Side Bend Through The Ground
Some golfers have a great sense of their feet and how they work with the ground. Others do not. If you are having a hard time focusing on the movement of your pelvis and just feeling where your pelvis is in space during transition, then this drill could help you find a better way to do it for your brain. Ultimately, it is training the same movements that we discuss in the body during transition, but helping you feel a direction to push can sometimes help to connect the dots.
Some golfers have a great sense of their feet and how they work with the ground. Others do not. If you are having a hard time focusing on the movement of your pelvis and just feeling where your pelvis is in space during transition, then this drill could help you find a better way to do it for your brain. Ultimately, it is training the same movements that we discuss in the body during transition, but helping you feel a direction to push can sometimes help to connect the dots.
Video Transcript
1
00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:04.480
This drill is side bend through the ground.
2
00:00:04.480 --> 00:00:09.050
So side bend through the ground is basically feeling how the legs and the feet
3
00:00:09.050 --> 00:00:09.640
push against
4
00:00:09.640 --> 00:00:14.200
the ground and how that helps trigger the movements further up the chain.
5
00:00:14.200 --> 00:00:20.250
So in the transition section we talk about that trail leg push and in the early
6
00:00:20.250 --> 00:00:21.200
extension
7
00:00:21.200 --> 00:00:24.820
section we talk about push the ground away.
8
00:00:24.820 --> 00:00:27.420
What we're going to do in this is we're going to connect those two so that you
9
00:00:27.420 --> 00:00:27.880
just have
10
00:00:27.880 --> 00:00:32.240
a good idea of how the trail leg works, how the lead leg works, what the pelvis
11
00:00:32.240 --> 00:00:32.900
is going
12
00:00:32.900 --> 00:00:36.120
to do and how that's going to relate to the side bend movement which is so
13
00:00:36.120 --> 00:00:36.800
critical for
14
00:00:36.800 --> 00:00:40.000
having a good path for the longer clubs.
15
00:00:40.000 --> 00:00:45.850
So essentially what's going to happen is I'm going to push the ground on a
16
00:00:45.850 --> 00:00:47.080
slight angle
17
00:00:47.080 --> 00:00:49.040
kind of away from me like so.
18
00:00:49.040 --> 00:00:55.720
Now the image that I like is Barry Sanders making a cut back.
19
00:00:55.720 --> 00:00:59.450
I like to look at a lot of other sports for inspiration for the movements that
20
00:00:59.450 --> 00:00:59.920
work in
21
00:00:59.920 --> 00:01:04.900
the golf swing and if you look at a running back who's making a cut going back
22
00:01:04.900 --> 00:01:06.000
45 basically
23
00:01:06.000 --> 00:01:10.980
what you will see is to push through the ground this way that will cause my
24
00:01:10.980 --> 00:01:13.120
body to go back
25
00:01:13.120 --> 00:01:14.640
this way.
26
00:01:14.640 --> 00:01:19.720
If I was to take a normal step I'm basically going to push the ground away from
27
00:01:19.720 --> 00:01:20.320
me like
28
00:01:20.320 --> 00:01:22.480
so and that's going to propel me forward.
29
00:01:22.480 --> 00:01:25.990
So I'm pushing through my toes and I'm pushing the ground that way to cause
30
00:01:25.990 --> 00:01:26.840
myself to move
31
00:01:26.840 --> 00:01:28.000
that way.
32
00:01:28.000 --> 00:01:32.340
If I want to get my pelvis to actually go back this way then what I need to
33
00:01:32.340 --> 00:01:32.720
feel is
34
00:01:32.720 --> 00:01:38.600
I need to feel like my foot is pushing almost on an angle kind of like so.
35
00:01:38.600 --> 00:01:42.600
So I'm going to try and push my foot through the ground this way and if I keep
36
00:01:42.600 --> 00:01:43.160
my upper
37
00:01:43.160 --> 00:01:48.930
body in kind of the same spatial kind of orientation what will happen is when I
38
00:01:48.930 --> 00:01:49.480
go and
39
00:01:49.480 --> 00:01:55.280
push that's going to create this Jackson 5 movement or this side bend.
40
00:01:55.280 --> 00:02:00.270
We always want things to be moving kind of in the direction of the target so
41
00:02:00.270 --> 00:02:01.060
this side
42
00:02:01.060 --> 00:02:06.050
bend movement being initiated from the lower body will help create leg and
43
00:02:06.050 --> 00:02:07.360
delay the arms.
44
00:02:07.360 --> 00:02:11.700
What can happen is if you are trying to just manufacture this side bend by
45
00:02:11.700 --> 00:02:12.480
tipping backward
46
00:02:12.480 --> 00:02:16.350
with the upper body it will be very hard to have the proper arm movements and
47
00:02:16.350 --> 00:02:16.800
so you'll
48
00:02:16.800 --> 00:02:22.580
usually dump those arms and kind of hit fat shots where the club gets bottomed
49
00:02:22.580 --> 00:02:23.160
out because
50
00:02:23.160 --> 00:02:25.880
my arms are extending and my path is too rightward.
