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Tyler Ferrell is the only person in the world named to Golf Digest's list of Best Young Teachers in America AND its list of Best Golf Fitness Professionals in America.

Fix Your Trail Arm Position for Better Swing Release

After this video, you'll be able to:

  • Identify how a stuck trail arm affects your swing release
  • Practice the drill to promote better arm extension during your swing
  • Feel the improvement in body rotation and contact consistency

In this drill, you'll learn how to train your trail arm to improve your golf swing. By addressing the common issue of the trail arm getting stuck, you'll enhance your release and overall swing mechanics.

Video Transcript
WEBVTT

1
00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:03.420
In this case study, we're going to take a look at the benefits of training the

2
00:00:03.420 --> 00:00:04.500
trail arm only.

3
00:00:04.500 --> 00:00:07.690
So we're going to look at a couple different golfers with some slightly

4
00:00:07.690 --> 00:00:09.000
different swings.

5
00:00:09.000 --> 00:00:13.160
But one of the common patterns that we're going to address with this drill is

6
00:00:13.160 --> 00:00:16.000
that trail arm kind of getting stuck to your side.

7
00:00:16.000 --> 00:00:19.420
And when that elbow gets stuck to your side and then the hands pass, that

8
00:00:19.420 --> 00:00:22.000
frequently is accompanied by a chicken wing.

9
00:00:22.000 --> 00:00:27.000
So it has that look of the arms bending on the way through.

10
00:00:28.000 --> 00:00:32.820
But if you try the lead arm only and it doesn't clean it up, more often than

11
00:00:32.820 --> 00:00:36.000
not, it's a trail shoulder and trail arm issue.

12
00:00:36.000 --> 00:00:42.190
So I'll walk you through a couple different golfers using the trail arm and

13
00:00:42.190 --> 00:00:45.000
what kind of changes it produces with the release.

14
00:00:45.000 --> 00:00:48.470
Okay, now every golfer has different keys when they're working through the

15
00:00:48.470 --> 00:00:49.000
drill.

16
00:00:49.000 --> 00:00:53.710
But here we can see one of the early drills that he was doing working on this

17
00:00:53.710 --> 00:00:55.000
right arm only.

18
00:00:55.000 --> 00:00:58.740
Now the club got a little steep into the ground, but you can see that the arm

19
00:00:58.740 --> 00:01:03.440
is working much better across his chest and straightening on the way through

20
00:01:03.440 --> 00:01:04.000
instead of bending.

21
00:01:04.000 --> 00:01:07.000
And his body rotation is much improved as well.

22
00:01:07.000 --> 00:01:11.270
If you can imagine putting the left arm on the end of the grip with that hand

23
00:01:11.270 --> 00:01:15.660
position, the left arm would be pretty straight and there would be very little,

24
00:01:15.660 --> 00:01:17.000
if any, chicken wing.

25
00:01:17.000 --> 00:01:21.410
So here he is over on the right, hitting a little punch shot after doing that

26
00:01:21.410 --> 00:01:26.000
drill, just trying to duplicate that same feeling of the right arm only.

27
00:01:26.000 --> 00:01:32.000
And what you'll see is that the left arm has no problem staying straight.

28
00:01:32.000 --> 00:01:36.360
The right arm maintains some of its good arm extension that he was doing in

29
00:01:36.360 --> 00:01:38.000
that single arm drill.

30
00:01:38.000 --> 00:01:44.000
So that results in a much wider arm extension on the way through.

31
00:01:44.000 --> 00:01:50.060
This is one of our goals for helping this golfer eliminate the contact issues

32
00:01:50.060 --> 00:01:56.000
of fat thin and the ball flight issues of more of an overdraw or a pole draw.

33
00:01:56.000 --> 00:02:00.340
And then here we're taking a full swing after doing some of that trail arm

34
00:02:00.340 --> 00:02:01.000
training.

35
00:02:01.000 --> 00:02:05.640
And we'll see that there's always a little bit of regression, but you can see

36
00:02:05.640 --> 00:02:09.000
that right arm extending better on the way through.

37
00:02:09.000 --> 00:02:13.380
You can see the body continuing to rotate and a lot less of that chicken wing

38
00:02:13.380 --> 00:02:14.000
look.

