Lesson

By Keith Rogers | Photographs By Barry Staver

Off to a Good Start

Perfecting your takeaway is key to a consistent swing.

WHILE WE

REGULARLY see several swing flaws, improper takeaway is by far the most common one among amateur golfers—and the most significant, because an improper takeaway leads to a series of unnecessary movements and manipulations that will rob you of solid contact, distance, accuracy and the ability to create a repeatable swing.

As my mentor, Jim McLean, often says, the first two to three feet of the takeaway are critical. Understanding how the hands, arms and club should move away from the ball will drastically improve consistency, accuracy and quality of contact.

Certified Jim McLean Instructor Keith Rogers is Director of Instruction at 5280 Golf Instruction at Green Valley Ranch Golf Club in Denver. Reach him by email at keith.solutions@gmail.com or text at 303 880-2222.

01. ADDRESS

A great setup position makes it easier to return the club on plane and with a square clubface. • Get in an athletic position (like a basketball player shooting a free throw): feet shoulder-width apart, back straight, knees slightly bent and your weight placed evenly from the balls of your feet to your heels—never forward on your toes.

02. SETUP

For a standard iron shot, relax your arms and keep your grip pressure at a 4-5 (on a scale of 1-10). From the rough, increase to 7-8. • Place your hands slightly ahead of the ball and clubface, creating a slight shaft lean towards the target. Done correctly, your hands should be slightly to the inside of the left thigh for a right-handed golfer (do not over-exaggerate by having your hands completely in front of the left thigh.). • This position will aid in maintaining a downward angle of attack and compressing the ball at impact.

03. THE TAKEAWAY

• Initiate the takeaway with your shoulder turn, not your arms or hands. Your club head, hands, and arms turn with your sternum. You should feel as if your lead (left) hand is pushing the club away, not that your trail hand is pulling it away. • Maintain the club head position relative to your hands. • DO NOT roll the clubface away with the hands; it will make this position impossible to achieve.

04. HALFWAY BACK

With the club parallel to the ground, the shaft should match your toe line, and the leading edge of club head match your spine angle. • At this stage the arms should still have little to no tension in them. • Begin to hinge the wrists and bend your right arm going to the top.

05. AT THE TOP

Arms will have formed a nice triangle. • Keep your left wrist flat or even slightly bowed depending on your grip. • Hands will intersect somewhere close to your right shoulder and on a great plane angle to return the club!