Benefits of Pausing at Top of the Backswing
1. allows you to make sure your arms are reaching the top at the same time as club head 2. clubface is automatically square
3. makes downswing much more controlled
4. gives you better timing
5. gives you chance to feel how the position of your hands and wrists affect the club shaft 6. gives you chance to check the position of your hands and wrists
7. if you sweat a lot, pausing for a moment will allow the grip tape to dry
8. allows you to see if your hips are rotating or not
9. helps with body turn (the pivot is halfway completed)
10. helps with club release under the chin
11. helps to maintain balance
12. Make sure you don’t sway during the backswing
13. gives you chance to see if your weight has shifted
14. pause and then turn helps initiate pivot and rotation of hips
15. if you rotate your hips correctly then you will be able to shift your weight without swaying
16. helps maintain the center of gravity
17. helps with coiling & uncoiling the body
18. gives you chance to correct/check the position of your head
19. if you do sway during the backswing, pausing at the top allows you to see how much you sway
20. helps with the line of flight
21. helps with a hip turn
22. gives you more time to get ready for the downswing
23. gives you more time to get your head in the correct position
24. allows for more control over the clubface
25. helps with the turn of the shoulders
26. helps maintain a proper distance from the ball
27. if you sway during the backswing, pausing allows you to see how much and where
28. allows extra time to see if your elbows are flaring out and if so, correct it
29. helps keep weight still on the left foot
30. helps with keeping weight on the left heel.
One of the most important things that tour players do is pause at top of the backswing. Pause at the top allows you to get your body in the correct position/alignment which is very important for getting a consistent and repeatable swing.
Pausing will also help you attain balance throughout the entire swing. Many amateurs sway during backswing without knowing it, so pausing can help see if you sway or not and how much.
Tour players like to pause at the top for 2 reasons:
1) they feel it helps them get their body in perfect position.
2) they feel that pausing allows them to keep weight still on their left foot. Many amateurs sway onto their right foot during the backswing without knowing it, so pausing will help you see if you do and help you to correct it.
In fact, I believe that pausing at the top is a must for beginners as well as tour players. It gives you an opportunity to see if your weight has shifted onto your right leg (from staying on your left heel during backswing), which causes swaying.
Some of the benefits of pausing at the top include but are not limited to:
– Helps with making sure the arms are reaching the top at the same time as the clubhead. If you do sway during the backswing, pausing gives you a chance to see if your arms and hands lag (behind) or lead (ahead) of the club head and then correct it.
– Clubface is automatically square at the top – pausing gives you a chance to check if your hands are in front of or behind the clubhead, and also makes it easier for you to feel how having a square clubface is important.
– Downswing will become much more controlled as you have better timing now that you paused at the top – pausing gives you more time to get your body in the correct position.
– If you sway during the backswing, pausing at the top allows you to see how much and where – this helps with making a correction.
– Pause and turn is one of the most important pieces in getting a proper pivot and rotation of hips – if done correctly, you will feel the right side of your hips really rotating towards the target.
– Pause and turn make it easier to get a little extra chunk of time before initiating the downswing – getting your head into the correct position will become much easier as well.
– Pause and turn allow you to see if your shoulders are turning fast and whether your right shoulder is staying higher than your left and/or your shoulders turning parallel or not.
– Allows for getting the correct line by checking if you are pointing the clubface where you want it to go – also allows you to see if you need an extra open clubface or less open clubface as well as seeing how much your spine is leaning towards the target.
– Helps maintain your distance from the ball (distance between your feet and the ball). If you sway too much during a backswing, pausing will give you a chance to check how far away your left foot is every time you pause so that by seeing if it’s too close or too far, you can correct it.
– If your weight is shifting to the right during the backswing, pausing will allow you to see if and how much you move and correct it.
– Allows for a chance to get into perfect setup position and alignment before initiating downswing – also allows you to check that your spine is not leaning too far away from the target.
– Pause and turn is the only way to get the correct pivot and full-body rotation – pausing will allow you to see how much you are twisting, if your right knee is coming through, or if it’s staying in place.
– Allows for seeing whether your left heel will come up during your downswing or not – if it does, pausing allows you to see how much and correct it.
– Helps keep the right knee from going inward – if your inner right thigh starts going towards the target too soon, pausing will help you check it.
– Helps to see whether your arms are staying in front of or behind the clubhead – also allows for seeing if the clubface is open or closed.
– Pause and turn give you more time to set your hands in position as well as get them closer to the ball – closer hands will produce a shorter backswing, which means hitting down on the ball instead of up.
Golf backswing pivot drills:
The backswing is an incredibly complex movement, and there are a lot of different parts to focus on during your takeaway. One important part is the turning of the hips.
The hips turn in a circular fashion, which you can feel if you pay attention to your feet at the address. As you take the club back, start to think about rotating from your front heel to your back heel, and then eventually shifting your weight from the right foot to the left as you turn.
You can practice this by placing a club or other straight object between your feet at the address and rotating around it. Start with the club pointing towards your front instep, and each time you take the club back rotate it so that eventually it’s pointing towards your back instep.
You can also try this drill without the club, rotating from one foot to the other as you swing. The pivot is critical in the golf swing because it allows you to swivel on your hips and generate both power and accuracy. If you don’t fully rotate on your downswing, either through the hips or with the arms, you won’t be able to uncoil properly and produce your best results.
What happens when you don’t finish your backswing:
– If your weight is shifting to the right during the backswing, pausing will allow you to see if and how much you move and correct it.
– Allows for a chance to get into perfect setup position and alignment before initiating downswing – also allows you to check that your spine is not leaning too far away from the target.
– Helps keep the right knee from going inward – if your inner right thigh starts going towards the target too soon, pausing will help you check it.
– Helps to see whether your arms are staying in front of or behind the clubhead – also allows for seeing if the clubface is open or closed.
– Pause and turn give you more time to set your hands in position as well as get them closer to the ball – closer hands will produce a shorter backswing, which means hitting down on the ball instead of up.