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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.

Shoulder Blade Backswing

One of the traits of many golfers with a more arm-dominant swing is a backswing that lacks width of the trail arm. This is a sign that the shoulder blade isn't retracting and that the arm is bending instead. Use a high-position band, or cable, to help you build more awareness of the shoulder blade muscles that should help support the club at the top of the swing.

Show more

One of the traits of many golfers with a more arm-dominant swing is a backswing that lacks width of the trail arm. This is a sign that the shoulder blade isn't retracting and that the arm is bending instead. Use a high-position band, or cable, to help you build more awareness of the shoulder blade muscles that should help support the club at the top of the swing.

Hide
Video Transcript
WEBVTT

1
00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:07.760
This is the shoulder blade backswing.

2
00:00:07.760 --> 00:00:13.990
So the shoulder blade backswing is a drill for golfers who tend to create too

3
00:00:13.990 --> 00:00:14.660
much arm

4
00:00:14.660 --> 00:00:17.220
lift in the backswing.

5
00:00:17.220 --> 00:00:21.590
And really when they go to lift arm, especially the trail arm, it kind of has a

6
00:00:21.590 --> 00:00:22.240
more of a

7
00:00:22.240 --> 00:00:27.770
look like this where the shoulder blade stays in a rounded position as opposed

8
00:00:27.770 --> 00:00:28.580
to feeling

9
00:00:28.580 --> 00:00:33.540
like that shoulder comes back and the spine is going into more extension.

10
00:00:33.540 --> 00:00:38.940
Oftentimes, when golfers are working on this, I would say the first 10 reps or

11
00:00:38.940 --> 00:00:39.580
so, it's

12
00:00:39.580 --> 00:00:41.420
going to feel extremely foreign.

13
00:00:41.420 --> 00:00:45.400
If you need this, if you need more shoulder blade retraction, it's going to

14
00:00:45.400 --> 00:00:46.020
feel very

15
00:00:46.020 --> 00:00:47.020
stiff.

16
00:00:47.020 --> 00:00:51.160
I've got one student who describes it like feeling like Frankenstein walking

17
00:00:51.160 --> 00:00:51.860
around.

18
00:00:51.860 --> 00:00:55.700
But what you'll see on video is you're going to create much better width.

19
00:00:55.700 --> 00:00:59.100
You're going to get much more turn, you're going to feel some more load in your

20
00:00:59.100 --> 00:00:59.660
core.

21
00:00:59.660 --> 00:01:05.070
And that ultimately creates more of an easy power source rather than a big arm

22
00:01:05.070 --> 00:01:05.640
tricep

23
00:01:05.640 --> 00:01:08.000
whipping load action.

24
00:01:08.000 --> 00:01:12.330
So for the backswing shoulder blade, we're going to do a couple different

25
00:01:12.330 --> 00:01:13.100
versions to

26
00:01:13.100 --> 00:01:19.830
feel essentially more movement at the right shoulder blade pulling back rather

27
00:01:19.830 --> 00:01:20.620
than just

28
00:01:20.620 --> 00:01:23.420
bending the arm in order to set it.

29
00:01:23.420 --> 00:01:27.530
So if I was doing kind of a backswing drill, instead of just focusing on the

30
00:01:27.530 --> 00:01:28.380
arms lifting

31
00:01:28.380 --> 00:01:32.350
up here where this stays forward, I'm going to focus on this shoulder blade

32
00:01:32.350 --> 00:01:33.440
pulling back

33
00:01:33.440 --> 00:01:36.540
to help create the turn in the lift kind of more like this.

34
00:01:36.540 --> 00:01:39.150
It'll feel like the arm is stiff, but you'll see on the camera that you're

35
00:01:39.150 --> 00:01:39.780
still bending

36
00:01:39.780 --> 00:01:41.220
the arm.

37
00:01:41.220 --> 00:01:45.860
So first version, we're going to put our arms together out in front.

38
00:01:45.860 --> 00:01:49.180
And then we're going to make a backswing or a takeaway movement.

39
00:01:49.180 --> 00:01:52.420
And now we're going to try to keep this right arm straight and we're going to

40
00:01:52.420 --> 00:01:53.180
try to bring

41
00:01:53.180 --> 00:01:56.620
that shoulder blade back and we're going to try to set the wrist.

