DRIVING H PRACTICE H TOUR INSIGHT H FIVE-MINUTE LESSON H STRATEGY H THE ARCHIVE H MENTAL GAME H SWING
JUSTIN ROSE
6 WAYS TO ‘PURE’ YOUR IRONS
The PGA Tour star and defending Olympic champion reveals the six key swing thoughts he uses to keep his swing
in check, plus a crafty trick for squeezing more distance out of your driver.
MATCH YOUR
PLANES
“In recent years, my coach Sean Foley
and I have worked hard on getting
my left arm in the correct position at
the top of the backswing. We’ve
experimented with having the arm a
little higher but we always come back
to our blueprint where my left arm
plane matches the plane of my
shoulders.”
GRIP THE GROUND
“I want to create a solid base for my
swing. I’m going to be swinging the
club fast, so I need stability – lots of
it! I like to have a light fl ex in my
knees and a straight lower back with
ever so slightly rounded shoulders. I
also like to feel ‘heavy’ through my
feet, like I’m gripping the ground with
my toes at address. This helps me to
stay centred over the ball and to keep
my head still as I turn.”
KEEP YOUR
HANDS LOW
“I like to feel that the grip of the club
is as low as I can get it at impact. That
helps me turn quicker to the left in
the follow-through, which slows
down clubface rotation so it stays
squarer for longer through impact. If
you stand up out of posture, the
handle gets high and your ball-
striking will suff er. The more open my
body can look at impact, the better.”
ERR TO THE OUTSIDE
“I’ve found it’s better to take the club
away a little outside the line
so when you get to the top, the
momentum helps shift the club
to the inside as you move into your
transition. This will improve your
swing path coming into impact.
Taking the club away too far on
the inside is a big reason why many
amateurs come over the top and hit
across the ball with a slice motion.”
LOOK FOR A
PUNCHY FINISH
“The fi nish matters because it’s
infl uenced by everything that’s
happened before. When I have a
controlled follow-through like this, I’m
never going to hit a bad shot. I call it
having ‘good brakes’ because
everything is shorter, almost like a
punch shot. When I have a bad
follow-through, the club feels like it’s
been thrown down the line out of
control.”
TAKE YOUR TIME
“I like to think of my backswing as a
spring. I’ve got all day to create the
coil and the tension. It will uncoil with
power, irrespective of how quickly I
create that tension in the backswing,
so you may as well take your time.”
COPY JACK’S TRADEMARK POWER MOVE
“Amateurs tend to play the ball way too far back
in their stance for a driver. That means they hit
down on the ball, which is not the best way to
achieve optimal launch conditions. I encourage
you to get the ball further forward in your stance
towards your left heel or even your left toe.
“When the ball is forward, you feel you have so
much more time in the downswing. When it’s too
far back, you can get stuck at impact. You then
have to stand up to create a bit of extra room.
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GolfPlus Junior March-April 2020
“I do have an extra gear with the driver when I
need to rip one. I call it the leg-kick. I let my left
heel rise in the backswing, a bit like Jack Nicklaus
used to. It encourages a bigger arc and turn, but
it’s vital how you then stomp that heel back into
the turf as you start the downswing. The harder I
push my left heel back into the ground, the more
lag and speed I create. And the more pressure
you can exert on the turf, the more that is going
to be available to you to thrust through impact.”