39
00:02:14.000 --> 00:02:18.530
So as long as everything is moving in the right direction, this is a successful

40
00:02:18.530 --> 00:02:24.160
drill and will help us with getting better low point control, better face

41
00:02:24.160 --> 00:02:30.000
control, as well as more consistency and avoiding that big left pole miss.

42
00:02:30.000 --> 00:02:32.000
That we're trying to avoid.

43
00:02:32.000 --> 00:02:36.900
Next we'll take a look at a junior golfer who's got a little bit more of that

44
00:02:36.900 --> 00:02:42.700
trail arm internal rotation style release and gets into that really pronounced

45
00:02:42.700 --> 00:02:45.000
bend look on the way through.

46
00:02:45.000 --> 00:02:49.120
So you can see that right arm bending and really rotating a company by that

47
00:02:49.120 --> 00:02:52.000
left arm getting into more of a bent position.

48
00:02:52.000 --> 00:02:57.000
Let's see what working on the trail arm only did for this release pattern.

49
00:02:57.000 --> 00:03:02.000
Okay, so over on the right, we're going to take a look at him doing the drill.

50
00:03:02.000 --> 00:03:05.820
And again, everyone's got little different keys, but one of the rules that I

51
00:03:05.820 --> 00:03:10.080
gave him was make sure that you take a divot and make sure that the right arm

52
00:03:10.080 --> 00:03:12.000
finishes fully straight.

53
00:03:12.000 --> 00:03:15.000
So you'll see he accomplishes both of those feet.

54
00:03:15.000 --> 00:03:18.860
You'd see if we were to take the left arm and put it on there, there's no way

55
00:03:18.860 --> 00:03:20.000
it would be bent.

56
00:03:20.000 --> 00:03:24.680
And the only way that that left arm could be bent would be if we move the grip

57
00:03:24.680 --> 00:03:28.000
further back that way and made it more of a scoop.

58
00:03:28.000 --> 00:03:35.000
And he struggles with the same thin contact and airing more on a pole draw.

59
00:03:35.000 --> 00:03:40.790
Now over here on the left, he's taking a few practice wings and then trying to

60
00:03:40.790 --> 00:03:45.000
duplicate that feeling immediately with the ball.

61
00:03:45.000 --> 00:03:52.080
And what we'll see is that he did a great job of maintaining the skill that he

62
00:03:52.080 --> 00:03:56.000
learned with that trail arm while doing it with the swing.

63
00:03:56.000 --> 00:03:59.610
Now you can see that there's a little bit of a Jordan Spieth-esque bend to that

64
00:03:59.610 --> 00:04:00.000
arm.

65
00:04:00.000 --> 00:04:05.270
I don't have a problem with that as long as the trail arm, right arm is getting

66
00:04:05.270 --> 00:04:09.420
extended on the way through, which is a sign of a better shoulder release, kind

67
00:04:09.420 --> 00:04:14.000
of body release, instead of just a hand manipulation.

68
00:04:14.000 --> 00:04:19.000
So over here on the right is where he was at the end of the lesson.

69
00:04:19.000 --> 00:04:24.710
Again, getting a really good arm extension on the way through, especially when

70
00:04:24.710 --> 00:04:27.000
he shortens and hits more of a punch style release.

71
00:04:27.000 --> 00:04:32.270
But here he was at the beginning of the following lesson after practicing it

72
00:04:32.270 --> 00:04:33.000
for a week.

73
00:04:33.000 --> 00:04:37.980
And you can see that he maintained a lot of the pieces and a lot of the

74
00:04:37.980 --> 00:04:42.000
improvements that he got from that trail arm drill.

75
00:04:42.000 --> 00:04:47.000
So while each of these wings looked very different, you can see a common trend.

76
00:04:47.000 --> 00:04:49.920
If you have trouble getting good arm extension and getting into a really solid

77
00:04:49.920 --> 00:04:54.110
follow-through position, then I recommend giving a try the trail arm only

78
00:04:54.110 --> 00:04:55.000
training.