42
00:01:56.620 --> 00:02:01.760
Now you'll see in doing so, I get a little bit of bend in the arm, but it's

43
00:02:01.760 --> 00:02:02.380
driven more

44
00:02:02.380 --> 00:02:06.050
from what's happening at the wrist, not from actively pulling with the bicep to

45
00:02:06.050 --> 00:02:06.540
lift the

46
00:02:06.540 --> 00:02:07.540
arm.

47
00:02:07.540 --> 00:02:13.770
So one and then shoulder blade and wrist is going to be the widest stiffest

48
00:02:13.770 --> 00:02:14.980
swing you've

49
00:02:14.980 --> 00:02:16.140
ever felt.

50
00:02:16.140 --> 00:02:20.110
But when oftentimes when you look at it on the camera, you're going to say, wow

51
00:02:20.110 --> 00:02:20.580
, that

52
00:02:20.580 --> 00:02:25.500
doesn't look as short or as stiff as it feels, in fact, it feels pretty good.

53
00:02:25.500 --> 00:02:29.780
The other way I like to do it is I'll often use a high cable.

54
00:02:29.780 --> 00:02:33.830
So if we can imagine a cable pulling up there, I don't have anywhere around

55
00:02:33.830 --> 00:02:34.780
here, usually

56
00:02:34.780 --> 00:02:38.300
I have to hold it and I don't have anybody here today.

57
00:02:38.300 --> 00:02:42.960
But if I had a high cable machine kind of pulling this way, now what I'm going

58
00:02:42.960 --> 00:02:43.780
to do,

59
00:02:43.780 --> 00:02:47.300
and you could potentially just do it with a club, but if I had a high cable or

60
00:02:47.300 --> 00:02:47.860
a rubber

61
00:02:47.860 --> 00:02:52.480
band pulling this way, I'm going to pull that shoulder blade back and I'm going

62
00:02:52.480 --> 00:02:52.700
to

63
00:02:52.700 --> 00:02:55.180
rotate my left side to come meet it.

64
00:02:55.180 --> 00:02:58.460
So I'm pulling this shoulder blade back and rotating that left side to come

65
00:02:58.460 --> 00:02:59.420
meet it.

66
00:02:59.420 --> 00:03:01.980
Most of you are going to feel a lot more movement here.

67
00:03:01.980 --> 00:03:05.540
If you're one of the golfers who needs this who tends to lift, you're going to

68
00:03:05.540 --> 00:03:05.940
feel like

69
00:03:05.940 --> 00:03:10.340
this normally doesn't move where now my sternum, my chest, my ribs, those are

70
00:03:10.340 --> 00:03:11.220
moving a whole

71
00:03:11.220 --> 00:03:12.500
lot more.

72
00:03:12.500 --> 00:03:16.220
So then last version, I'm just going to take the club, I'm going to do that

73
00:03:16.220 --> 00:03:17.660
same thing.

74
00:03:17.660 --> 00:03:20.180
And now I'm going to put my left hand in place.

75
00:03:20.180 --> 00:03:26.420
And this is going to feel very wide, this is going to feel very stiff.

76
00:03:26.420 --> 00:03:29.580
Oftentimes I like to combo this with a hit from the top.

77
00:03:29.580 --> 00:03:34.980
So I'm going to feel like I get there, there we go, set that.

78
00:03:34.980 --> 00:03:37.460
And then I'm just going to try and swing from there.

79
00:03:37.460 --> 00:03:41.630
Again, it's going to feel very stiff in the arms and it might feel steep, you

80
00:03:41.630 --> 00:03:42.220
might hit

81
00:03:42.220 --> 00:03:47.350
a bunch of pulls because oftentimes when you lift the arm and pull it back like

82
00:03:47.350 --> 00:03:47.760
this, those

83
00:03:47.760 --> 00:03:49.780
help create depth and shallowness.

84
00:03:49.780 --> 00:03:54.060
So now when it's here, you can see that that moves the club more that way.

85
00:03:54.060 --> 00:04:00.470
So I can get more of the shallowing happening from some external rotation or

86
00:04:00.470 --> 00:04:01.620
from some lead

87
00:04:01.620 --> 00:04:07.900
forearm rotation or from extending that wrist and a more down that way.

