Getting “Stuck” in a golf swing means one thing – the set up has not been planned well. Getting stuck is very common in a golf swing, so you know. The definition of being “Stuck” is when the trailing elbow is unable to recover its proper position in front of the midline of the trailing side as the clubhead approaches impact. The causes are not always clear. But, the solutions are.
To accurately diagnose the swing flaw, we have to understand that it is a by-product of a tempo problem. Tempo is a by-product of necessity. Necessity is incidental to the relationship of the feet to the ball and the target at address. The set-up relationship is an expression of philosophy – intentionally chosen.
Getting stuck means the shoulders are turning too fast and too soon from the top of the swing. In other words, to square a club path that would, otherwise, be too much from the inside to take the ball first, the shoulders start the downswing instead of the legs. Most of us have had the club stuck at one time or another. Most times, the need to turn our shoulders out of sequence with the rest of our body stems from being closed with the feet at set up, over-the-line at the top, or both.
Our brains are designed to communicate its orders to our body, which carries them out in movement. If doubt or fear enters the equation, the lines of communication are interrupted. The signal gets confused, and the movement becomes more about survival than commitment. That’s why great mental Sports Psychologists like Henschon and Rotella have focused on planning the shot through visualization, process, and percentages for forty years.
These are all subsets of intention – something that requires commitment and disciplined practice. If a golfer sets up to a golf ball in a way that demands excessive signals be sent from the brain to the body, they will waste their athleticism on compensating instead of using it for committed shot-making. A set up that is rigid, disciplined, INTENTION-driven philosophy is the dynamic needed to cure the inefficiencies leading to “getting stuck” and to cure inconsistent tempo. The Open Stance provides every solution to any swing flaw.
Watch and like this video on the topic.
John Wright – Founder
The Open Stance Academy