Ava Romero
Me and My Golf is a golf training platform founded by golfers Piers Ward, Andy Proudman, and Neil Dawson. The platform offers 24/7 access to simple, step-by-step plans to improve one's golfing skills. Me and My Golf's lessons are presented in a way that makes them easy to understand and implement, covering topics such as stance, alignment, and ball position. The platform also provides guided practice plans, live webinars, and a Live Practice tool that gives real-time feedback to help golfers analyse their swings and rapidly improve.
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What You'll Learn
Foot position
Foot placement is crucial to achieving low scores and longer drives. The width of your stance will help improve your balance and ability to generate speed and transfer energy through impact. The rotation of the front foot will impact hip rotation, follow-through, and overall clubhead speed.
The first step is to set the club face. Then, set your left foot with the driver, standing on top of the orange stick, and drop your right foot back. This puts the ball more in line with your left shoulder. The distance you stand from the ball in a proper stance is dictated by the length of the club you are hitting and your posture. The longer the club, the farther you stand away from the ball. It is important not to hunch over and reach out for the ball with your arms. Your arms should hang down naturally.
Your front foot should have a slight angle outward, or towards where you want to hit the ball. Your back foot should be at a complete 90-degree angle from the desired target. Angling your feet in the correct stance will allow faster body rotation and improved flexibility. Your weight should be balanced on the balls of your feet, not too much in the toes or the heels. This will keep you in an athletic position and ready to move, coil and strike the ball.
The optimal ball position varies with each club. Placing the ball forward in the stance allows for an upward angle of attack, increasing launch height and reducing spin. Golf balls placed further back in the stance will generally decrease distance but add more control to the shot. To get maximum power and yardage from a driver, you want to hit it as part of your upswing, increasing launch and decreasing overall spin.
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Ball position
The ball position is one of the most important parts of a golf swing, but it's often overlooked or misunderstood. While there is no one right way to hit a golf ball, the position of the ball in your stance can have a significant impact on your swing and the direction of the ball.
The ball position in your stance can vary depending on the club you are using and the desired shot. For example, wedges are typically played off the back heel, short irons just behind the centre, and drivers are played from the front heel. Moving the ball back in your stance can lower the ball flight, which can be advantageous in windy conditions or when punching out from under a tree. However, it's important to ensure that your clubface is square and your path is correct, or you may hit the ball low and to the left or push it to the right.
Some golfers prefer to keep the ball in the same position relative to their lead foot and adjust the trail foot depending on the club. This can help maintain consistency in the swing, as the low point of the swing is easier to repeat when the ball position is consistent. Additionally, a wider stance can provide more consistent contact with the ball, especially when the ball is positioned forward.
It's worth experimenting with different ball positions and stances to find what works best for you. Making small adjustments to your stance and ball position can lead to significant improvements in your game.
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Weight distribution
For most normal golf shots, the weight should be equally distributed between both feet. This is the default position of the golf swing and can apply to all standard situations. When using an iron, it is recommended to stand with your weight balanced equally between both feet, feeling as though it runs through the front of your ankles. This will create a good solid base for an athletic swing.
However, there are instances where you may want to position your weight towards your front (left) foot. For example, when using irons/hybrid/fairway woods, you would shift most of the weight onto the trail side and then lean it all back into the lead side and rotate around it. This will increase the shaft lean of your club, promoting cleaner contact with the ball and shielding you from fat or chunked shots.
On the other hand, moving your weight backward can promote higher ball flights for your shots. This is often done unintentionally rather than trying to hit a specific shot. There are few instances where you would want to position your weight backward, such as when you are inside a fairway bunker and close to the lip.
Additionally, weight distribution can also vary in where it is placed inside your feet. It can be level between the back and front of your feet, towards your toes, or towards your heels. Distributing your weight towards your toes or heels can be unstable, and you risk producing a shank shot or hitting left of the target.
It is important to note that weight distribution also changes throughout the swing. On chips, the weight distribution stays relatively consistent. On pitches, you may shift your weight to the trail side on the backswing and then shift it back to the lead side on the downswing.
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Alignment
To achieve proper golf stance alignment, visualise a line on the ground representing your desired alignment. Choose a small object on this line, such as a leaf, and aim your clubface at this intermediate target. Set up your stance so that your shoulders, hips, knees, and toes are parallel to the line. Turn your head to confirm that your body is aligned as intended.
It is important to ensure that your feet, knees, hips, arms, and shoulders are all aligned in the same direction. This is one of the most challenging skills in golf to master, and it is beneficial to practice with a device like the Swing Align swing trainer or the Stance Caddy to help you feel and see a correct golf stance. The Stance Caddy, based on Ben Hogan's setup and swing, helps golfers establish a consistent stance width, ideal foot and ball positioning, and perfect alignment for every club in their bag.
Additionally, ball position is critical to your alignment. The ball position will change depending on the club you are using. The driver is the club that is placed furthest forward, while the wedges are positioned more towards the centre or back of the stance. For mid-irons, play the shot from the middle of your stance to achieve more precision, control, balance, and consistency.
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Posture
A good posture for a golf swing involves the correct width of stance, the angle of the spine, weight distribution, and arm positioning. The width of your stance will depend on the type of club you are using. For longer clubs, such as fairway woods and drivers, your stance should be wider, with your feet placed just outside your shoulder width. This is because you will need more stability to generate power when using these clubs. For shorter clubs, such as wedges and short irons, your stance should be narrower, with your feet placed just inside your shoulder width.
The ball position in your stance will also vary depending on the club. For a driver, the ball should be positioned forward in your stance, off the heel of your lead foot. This will help you to hit up on the ball and launch it higher and with less spin, which is key to achieving distance. For wedges, the ball should be positioned back, almost to the middle of your stance. For the clubs in between, move the ball progressively back as the club gets shorter. That means for fairways, hybrids, and long irons, position the ball inside your lead foot.
It is important to maintain a good spine angle when taking your stance. For a driver, your spine angle should be tilted back at a greater angle than when using irons. This will help you to achieve the desired impact position and improve your distance.
Additionally, your weight distribution should be adjusted depending on the club. For irons, having your hands off your lead hip puts them in front of the ball, which helps you to hit down and create solid contact. For the driver, your hands should be off your lead hip but behind the ball, helping you to hit up and launch the ball.
Overall, understanding and practicing the correct posture for each club is essential for improving your golf swing and achieving better results on the course.
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Frequently asked questions
The width of your stance will depend on the club you are using. For longer clubs like fairway woods and the driver, your stance should be wider. For shorter clubs like wedges, your stance should be narrower. A good rule of thumb is to measure the width of your shoulders with a club and make sure the insides of your feet are at least this wide apart for all full shots.
The position of the ball in your stance will depend on the club you are using. For a driver, the ball should be positioned forward in your stance, off the heel of your lead foot. For a wedge, the ball should be positioned back, almost to the middle of your stance. For irons, the ball is played with the ball more toward the middle of your stance.
Your stance is a key part of setting up a good golf shot. A wider stance can help you make more consistent contact with the ball. However, if your stance is too wide, it can inhibit your ability to turn your lower and upper body, affecting your swing. A narrower stance can allow for better rotation in the backswing, which can help you approach the ball with a path to the right.