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Tyler Ferrell is the only person in the world named to Golf Digest's list of Best Young Teachers in America AND its list of Best Golf Fitness Professionals in America.

Fix Your Trail Arm Position for Better Swing Release

After this video, you'll be able to:

  • Identify how a stuck trail arm affects your swing release
  • Practice the drill to promote better arm extension during your swing
  • Feel the improvement in body rotation and contact consistency

In this drill, you'll learn how to train your trail arm to improve your golf swing. By addressing the common issue of the trail arm getting stuck, you'll enhance your release and overall swing mechanics.

Video Transcript
WEBVTT

1
00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:03.420
In this case study, we're going to take a look at the benefits of training the

2
00:00:03.420 --> 00:00:04.500
trail arm only.

3
00:00:04.500 --> 00:00:07.690
So we're going to look at a couple different golfers with some slightly

4
00:00:07.690 --> 00:00:09.000
different swings.

5
00:00:09.000 --> 00:00:13.160
But one of the common patterns that we're going to address with this drill is

6
00:00:13.160 --> 00:00:16.000
that trail arm kind of getting stuck to your side.

7
00:00:16.000 --> 00:00:19.420
And when that elbow gets stuck to your side and then the hands pass, that

8
00:00:19.420 --> 00:00:22.000
frequently is accompanied by a chicken wing.

9
00:00:22.000 --> 00:00:27.000
So it has that look of the arms bending on the way through.

10
00:00:28.000 --> 00:00:32.820
But if you try the lead arm only and it doesn't clean it up, more often than

11
00:00:32.820 --> 00:00:36.000
not, it's a trail shoulder and trail arm issue.

12
00:00:36.000 --> 00:00:42.190
So I'll walk you through a couple different golfers using the trail arm and

13
00:00:42.190 --> 00:00:45.000
what kind of changes it produces with the release.

14
00:00:45.000 --> 00:00:48.470
Okay, now every golfer has different keys when they're working through the

15
00:00:48.470 --> 00:00:49.000
drill.

16
00:00:49.000 --> 00:00:53.710
But here we can see one of the early drills that he was doing working on this

17
00:00:53.710 --> 00:00:55.000
right arm only.

18
00:00:55.000 --> 00:00:58.740
Now the club got a little steep into the ground, but you can see that the arm

19
00:00:58.740 --> 00:01:03.440
is working much better across his chest and straightening on the way through

20
00:01:03.440 --> 00:01:04.000
instead of bending.

21
00:01:04.000 --> 00:01:07.000
And his body rotation is much improved as well.

22
00:01:07.000 --> 00:01:11.270
If you can imagine putting the left arm on the end of the grip with that hand

23
00:01:11.270 --> 00:01:15.660
position, the left arm would be pretty straight and there would be very little,

24
00:01:15.660 --> 00:01:17.000
if any, chicken wing.

25
00:01:17.000 --> 00:01:21.410
So here he is over on the right, hitting a little punch shot after doing that

26
00:01:21.410 --> 00:01:26.000
drill, just trying to duplicate that same feeling of the right arm only.

27
00:01:26.000 --> 00:01:32.000
And what you'll see is that the left arm has no problem staying straight.

28
00:01:32.000 --> 00:01:36.360
The right arm maintains some of its good arm extension that he was doing in

29
00:01:36.360 --> 00:01:38.000
that single arm drill.

30
00:01:38.000 --> 00:01:44.000
So that results in a much wider arm extension on the way through.

31
00:01:44.000 --> 00:01:50.060
This is one of our goals for helping this golfer eliminate the contact issues

32
00:01:50.060 --> 00:01:56.000
of fat thin and the ball flight issues of more of an overdraw or a pole draw.

33
00:01:56.000 --> 00:02:00.340
And then here we're taking a full swing after doing some of that trail arm

34
00:02:00.340 --> 00:02:01.000
training.

35
00:02:01.000 --> 00:02:05.640
And we'll see that there's always a little bit of regression, but you can see

36
00:02:05.640 --> 00:02:09.000
that right arm extending better on the way through.

37
00:02:09.000 --> 00:02:13.380
You can see the body continuing to rotate and a lot less of that chicken wing

38
00:02:13.380 --> 00:02:14.000
look.

