To all the big hitters

Has anybody ideas as to when you should feel when to release the club in the down swing, or should it happen naturally,

Also to all the long hitters out there what do you feel is the biggest contributor to maximizing distance, people often remark how smooth my swing is and how nice my tempo is, but i just cannot gain any xtra yards at all. All feedback would be very much apprieciated.

Please define long hitter.

Hi Lowpost,
defininition of big hitters is in essense lenght from the tee, have you got any swing thoughts that may help.

Well, I've often heard it said that one should not be trying to release through impact, that it should happen from good swing mechanics.

I know whenever I try to time my release, I either end up with a slice or a hook. Whenever I don't think about it, it goes about straight.

The other day I went to the driving range. I had intentions of practicing but I needed to get some agression out. I hit about 40 balls as hard as I could swing. Form be damned, I just wanted to make an example of all the golf balls who disappointed me. I didn't think of swing thoughts, left arm straight, turning instead of swaying. I hit almost every ball with a slight fade, and most were within the width of a fairway. I even had people watching cause I was grunting with every effort. For me it helps because sometimes I forget that golf is a game, I don't get paid to play and I sometimes just want to crush the ball.

Killer - distance comes from a fast swing speed and a squarely applied hit out of the sweetspot. If you are hitting the ball solid and square the one thing you need to work on is swing speed. To increase swing speed I really work on coiling, really turning my shoulders into a flexed back leg, whilst trying to maintain my spine angle. Sometimes if i am going for a big one i like to feel my hands release and give it some extra hit - but that would only be on a wide open hole.

Outside your swing there are plenty of ways to "buy" length these days - might want to consider going for a fitting.

Nick

I hit one today 330 is that big enough for you
my biggest keys would be proper set up, which includes grip in the palm of left hand, fingers of right hand. Right elbow bend at address, and there is also one BIG one not many people realize, the left wrist is to be slightly uncocked at address where it looks level with the left arm. People overlook this stuff and wonder why, with so much practice, they dont get better or longer.

To gain distance you must start with the foundation of good swing mechanics. It is no good swinging wildly with a poor swing, you will just produce bigger slices or hooks.

Secondly you must swing the club on plane and eliminate any over the top / out to in swing path. The driver must return to the ball on a shallow plane with full extension and a slight in to out path that encourages a slight draw.

Last, you need to generate club head speed, forget all this stuff about coiling against your legs or using big muscles, you do it with a light grip and relaxed arms and shoulders, maintaining cocked wrists in the downswing then releasing the clubhead through the ball and towards the target as late as possible by rotating your forearms and wrists.

you dont need power you need clubhead speed at the last moment, the rest of your swing should maintain a steady smooth tempo.

Enjoy the results

Brian

If it is of any help, I would put a lot of emphasis on a wide stance, and head behind the ball. Also, tilt your right shoulder to the ground to turn around your spine and hit the ball on the upswing. When this works for me, I can achieve 290 yards.

Nick is quite correct on the first point:

FORCE = MASS * ACCELERATION. Which means that the faster your swing is at impact, the longer you will hit.

His second point is also very correct: off hits on drivers can steal 10-15% of distance, but this depends on the driver.

Now the only question becomes "how do I get the speed?"

There are two things that have been shown to increase club head speed.

1. The X-Factor. The offset between the should angle and the hip angle at the top of the back swing. This is primarily biomechanic. I think it was McLean who discovered this when looking at video.

2. Late hitting. Delaying your release as long as possible. Without getting really techinical, the golf swing is a double pendulum, and if you conserve angular momentum until later in the swing, you get a faster club head speed. Vijay is the king of this trick, but it is hard to control.

Unless you are a pro, most people suffer with lack of "adequate" distance because of some type of casting issue, which is closer to #2 above. If you Google the terms with "golf" you can read all about it.

Theo

i am 15 years old and i have been playing golf for about a year now and can hit the ball for about 300 yards and i would say the maximising factor for distance for me is gripping it and ripping it i cant do anything else. i say to myself i'll just swing smoothly so it will be more accurate but i always find the distance factor wins everytime!!! So my advice is hit it as hard as you can but to within your limits and so you stay balanced

I am not a big hitter, but I get the maximum out of my swing. The pros get the maximum out of their long ball swing also. Now ask your self this. How many pros routinely hit the ball 300+ yards? Check the PGA stats. To get the maximum out of your swing requires smooth tempo, and timimg. Your tempo is just that...... your tempo. Not my tempo, not the pros, but yours. Timing to me is a natural result of a person's tempo. The swing happens so fast, especially on the down stroke, that thinking about anything in the down swing except for a steady eye on the left rear quadrant of the ball. is a tough road to follow. So, I would say that the release of the club head would be a natural movement, that will coincide with your swing tempo/timing. If you try to hold the release longer than normal, then you upset the your natural tempo, and timing. You can probably learn to release later which will generate more club head speed through impact, but you will also have to change your tempo, and timing to some degree.

A good club fitting would probably do more for your distance than anything. With all the talk now days about shafts, launch angles, ball spin rates, and MOI, grabbing a few extra yards can be had in those areas of club fitting. GJS

We have a 335 par 4, just for kicks, I teed up with all intent on crushing the ball, and hitting the green. Ball landed pin high, 15 yards to the left, once in a lifetime shot. Teed up another, crushed it, bad slice landed on the green............. two fairways over. I'll take 270 down the middle than 300 in the bushes any day.

I hit the ball a relaively long way - about 290 - 300 on average anwould say my key swing thoughts if I trying to hit a long drive is to keep the width in my backswing and full shoulder turn to coil my body up and then releasing my hips nice and early so that I get the delayed impact as described above.

First let me say, I am not a big hitter. I a great day in the summer, I can go about 260, but I am generally straight and in the fairway.

I think one of the reasons I do not hit father is a lack of flexibility. I can only generate limited shoulder without reverse pivoting. I also think I have a limited ability to maintain the wrist angle on the downswing. If you look at all long hitters, the shaft of the club stays vertical for the early part of the downsing storing up a great deal of potential energy. They are then able to release that stored energy at the right moment. All long hitters at impact have a flat wrist which starts the ball low and then soars. In addition they all have tremendous balance.