- By Jane Kircaldie, PT, TPI Certified Golf Fitness Instructor,
Medical Professional 2, Fitness Professional 2
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Developing Power in your Swing
I
t’s safe to assume the number one aspect everyone is longing to improve upon in their game is
power. We all want that elusive extra 10 or 20 yards and always admire the “long hitters.” From
a body/swing relation aspect, there are a many ways to generate more power. One is increasing
flexibility of the torso to create a more expansive shoulder turn giving one more width and more “coil.”
Another is increasing core strength to be able to decelerate or create lag on the downswing to be able
to unleash the club at impact.
But if I were to pick the perfect place to start addressing increasing power and distance, I would
start with the lower body.
Rory McIlroy is 5’9” tall and approximately 165 pounds; yet he drives the ball consistently over
300 yards with unparalleled accuracy. In the most recent edition of Men’s Health, McIlroy stated, “the
lower body work stabilized all the power that I generated on the way down. I could generate the
power, but I needed the stability to hold onto it.”
In perspective for the amateur golfer, if you feel you have sufficient shoulder turn at the top
of your backswing, but wonder why you are losing distance, go see your favorite teaching pro to
determine if you hang back, lose posture, early extend, slide, sway, etc. If so, your lower body is not
keeping you solidly locked to the ground to allow you to unleash that desired power. Rory McIlroy said
it best when he talked about his golf swing being more stable, “there’s a lot less moving parts.”
So let’s talk briefly about stability and why it’s important. Think of the club, and specifically the
club head, as the end of a whip. During the downswing, energy is first generated from the ground
(aka ground reaction force), through the legs to the pelvis, to the torso, to the shoulders, the arms,
then finally the club (whew!), This continual transfer of energy, which again, ends at the club head,
or the end of the proverbial whip, allows amazing power at impact and longer ball flight.
Through this entire sequence, think of the legs, the first body part to generate this power
energy from the ground, as tree trunks. If the quads, glutes and hamstrings cannot keep the lower
body from moving while other parts ARE moving (ie the torso, the shoulders the arms, and the club),
like a tree trunk holding it’s branches on a windy day- a slide, sway, loss of posture, etc. will ensue
and, therefore, a loss of power.
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Connecticut State Golf Association