88
00:04:07.900 --> 00:04:10.980
So let's do one more of those hit from the top.

89
00:04:10.980 --> 00:04:14.700
So we're going to go up to the top, check it, good.

90
00:04:14.700 --> 00:04:20.420
And then from there, just swing those a little, not great.

91
00:04:20.420 --> 00:04:23.860
Let's see if we can do one more good one.

92
00:04:23.860 --> 00:04:31.190
Okay, so we're going to go up to the top, stop, and then from there, that was

93
00:04:31.190 --> 00:04:32.260
better.

94
00:04:32.260 --> 00:04:37.390
Now we're going to try to shorten that pause, we're going to try to make that

95
00:04:37.390 --> 00:04:37.900
pause take

96
00:04:37.900 --> 00:04:42.940
zero time or a split second.

97
00:04:42.940 --> 00:04:49.470
So shortening the pause, we're going to go up to the top and it'll look like it

98
00:04:49.470 --> 00:04:49.900
was

99
00:04:49.900 --> 00:04:55.030
continuous motion, but it felt like there was just a slight pause for one split

100
00:04:55.030 --> 00:04:55.220
second

101
00:04:55.220 --> 00:04:57.220
before I came down.

102
00:04:57.220 --> 00:05:00.500
Like I said, it will feel very stiff if you're used to bending it.

103
00:05:00.500 --> 00:05:04.940
So use video or launch monitor to confirm oftentimes you won't lude speed, oft

104
00:05:04.940 --> 00:05:05.580
entimes

105
00:05:05.580 --> 00:05:09.160
you will gain ball speed because it's a lot easier to get the arms in front and

106
00:05:09.160 --> 00:05:09.940
get shafting

107
00:05:09.940 --> 00:05:14.510
if the arm hasn't drifted so far behind, but you will definitely see a lot more

108
00:05:14.510 --> 00:05:14.980
width

109
00:05:14.980 --> 00:05:16.060
and body rotation.

110
00:05:16.060 --> 00:05:20.940
So use that if you tend to collapse the arms in the backswing.

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Related topics
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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.

Shoulder Blade Backswing

One of the traits of many golfers with a more arm-dominant swing is a backswing that lacks width of the trail arm. This is a sign that the shoulder blade isn't retracting and that the arm is bending instead. Use a high-position band, or cable, to help you build more awareness of the shoulder blade muscles that should help support the club at the top of the swing.

Show more

One of the traits of many golfers with a more arm-dominant swing is a backswing that lacks width of the trail arm. This is a sign that the shoulder blade isn't retracting and that the arm is bending instead. Use a high-position band, or cable, to help you build more awareness of the shoulder blade muscles that should help support the club at the top of the swing.

Hide
Video Transcript
WEBVTT

1
00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:07.760
This is the shoulder blade backswing.

2
00:00:07.760 --> 00:00:13.990
So the shoulder blade backswing is a drill for golfers who tend to create too

3
00:00:13.990 --> 00:00:14.660
much arm

4
00:00:14.660 --> 00:00:17.220
lift in the backswing.

5
00:00:17.220 --> 00:00:21.590
And really when they go to lift arm, especially the trail arm, it kind of has a

6
00:00:21.590 --> 00:00:22.240
more of a

7
00:00:22.240 --> 00:00:27.770
look like this where the shoulder blade stays in a rounded position as opposed

8
00:00:27.770 --> 00:00:28.580
to feeling

9
00:00:28.580 --> 00:00:33.540
like that shoulder comes back and the spine is going into more extension.

10
00:00:33.540 --> 00:00:38.940
Oftentimes, when golfers are working on this, I would say the first 10 reps or

11
00:00:38.940 --> 00:00:39.580
so, it's

12
00:00:39.580 --> 00:00:41.420
going to feel extremely foreign.

13
00:00:41.420 --> 00:00:45.400
If you need this, if you need more shoulder blade retraction, it's going to

14
00:00:45.400 --> 00:00:46.020
feel very

15
00:00:46.020 --> 00:00:47.020
stiff.

16
00:00:47.020 --> 00:00:51.160
I've got one student who describes it like feeling like Frankenstein walking

17
00:00:51.160 --> 00:00:51.860
around.

18
00:00:51.860 --> 00:00:55.700
But what you'll see on video is you're going to create much better width.

