Chapter 5 - The Backswing

The waggle Forward press Upper-left-arm-leverage The initial movement Left Shoulder UP The foot action   The "laid-off" shaft

You are now properly set up alongside the ball in a position from which to commence the first operation in swinging the club (in this instance a driver, although when giving personal instruction I like to start a pupil with a five iron.)

Obviously if you are gripping the club correctly and standing ideally to the ball you are giving yourself a real chance at the outset to shape a sound backswing. That being so, try not to rush into this chapter. Re-read and check what you have already learned about the grip and the stance.

And there are two further preliminaries to be considered before coming to the actual backswing. These are the waggle and the forward press, both of them largely matters of individuality, neither of them to be overdone.

In modern times the waggle has become something of a misnomer among the top players. Fewer and fewer nowadays waggle the club head in the manner of their predecessors of the hickory shaft age, notably Sandy Herd. The American amateur William Hyndman, Walker Cup and World Team player, is one of the most conspicuous wagglers among the moderns.

His agitated and prolonged waggle seems to suit him but it would wreck the rhythm of most players.

The object of the waggle is to ensure flexibility in the wrists, get the feel of the club head, make the hands active, and break down tension. Overdone it can have entirely the reverse effect in each case.

Two or three smooth unhurried passes to and from the ball along the intended line of flight with the left hand and wrist in control is all that is usually necessary.

Now for the forward press. This is a slight thrust forward of the right knee and the hands immediately before the commencement of the backswing. If it is natural and instinctive, I say by all means carry on.

However, I never try to build a forward press into the action of a pupil who does not do it instinctively. For one thing to do so would be to introduce another movement and one, moreover, which entails a change of direction when the club is drawn back. We are compelled to change direction when we reach the top of the swing and that is a difficult enough operation for many players.

In any event the main value of the forward press is that it brings the flexed right knee forward and in towards the ball, something you have already done in taking up the position at address which I have outlined.

My advice on these two preliminaries is this. Waggle simply and smoothly and not for too long. Do not worry about the forward press unless it is an action which comes naturally.

What is of the utmost importance is achieving a smooth and correct start to the backswing, and straight away I want to warn you against those two misleading pieces of oft-repeated advice which you may have heard and to which I referred in my opening chapter.

I say most emphatically you do NOT take the club back inside the line; you do NOT concentrate on keeping the club head close to the ground in the initial stage of the backswing.

Let me explain. If you take the club back inside the line with the hands you either produce a flat concave plane or cramp the backswing. This results in a loop at the top of the swing which throws the club head outside the line on its way to the ball. As you will see, the correct turn of the body must bring the club head back inside without a conscious effort to ensure it. And the extended left arm will give full width to the movement.

A deliberate endeavor to keep the club head low and close to the ground in the initial stage of the backswing is almost certain to have the effect of bringing the left shoulder too far down and collapsing the left side, two evils which we want to avoid at all costs. The correct body-action, incorporating a free smooth turn of the shoulders can only be accomplished by keeping the left shoulder UP, not down.

I want to straighten out these two dangerous misconceptions before detailing the correct backswing. Banish them from your mind and you will the more readily follow the details of the movement I am now going to outline.

Start the club straight back from the ball for twelve to eighteen inches using only the hands and the arms keeping the club-face and the hands SQUARE to the line with no rolling of the forearms or turning of the wrists (Fig. 10). It is just one single movement, the simplest imaginable. There can be no complications unless you make them.

Let us pause for a moment while I make quite clear what is meant by keeping the club-face and hands square to the line. The square club-face is maintained by retaining the position of the club-face in relation to the shoulders as the shoulders turn in the backswing.

Three vital stages in the back-swing. The initial movement, carried out with the hands and arms only, has set the left shoulder in motion.

The club-face and hands are square to the intended line of flight at the address and the shoulders are parallel with the intended line of flight. This set-up should be exactly the same when the club-head is returned to the ball.

The initial movement away from the ball has an important bearing on this matter of returning the club head to the ball with the hands and club-face square and the shoulders back in line. To make this consistently possible the set-up must not be altered as the backswing gets under way. This clearly implies that the club-face is neither rolled open by a clockwise motion of the hands and wrists nor closed by an anti-clockwise motion of the hands and wrists.

Get this right in the early stages of the back-swing and you need not concern yourself further with the squaring of the clubface.

