In one of Harvey Penick's books he writes: "Thinking about your wrists in the swing is a sure way to ruin your game."
I couldn't agree more. The worst piece of advice I have ever heard is "snap the wrists," or "turn over the hands," and other similar pieces of 19th hole wisdom. This is not to say that the wrists do not play a significant role in the swing, but the wrists must be trained to hinge and unhinge unconsciously, responding to the turning of the body and the swing of the arms.
Many golfers actually develop very good wrist action by first developing an athletic posture and pivot motion. This is because the club is swinging faster than the arms due to its length and club head weight.
This natural acceleration of the club causes the wrists to hinge and unhinge naturally.
The following is a very effective exercise to develop the correct wrist position at the top of the back swing.
- Adopt the address position.
- Swing back until the left arm is level to the ground.
- The hands should be in the center of the chest.
- See that the shaft is at 90 degrees to the left arm.
- The shaft should point at the ball-target line.
- Practice this exercise using a mirror.
Remember that playing golf and practicing are two different things. Practice this exercise at home or on the range but do not think about it on the course. When you are playing, you must change your thoughts to less complicated things such as face the target and balance.
Terry Gingell is a PGA Class A Professional and is the owner and operator of The Golf Learning Center, an indoor golf school specializing in video golf lessons and professionally custom fit golf clubs. Send golf questions and comments to Terry at appeal@swiftnews.com.