19
00:00:55.700 --> 00:00:59.100
You're going to get much more turn, you're going to feel some more load in your

20
00:00:59.100 --> 00:00:59.660
core.

21
00:00:59.660 --> 00:01:05.070
And that ultimately creates more of an easy power source rather than a big arm

22
00:01:05.070 --> 00:01:05.640
tricep

23
00:01:05.640 --> 00:01:08.000
whipping load action.

24
00:01:08.000 --> 00:01:12.330
So for the backswing shoulder blade, we're going to do a couple different

25
00:01:12.330 --> 00:01:13.100
versions to

26
00:01:13.100 --> 00:01:19.830
feel essentially more movement at the right shoulder blade pulling back rather

27
00:01:19.830 --> 00:01:20.620
than just

28
00:01:20.620 --> 00:01:23.420
bending the arm in order to set it.

29
00:01:23.420 --> 00:01:27.530
So if I was doing kind of a backswing drill, instead of just focusing on the

30
00:01:27.530 --> 00:01:28.380
arms lifting

31
00:01:28.380 --> 00:01:32.350
up here where this stays forward, I'm going to focus on this shoulder blade

32
00:01:32.350 --> 00:01:33.440
pulling back

33
00:01:33.440 --> 00:01:36.540
to help create the turn in the lift kind of more like this.

34
00:01:36.540 --> 00:01:39.150
It'll feel like the arm is stiff, but you'll see on the camera that you're

35
00:01:39.150 --> 00:01:39.780
still bending

36
00:01:39.780 --> 00:01:41.220
the arm.

37
00:01:41.220 --> 00:01:45.860
So first version, we're going to put our arms together out in front.

38
00:01:45.860 --> 00:01:49.180
And then we're going to make a backswing or a takeaway movement.

39
00:01:49.180 --> 00:01:52.420
And now we're going to try to keep this right arm straight and we're going to

40
00:01:52.420 --> 00:01:53.180
try to bring

41
00:01:53.180 --> 00:01:56.620
that shoulder blade back and we're going to try to set the wrist.

42
00:01:56.620 --> 00:02:01.760
Now you'll see in doing so, I get a little bit of bend in the arm, but it's

43
00:02:01.760 --> 00:02:02.380
driven more

44
00:02:02.380 --> 00:02:06.050
from what's happening at the wrist, not from actively pulling with the bicep to

45
00:02:06.050 --> 00:02:06.540
lift the

46
00:02:06.540 --> 00:02:07.540
arm.

47
00:02:07.540 --> 00:02:13.770
So one and then shoulder blade and wrist is going to be the widest stiffest

48
00:02:13.770 --> 00:02:14.980
swing you've

49
00:02:14.980 --> 00:02:16.140
ever felt.

50
00:02:16.140 --> 00:02:20.110
But when oftentimes when you look at it on the camera, you're going to say, wow

51
00:02:20.110 --> 00:02:20.580
, that

52
00:02:20.580 --> 00:02:25.500
doesn't look as short or as stiff as it feels, in fact, it feels pretty good.

53
00:02:25.500 --> 00:02:29.780
The other way I like to do it is I'll often use a high cable.

54
00:02:29.780 --> 00:02:33.830
So if we can imagine a cable pulling up there, I don't have anywhere around

55
00:02:33.830 --> 00:02:34.780
here, usually

56
00:02:34.780 --> 00:02:38.300
I have to hold it and I don't have anybody here today.

57
00:02:38.300 --> 00:02:42.960
But if I had a high cable machine kind of pulling this way, now what I'm going

58
00:02:42.960 --> 00:02:43.780
to do,

59
00:02:43.780 --> 00:02:47.300
and you could potentially just do it with a club, but if I had a high cable or

60
00:02:47.300 --> 00:02:47.860
a rubber

61
00:02:47.860 --> 00:02:52.480
band pulling this way, I'm going to pull that shoulder blade back and I'm going

62
00:02:52.480 --> 00:02:52.700
to

63
00:02:52.700 --> 00:02:55.180
rotate my left side to come meet it.

64
00:02:55.180 --> 00:02:58.460
So I'm pulling this shoulder blade back and rotating that left side to come

65
00:02:58.460 --> 00:02:59.420
meet it.