A model backswing is that of Kel Nagle, the Australian who won the Centenary Open Championship. One of the most consistently straight hitters in the world, Nagle employs a simple, controlled backswing which clearly demonstrates what I have outlined in the immediately preceding paragraphs.

And his perfect hand-and wrist-control, so noticeable in his backswing and easily maintained throughout the subsequent movement, bears out all I have said about the wrist complex which afflicts so many lesser players.

The initial movement away from the ball has taken the club head straight back some twelve to movement is carried out with the left shoulder and left side moving in one synchronized action with the hands and club head.

Figure 11

Three vital stages in the back-eighteen inches, and no swing. Half-way back the left more
Many instructors arm is in full control, the right maintain that this initial knee still flexed.

I disagree. No body-action is used in the short pitch or chip shot. The arms alone swing the club in these short shots. Now the full shot is simply an extension of the short one with body movement added to get a fuller swing which produces more power. Therefore let us start the movement as we would for the short shots and build up to the bigger shots from the same initial movement.

The movement must start with the hands for they are the unit in direct contact with the club. From the hands the sense of activation travels up the left forearm and into the upper arm just below the shoulder. At this point, with the club head twelve to eighteen inches back from the ball, the shoulders commence their turn. So does the chest which turns over the retracted stomach (Fig. n). The turn carried through in this way brings the left shoulder close up underneath the chin at the top of the swing.

The stomach must be kept in. It CAN be done even by portly players.

Now I come to the all-important matter of upper-arm-leverage so perfectly demonstrated in the swing of Ben Hogan.

The upper arm carries the club back and up on a passive, extended (never stiff) left arm.

The forearms and wrists are still not rolled open neither are they turned to shut the club-face. Where a slight roll or twist does occur is in the upper left arm which has been allowed to swing freely and clear of the body as the shoulders and chest turn let me repeat over the retracted stomach.

Only by acquiring this knack of upper-left-arm-leverage with the left shoulder kept UP as it turns can the left arm find room to do its work the work of tracing out the pattern in this first movement in the building of a well shaped swing. You are on the way to the top of the swing, but so far I have said nothing about the feet.

I will recap and at the same time bring the feet into the picture. You have:

(a) Started the club back with the hands and felt the transmission move up through the left forearm into the upper arm;

(b) turned the shoulders and chest over the retracted stomach, keeping the left shoulder UP by utilising upper-left-arm-leverage on a passive extended left arm;

(c) retained the flexed right knee and not stiffened it. This has enabled the body turn to take place with the right hip back but NOT drawn up.

Your feet have come into the operation in this way.

The first movement is as natural and simple as the initial involuntary action when you take a step forward in walking. Assuming you are stepping out right foot first the weight immediately shifts forward on to the ball of the left.

This is precisely what takes place as the left foot begins to come into the backswing. The heel comes slightly off the ground following that initial movement with the hands and arms straight back from the ball. Your weight comes on to the ball of the foot below the toe crease.

It is a minute action almost indiscernible except to the trained eye. But it is important you make this first simple foot movement correctly by slightly raising the left heel and moving the left foot weight forward on to the ball of the foot and not at once rolling the foot sideways as so many people do.

By making the wrong movement, that is rolling the left foot over on to its inside edge without first coming slightly forward on to the ball of the foot, you at once upset the action of the left knee and the right hip and you find yourself inclined to lift the club steeply in the backswing.

This faulty roll of the left foot drops the left knee below the right and tips the right hip up in the backswing, the first action in a rocking motion of the shoulders and hips which we do not want at all. We are aiming to TURN the body not rock it sideways.

Come forward on to the ball of the left foot and the body turn will then bring you on to the inside edge of the sole with both knees staying level and the left knee moving in towards the ball. Get that first fractional movement of the left foot correct and you need concern yourself with it no more.

The right foot is firmly on the ground from toe to heel, and here, too, the weight is concentrated towards the inside edge.

Now for another warning against false advice. Forget what you may have heard about the weight being transferred from the left foot to the right in the backswing. So many struggling players, anxious to ensure that the weight is transferred, push it almost entirely on to the right foot. This causes a lateral sway of the body and, of course, the head goes along with it.
In fact barely ten per cent of the weight is transferred from the left foot to the right in the properly executed backswing in which, let me repeat yet again, the shoulders and chest turn over the retracted stomach. I labour this point because so many people make no effort to control their mid-section because they do not realize how the turn operates.