39
00:02:14.000 --> 00:02:18.530
So as long as everything is moving in the right direction, this is a successful

40
00:02:18.530 --> 00:02:24.160
drill and will help us with getting better low point control, better face

41
00:02:24.160 --> 00:02:30.000
control, as well as more consistency and avoiding that big left pole miss.

42
00:02:30.000 --> 00:02:32.000
That we're trying to avoid.

43
00:02:32.000 --> 00:02:36.900
Next we'll take a look at a junior golfer who's got a little bit more of that

44
00:02:36.900 --> 00:02:42.700
trail arm internal rotation style release and gets into that really pronounced

45
00:02:42.700 --> 00:02:45.000
bend look on the way through.

46
00:02:45.000 --> 00:02:49.120
So you can see that right arm bending and really rotating a company by that

47
00:02:49.120 --> 00:02:52.000
left arm getting into more of a bent position.

48
00:02:52.000 --> 00:02:57.000
Let's see what working on the trail arm only did for this release pattern.

49
00:02:57.000 --> 00:03:02.000
Okay, so over on the right, we're going to take a look at him doing the drill.

50
00:03:02.000 --> 00:03:05.820
And again, everyone's got little different keys, but one of the rules that I

51
00:03:05.820 --> 00:03:10.080
gave him was make sure that you take a divot and make sure that the right arm

52
00:03:10.080 --> 00:03:12.000
finishes fully straight.

53
00:03:12.000 --> 00:03:15.000
So you'll see he accomplishes both of those feet.

54
00:03:15.000 --> 00:03:18.860
You'd see if we were to take the left arm and put it on there, there's no way

55
00:03:18.860 --> 00:03:20.000
it would be bent.

56
00:03:20.000 --> 00:03:24.680
And the only way that that left arm could be bent would be if we move the grip

57
00:03:24.680 --> 00:03:28.000
further back that way and made it more of a scoop.

58
00:03:28.000 --> 00:03:35.000
And he struggles with the same thin contact and airing more on a pole draw.

59
00:03:35.000 --> 00:03:40.790
Now over here on the left, he's taking a few practice wings and then trying to

60
00:03:40.790 --> 00:03:45.000
duplicate that feeling immediately with the ball.

61
00:03:45.000 --> 00:03:52.080
And what we'll see is that he did a great job of maintaining the skill that he

62
00:03:52.080 --> 00:03:56.000
learned with that trail arm while doing it with the swing.

63
00:03:56.000 --> 00:03:59.610
Now you can see that there's a little bit of a Jordan Spieth-esque bend to that

64
00:03:59.610 --> 00:04:00.000
arm.

65
00:04:00.000 --> 00:04:05.270
I don't have a problem with that as long as the trail arm, right arm is getting

66
00:04:05.270 --> 00:04:09.420
extended on the way through, which is a sign of a better shoulder release, kind

67
00:04:09.420 --> 00:04:14.000
of body release, instead of just a hand manipulation.

68
00:04:14.000 --> 00:04:19.000
So over here on the right is where he was at the end of the lesson.

69
00:04:19.000 --> 00:04:24.710
Again, getting a really good arm extension on the way through, especially when

70
00:04:24.710 --> 00:04:27.000
he shortens and hits more of a punch style release.

71
00:04:27.000 --> 00:04:32.270
But here he was at the beginning of the following lesson after practicing it

72
00:04:32.270 --> 00:04:33.000
for a week.

73
00:04:33.000 --> 00:04:37.980
And you can see that he maintained a lot of the pieces and a lot of the

74
00:04:37.980 --> 00:04:42.000
improvements that he got from that trail arm drill.

75
00:04:42.000 --> 00:04:47.000
So while each of these wings looked very different, you can see a common trend.

76
00:04:47.000 --> 00:04:49.920
If you have trouble getting good arm extension and getting into a really solid

77
00:04:49.920 --> 00:04:54.110
follow-through position, then I recommend giving a try the trail arm only

78
00:04:54.110 --> 00:04:55.000
training.

Have questions about this video?

Ask Mulligan for personalized guidance on technique, drills, or how to apply what you've learned.

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