66
00:02:59.420 --> 00:03:01.980
Most of you are going to feel a lot more movement here.

67
00:03:01.980 --> 00:03:05.540
If you're one of the golfers who needs this who tends to lift, you're going to

68
00:03:05.540 --> 00:03:05.940
feel like

69
00:03:05.940 --> 00:03:10.340
this normally doesn't move where now my sternum, my chest, my ribs, those are

70
00:03:10.340 --> 00:03:11.220
moving a whole

71
00:03:11.220 --> 00:03:12.500
lot more.

72
00:03:12.500 --> 00:03:16.220
So then last version, I'm just going to take the club, I'm going to do that

73
00:03:16.220 --> 00:03:17.660
same thing.

74
00:03:17.660 --> 00:03:20.180
And now I'm going to put my left hand in place.

75
00:03:20.180 --> 00:03:26.420
And this is going to feel very wide, this is going to feel very stiff.

76
00:03:26.420 --> 00:03:29.580
Oftentimes I like to combo this with a hit from the top.

77
00:03:29.580 --> 00:03:34.980
So I'm going to feel like I get there, there we go, set that.

78
00:03:34.980 --> 00:03:37.460
And then I'm just going to try and swing from there.

79
00:03:37.460 --> 00:03:41.630
Again, it's going to feel very stiff in the arms and it might feel steep, you

80
00:03:41.630 --> 00:03:42.220
might hit

81
00:03:42.220 --> 00:03:47.350
a bunch of pulls because oftentimes when you lift the arm and pull it back like

82
00:03:47.350 --> 00:03:47.760
this, those

83
00:03:47.760 --> 00:03:49.780
help create depth and shallowness.

84
00:03:49.780 --> 00:03:54.060
So now when it's here, you can see that that moves the club more that way.

85
00:03:54.060 --> 00:04:00.470
So I can get more of the shallowing happening from some external rotation or

86
00:04:00.470 --> 00:04:01.620
from some lead

87
00:04:01.620 --> 00:04:07.900
forearm rotation or from extending that wrist and a more down that way.

88
00:04:07.900 --> 00:04:10.980
So let's do one more of those hit from the top.

89
00:04:10.980 --> 00:04:14.700
So we're going to go up to the top, check it, good.

90
00:04:14.700 --> 00:04:20.420
And then from there, just swing those a little, not great.

91
00:04:20.420 --> 00:04:23.860
Let's see if we can do one more good one.

92
00:04:23.860 --> 00:04:31.190
Okay, so we're going to go up to the top, stop, and then from there, that was

93
00:04:31.190 --> 00:04:32.260
better.

94
00:04:32.260 --> 00:04:37.390
Now we're going to try to shorten that pause, we're going to try to make that

95
00:04:37.390 --> 00:04:37.900
pause take

96
00:04:37.900 --> 00:04:42.940
zero time or a split second.

97
00:04:42.940 --> 00:04:49.470
So shortening the pause, we're going to go up to the top and it'll look like it

98
00:04:49.470 --> 00:04:49.900
was

99
00:04:49.900 --> 00:04:55.030
continuous motion, but it felt like there was just a slight pause for one split

100
00:04:55.030 --> 00:04:55.220
second

101
00:04:55.220 --> 00:04:57.220
before I came down.

102
00:04:57.220 --> 00:05:00.500
Like I said, it will feel very stiff if you're used to bending it.

103
00:05:00.500 --> 00:05:04.940
So use video or launch monitor to confirm oftentimes you won't lude speed, oft

104
00:05:04.940 --> 00:05:05.580
entimes

105
00:05:05.580 --> 00:05:09.160
you will gain ball speed because it's a lot easier to get the arms in front and

106
00:05:09.160 --> 00:05:09.940
get shafting

107
00:05:09.940 --> 00:05:14.510
if the arm hasn't drifted so far behind, but you will definitely see a lot more

108
00:05:14.510 --> 00:05:14.980
width

109
00:05:14.980 --> 00:05:16.060
and body rotation.

110
00:05:16.060 --> 00:05:20.940
So use that if you tend to collapse the arms in the backswing.

Have questions about this video?

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

Ask Mulligan
Related topics
This video hasn't been assigned to any topics yet. Browse all topics in the sidebar.
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