This body turn takes place on the "platform" set up by the flexed right knee above which the right hip turns on its original level. The only lateral movement in the backswing is that of the club head and arms in the initial stage of the movement.

You should now be properly poised and balanced with the backswing almost completed. Continue the turn and the left arm action until the left shoulder touches the chin which, of course, should not have moved from its original position at address. The shoulders have performed a 900 turn and the left arm has traced out the path of the club head and maintained the plane of the swing. The right arm has taken care of itself, if you have allowed it to, and by that I imply that you have acquired the correct set of the right elbow in the address.

With the left arm-action I have outlined, and the consistently flexed right knee, you will have the feeling as you approach the completed backswing of the left shoulder moving up under the chin while the feet appear to be pressing into the ground.

Now what of the hand position in this completed backswing? First let us see what position the shaft of your driver has taken.

The completed backswing will show the shaft of the driver horizontal to the ground or perhaps not quite so far back, depending on how supple the body is.

The wrist-action has taken place gradually and quite involuntarily under the momentum of the club head as the upper left arm reaches its maximum leverage in the later stages of the backswing. The action of the hands and wrists will be clearly felt at the top of the swing if the movement has not been hastened.

This implies, rightly, that the completion of the back-swing and the start of the downswing must be the slowest section of the whole movement to permit the hand- and wrist-action to develop and in turn give the left arm time to generate its power in readiness for the transition from the backswing into the downswing.

To think yourself into this slowing down of the movement at the top you may develop the feeling of a definite pause in the movement before the downswing commences. This is all to the good although to an observer the pause is barely perceptible. But if you have difficulty at this stage of the movement, train yourself to feel this "pause". That way you will achieve the essential slowing down of the action at this crucial stage of the operation. The shaft at the top of the swing will be pointing along a line parallel with the line of flight or the line of the feet in the square stance

(Fig. 12a).

Figure 12a

Three vital stages in the backswing. The backswing almost completed, club-shaft slightly laid off from the feet line, back of left hand and club-face correctly aligned.

Note the significance of the handkerchief half out of the trouser pocket. This gives the clue to the full movement of the right hip which has been drawn back but not raised. It has moved back freely on the platform set up by the still flexed right knee.

Figure 12b

The completed back-swing, and as far as it is advisable to take the club back. Shaft now parallel with feet line. The stomach has been kept well in and the left shoulder is up under the chin. Clearly a body-turn and not a rocking movement. The right shoulder has risen automatically as the arms reach their maximum leverage. This often leads to the illusion that the left shoulder goes down. Nothing of the sort. The right shoulder rising is apt to give this false impression. The left shoulder must be kept up and close under the chin.
 
A great deal of importance attaches to the pointing of the shaft at the top of the swing, for it provides the key to the correct start of the downswing and will help considerably to give you the right position as the hands enter the hitting area.

I have said that at the top of the swing the shaft of the driver will be parallel with the line of the feet in the square stance. The same applies to the other wooden clubs and the longer irons, depending on how full the swing is with the respective clubs. What I want to warn you against is a tendency to point the club head at the top of the swing towards or across the line of the feet. This tends to put the club-shaft in front of the hands as you move into the downswing, one of the main causes of shoulder-roll and the consequent throwing out of the club head. So many sliced and smothered shots can be traced to this faulty technique.
With the curtailed swing with the shorter clubs, from the medium irons down, the shaft at the top will be laying slightly off the line of the feet, that is, leading away from, not into, the line of the feet.

Why is this of such paramount importance ?

From this parallel or laid-off shaft-line at the top of the swing you set up a position from which you can keep the left arm in control and the club-shaft BEHIND the hands as you move into the downswing and then into the hitting area.

You will learn more of the material value of this operation of the shaft in returning the club head squarely back to the ball and maintaining the club-line through the ball when I explain the mechanics of the downswing and the delivery.

How far back should the swing be allowed to go? Except in very rare cases where the player is particularly supple, the shaft should not go beyond the horizontal. It is unlikely to if you have carried out the movement correctly and not let go with the left hand. Jimmy Adams, former British Ryder Cup player had an exceptionally long swing which took the shaft well beyond the horizontal, but this very fine player retained complete control of the club.

He is so made that he was able to do this without putting himself under strain and without losing poise.

