Downswing Sequence Explained
In this video, PGA Professional Katie Dawkins explains the downswing sequence.
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00:00 (golf club clacks)
00:02 - Hi, my name's Katie Dawkins.
00:05 I am here today at West Hill Golf Club
00:07 to explain to you the downswing sequence.
00:10 The downswing in the golf swing
00:12 is something that people get very screwed up
00:14 in the head with.
00:15 There's too many thoughts going on
00:17 in a movement that takes very little time to actually do.
00:20 So it's really important that we don't clutter our minds
00:23 with lots and lots of different thoughts.
00:25 It's important as well to remember
00:27 that the downswing sequence really is just us
00:29 trying to propel an object towards a target.
00:32 That's no different to me getting a ball in my hand
00:34 and chucking it for the dog.
00:36 Everything happens in the same way.
00:38 So if I want to get optimum power and send that ball
00:42 or whatever I'm chucking straight down the middle,
00:44 I've got to first of all be in an athletic position
00:46 to do that, so I need good posture.
00:48 So solid fundamentals are really key here.
00:51 What I've then got to remember to do
00:53 is actually use my body.
00:56 And this is something that golfers don't do.
00:58 They tend to just swing their arms up and down.
01:00 So from the top of the backswing,
01:02 what should happen is your body should start
01:06 to uncoil from the ground up.
01:08 And that's the kinematic sequence
01:10 that we tend to talk about.
01:11 It's that movement of power stored in that coil up
01:15 in the golf swing and starting to unwind.
01:17 So the first thing that goes is from the ground up.
01:21 So you're going from the hips and everything's rotating,
01:24 your torso's turning towards the target.
01:26 The last thing to crack through is that golf club.
01:28 So actually when players are standing there
01:31 and swinging from the top of the swing,
01:32 the first thing they tend to do is get this sequence
01:34 in the wrong order.
01:35 So they will throw that club from the top,
01:38 throw all that power away, cast it away if you like,
01:41 and end up with no power when they get to the ball.
01:43 A lot of their clubs will go the same distance
01:45 and it'll all feel like hard work.
01:48 So how can we stop this from happening?
01:51 One of the best things that you can possibly do
01:53 is actually practice without a golf ball.
01:55 So take the golf ball out of the equation totally
01:58 and just practice that winding up and that unwinding.
02:02 Feel it from the ground up, unwind the body,
02:05 and really turn to the target.
02:07 So the golf swing becomes turn and turn.
02:11 That's gonna be quite a simple movement
02:14 that you can think about while you're out
02:15 on the golf course.
02:16 If you can get through to a lovely photo finish
02:19 at the end of your swing, you've probably done
02:21 the right stuff to get there in the first place.
02:24 Golfers who aren't doing this sequence in the right order
02:26 tend to jump off the ball and end up on their back foot,
02:30 almost walking backwards off it and wondering
02:31 why it hasn't gone where they wanted it to go.
02:34 So the players that turn up for golf lessons,
02:39 lacking power, lacking distance,
02:41 it's usually down to them getting this kinematic sequence
02:44 in the wrong order.
02:45 The reason that they do that is because
02:47 they haven't got the postures to begin with.
02:50 So there's not that athletic, ready to run somewhere
02:53 feeling that we need, and you see all the best players
02:55 in the world have.
02:56 Their weight is on the balls of the feet,
02:58 we're ready to run somewhere, that's how it should be.
03:00 What I tend to see is no angles,
03:03 everything sort of sat back almost like you're leaning
03:05 on a bar stool, and weight on the heels.
03:07 There's no balance there, and with no balance
03:10 you're not gonna get the control.
03:11 So all that's gonna happen is you will swing the arms up
03:14 and down, and so you're powering your golf swing
03:17 with the arms only.
03:18 If you were to try and get involved with this lovely
03:21 wind up of the body and turn, you're gonna rock
03:23 all over the place.
03:24 So our bodies are very clever, they tend to protect us
03:27 from falling over, which is handy.
03:29 So if that position at address is athletic,
03:33 I can support a lovely coil up and a lovely uncoil.
03:38 Therefore the kinematic sequence is working
03:40 in the right order.
03:42 If it's not in the right place to begin with my body,
03:44 I've got no balance, it's not gonna happen.
03:50 So what if you've got a poorly back,
03:52 if you've got immobility in the hips?
03:54 There are some physical limitations that might be
03:56 the reason you're not getting into this position
03:58 and not getting the sequence correct on the downswing.
04:02 If you're not in a decent position at set up,
04:04 sometimes those physical limitations can cause you
04:07 to not be able to hold that good posture for example.
04:10 So bear that in mind, that actually maybe a Pilates class
04:13 or a bit of yoga might just help you to achieve
04:16 a better impact position.
04:17 So if you're not getting this downswing sequence correct,
04:21 chances are there's faults in the set up
04:23 and perhaps you're not winding that club up on the way back.
04:27 So if you get those things right,
04:29 the downswing is a reaction to that.
04:32 Go and have a lesson, go and get your fundamentals checked.
04:36 And with that, you'll start to see a much more tight movement
04:39 all the way down through the ball and to that photo finish.
04:43 (upbeat music)
04:45 (upbeat music)
04:48 (upbeat music)