Problem With Downswing & Finishing

Hope someone can help me, this is driving me nuts.

On my downswing, I don't seem to generate enough momentum or speed (or something) and don't seem to be able to finish properly. Typically, my finish is short and low, hence I get little distance.

When I try to swing faster or harder or whatever, several bad things happen. Either I raise my entire body, with my head going forwards towards the target before impact, or else, if I try to keep my head back, my left arm breaks down in chicken wing fashion.

I've been told by pros that the arms must extend through impact, but I can't seem to achieve it. Any thoughts?

Hi, it's difficult to say without seeing your swing but one possible explanation is that you are leading your swing with your hands and not generating enough coil. This will cause you to jab and hit at the ball with a very short follow through. As with most things in golf the solution lies with your set-up and backswing.

Ok, set-up first - make sure you give yourself plenty of room, don't crowd the ball. Use the posture drill on this website to check that your set up is ok.
http://www.golf-tuition-online.com/v...=posture+drill (The Golf Posture - how to stand / address the golf ball)

Now start the backswing by turning your shoulders and let the hands just follow. Keep everything else as passive as possible and execute a full shoulder turn so that your left shoulder is below your chin (for a right-handed player).

Now commit to the shot as it will be almost impossible to finish like you've previously described as you'll just have too much stored energy being released.

Hope this helps.

Paul