At the top of the swing the hands are about level with the right ear. The back of the left hand will be slightly, but only slightly, cupped, that is, concave in relation to the upper side of the left forearm. Figure 12a illustrates this point.

It will be at an angle of no more than 300 off the line of the left forearm. The right elbow will be pointing down. If it is allowed to "fly" the concavity of the left hand will be increased and the club-shaft will be forced across the line of the feet (Figs. 13 and 14).

Having set the right elbow as explained in the address, at the same time retaining the original hand placement in the grip, you should have no difficulty in keeping the elbow under proper control at the top of the swing.

I have said that the left hand will be slightly cupped. That is my preference, but I do not quarrel with a position which shows the back of the left hand dead in line with the arm which will be in the region of 45° from the vertical. It is a matter for the individual. Here again bone-structure and other physical variations must allow a little license within strict limits.

But either way beyond these limits the slightly cupped or the dead in line definitely NO. Excessive cupping, the forming of too concave a bend where the back of the left hand joins the wrist, opens the face of the club too much, and, let me say it again, turns the shaft across the line of the feet at the top of the swing.

In order to make quite clear why this is wrong I will explain it another way. From the across-line position at the top you have to make an additional movement, a compensating movement if you like, to bring the club-shaft behind the hands. I am against additional compensating movements in the golf swing. For one thing we want the operation to be as simple and compact as possible. But more to the point is the obvious fact that if the player misses out on the compensating movement, as he certainly will at times, the club must be thrown out of line. Then the club head is drawn across the ball from outside to in as the right hand overpowers the left.

Figure 13

A bad backswing but all too often seen. The club has been drawn sharply inside the line and the left shoulder has dropped. The right knee has straightened and the shaft is way off line across the feet line at the top of the swing. Note the "flying" right elbow and raised right hip (Fig. 14). This hopeless position denotes a rocking action in contrast to a controlled body-turn.

Figure 14

The other extreme hand position at the top of the swing is produced by dropping the left hand until it is almost parallel with the ground, thereby making a convex bend. This shuts the club-face and leads to all sorts of complications if the club-face is to be returned square to the ball. The compensating element here is considerably more difficult to work into the movement and misfires more often than in the case of the excessively cupped hand position.

The set of the left hand in relation to the left arm which I advocate retains the club-face in the SQUARE position as it was in the address. From this position at the top you will not need to make an adjustment or correction in order to deliver the club-face squarely to the ball.

Certain parts of the anatomy you do not need to worry about if you follow the movements I have outlined, but since a good deal has been said and written about the function of this and that part of the player, I will have a brief word to say about them in the hope of preventing natural curiosity from leading you astray. First:

THE WRISTS. I said in Chapter III that you would read very little in this book about the part the wrists play. In the completed backswing, already described, the wrists have performed their function naturally without your being aware of it. They have broken with the smooth momentum of the weighted club head. If you have followed my instructions so far you have not given a thought to the matter of whether or not they are fully cocked at the top of the swing.

That is as it should be. You need only concern yourself with allowing the wrists to remain supple and not locked by too fierce a grip of the club. Excessive wrist-action is one of the problems I have to iron out in so many pupils coming to me for the first time.

THE HIPS. The action of the hips has been facilitated by the straight back and the flexed right knee, two important points to which we gave attention in the address. Unless locked by tension or a faulty address they have responded to the trunk and arm movements I have described.

The hips have made a turn of about 450 (precisely how much depends on individual physical characteristics) compared with the essential 900 turn of the shoulders. The right hip has moved back without being raised (Note the handkerchief in Fig. 12a). The right hip-action is of particular importance with short, stocky players, say those under five foot eight, and the over-forties who are becoming less supple around the mid-section.

They particularly need a full free movement of the right hip to get the required shoulder turn without strain.

THE HEAD. I have already emphasize d that the head should have remained still, in the same position as at address. I have pointed out, too, that an obsession about the transfer of weight from the left foot to the right will cause the head to move laterally. Wrong. But an upwards and downwards movement of the head during the swing can be just as damaging. This provides one more reason why you should keep the right knee consistently flexed throughout the backswing and the left shoulder up.

Once let the left shoulder drop and before you realize it the head goes with it, the left side collapses and the right hip rises too high. Keep that head steady. Don't let it bob up and down and from side to side like a cork on a rough sea.

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