As your club approaches impact, your arms need to slow down; they need to decelerate.  It sounds like the most ridiculous advice you will ever hear … but it’s correct.

Think of using a hammer; as you swing the hammer toward the nail your arm will slow so that momentum is transferred to the hammer head.  If your arm doesn’t slow, this energy transfer can’t happen.

The same principle of energy transfer applies in golf in order for you to achieve maximum power, accuracy and control.  As your arms approach impact, they will slow.  You will already be doing this to some extent, just watch a video of your swing and track the distance your hands move between each frame through the downswing.

The principle of energy transfer doesn’t just apply to your arms and the club.  It also applies with lower body transferring energy to your upper body, which then transfers momentum to your arms.  The order of movement from the top of your backswing, starting your downswing is hips, upper body, arms and club.

It only takes around 1/3 second for the club to go from the start of the downswing to impact, so while the movement is sequenced, it is close to simultaneous.

Practice the drill in the video making very short and slow swings into an Impact Bag having the feeling of your arms slowing, transferring momentum to your clubhead.  When you do this correctly, your clubhead will accelerate into the Impact Bag with a surprising amount of force for so little effort.

Once you have the feeling of this working with arms and club, then notice how it also works with the rest of your body.  If you have the sensation of your hands and arms doing much less work than they have previously done and you are still getting the same amount of power in your shots, then you are likely to be making the movement correctly.

One of the most common sequencing errors is for players to begin their downswing with arms and hands.  When this happens, the body movement stalls.  Players who complain of reverse weight shift or ‘hitting from their back foot’ are usually the ones who start their downswing with arms and hands.

Learn the correct sequencing and see your effort levels drop and power increase.  What a nice combination…