are mis-hitting the golf ball when you are playing, especially if the hosel is connecting with the ball rather than the club’s face, then go back to basics.
How to fix early extension in your golf swing – Avoid injury
There is another reason why you should work on correcting early extension. If you do not rotate correctly, shifting your weight as we have described, then you are in danger of injuring your lower back.
Why do some golfers early extend?
Some golfers early extend because of a technical inefficiency, others early extend because it's the most effective way for them to swing based on their physical tools. Either way, your student can be a good golfer with early extension, but it might prevent others from reaching their power potential.
Why is early extension not a swing fault?
We're careful to refer to early extension as a swing characteristic and not a swing fault because it doesn't preclude players from playing great golf. Early extension hasn't stopped Zach Johnson and Jimmy Walker from winning major championships, flying private and paying cash for large homes. That said, early extension requires golfers ...
What is centripetal force?
Centripetal force is defined as "a force that acts on a body moving in a circular path and is directed toward the center around which the body is moving.". The concept of centripetal force is ubiquitous in sports, especially rotational activities.
Who is the shortest hitter in baseball?
A vertical line is drawn behind their tailbone as a reference point. As you can see, Jimmy Walker (the shortest hitter) moves off the line, while DJ's hips stay on the line and Justin's actually move past the line (away from the target line).
Is Jimmy Walker a short hitter?
Jimmy Walker isn't a short hitter by any means, but he's forced to rely on his wrist angle to keep up with the longest in golf. Put it this way: turn on a World Long Drive event and watch the lower bodies. They always always move away from the target line like Justin James.
What Is Early Extension in Golf?
Why Do We Early Extend?
- In a nutshell: we early extend because we have to in order to hit the ball. There’s a flaw in our backswing, transition, or downswing which means that if we didn’t stand up and raise the handle we wouldn’t hit the ball. Or if we did hit the ball, we’d hit it a lot worse. According to Monte Scheinblum, 3 of the most common swing flaws which cause early extension are: 1. Arms are st…
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]