51
00:02:25.880 --> 00:02:30.860
So in order to do this side bend correctly ultimately we want to connect it to
52
00:02:30.860 --> 00:02:31.040
what the
53
00:02:31.040 --> 00:02:34.610
feet are doing with the ground or at least what the hips are doing where the
54
00:02:34.610 --> 00:02:35.120
hips are
55
00:02:35.120 --> 00:02:39.600
working kind of in this back 45 back 30 kind of direction.
56
00:02:39.600 --> 00:02:43.100
So if I were to do it from this point of view basically what you'll see is that
57
00:02:43.100 --> 00:02:43.700
I'm going
58
00:02:43.700 --> 00:02:49.980
to push the ground away from me kind of like so and I'm going to let my hips go
59
00:02:49.980 --> 00:02:50.880
backward
60
00:02:50.880 --> 00:02:54.280
kind of like so so I'm pushing the ground that way.
61
00:02:54.280 --> 00:02:58.110
Now it doesn't have to be a super aggressive push it's not like I'm trying to
62
00:02:58.110 --> 00:02:58.600
push as
63
00:02:58.600 --> 00:03:04.200
hard as I can it's more like I'm trying to push just like I'm taking a step.
64
00:03:04.200 --> 00:03:08.220
So about the same amount of push as if I was throwing the ball.
65
00:03:08.220 --> 00:03:13.690
If I were to push too explosively it'll usually throw off the rotational speed
66
00:03:13.690 --> 00:03:14.860
that I'll want
67
00:03:14.860 --> 00:03:16.440
later in this wing.
68
00:03:16.440 --> 00:03:22.980
So you can actually hit golf balls this way and but I recommend if you're going
69
00:03:22.980 --> 00:03:23.380
to hit
70
00:03:23.380 --> 00:03:28.560
golf balls this way you got to be about a 10 handicap or better.
71
00:03:28.560 --> 00:03:31.700
You're welcome to try it at higher it's just going to be very tough for you to
72
00:03:31.700 --> 00:03:32.360
make solid
73
00:03:32.360 --> 00:03:34.480
contact with this much movement.
74
00:03:34.480 --> 00:03:37.260
But basically the way you would do it is if I'm going to push that way that's
75
00:03:37.260 --> 00:03:37.560
going
76
00:03:37.560 --> 00:03:41.620
to cause me to step about a foot back kind of like so.
77
00:03:41.620 --> 00:03:47.560
So if I was to make a back swing and then basically as I'm starting transition
78
00:03:47.560 --> 00:03:47.980
so well
79
00:03:47.980 --> 00:03:52.970
before my arms finish the swing if I was to step back this way this is going to
80
00:03:52.970 --> 00:03:53.380
build
81
00:03:53.380 --> 00:03:55.940
the proper feeling for that trail leg.
82
00:03:55.940 --> 00:04:01.830
So I'm basically going to swing and step back just like so and I should still
83
00:04:01.830 --> 00:04:02.540
be able to
84
00:04:02.540 --> 00:04:06.470
hit a nice little draw in fact that's gonna help create the space for the
85
00:04:06.470 --> 00:04:07.840
proper arm movements.
86
00:04:07.840 --> 00:04:11.140
If you feel like you've got kind of a or you've done this and you've had some
87
00:04:11.140 --> 00:04:11.640
success
88
00:04:11.640 --> 00:04:15.510
and you feel like you have a good idea then your goal is to try to initiate
89
00:04:15.510 --> 00:04:16.500
that feeling
90
00:04:16.500 --> 00:04:21.480
of the step without actually stepping.
91
00:04:21.480 --> 00:04:25.110
Doing this will help create that side bend help create this shallow angle of
92
00:04:25.110 --> 00:04:25.680
attack and
93
00:04:25.680 --> 00:04:28.740
allow you to make the good arm movements that we want to build during the
94
00:04:28.740 --> 00:04:29.200
release.
Have questions?
Ask Mulligan for helpSide Bend Through The Ground
Some golfers have a great sense of their feet and how they work with the ground. Others do not. If you are having a hard time focusing on the movement of your pelvis and just feeling where your pelvis is in space during transition, then this drill could help you find a better way to do it for your brain. Ultimately, it is training the same movements that we discuss in the body during transition, but helping you feel a direction to push can sometimes help to connect the dots.
Some golfers have a great sense of their feet and how they work with the ground. Others do not. If you are having a hard time focusing on the movement of your pelvis and just feeling where your pelvis is in space during transition, then this drill could help you find a better way to do it for your brain. Ultimately, it is training the same movements that we discuss in the body during transition, but helping you feel a direction to push can sometimes help to connect the dots.
Video Transcript
1
00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:04.480
This drill is side bend through the ground.
2
00:00:04.480 --> 00:00:09.050
So side bend through the ground is basically feeling how the legs and the feet
3
00:00:09.050 --> 00:00:09.640
push against
4
00:00:09.640 --> 00:00:14.200
the ground and how that helps trigger the movements further up the chain.
5
00:00:14.200 --> 00:00:20.250
So in the transition section we talk about that trail leg push and in the early
6
00:00:20.250 --> 00:00:21.200
extension
7
00:00:21.200 --> 00:00:24.820
section we talk about push the ground away.
8
00:00:24.820 --> 00:00:27.420
What we're going to do in this is we're going to connect those two so that you
9
00:00:27.420 --> 00:00:27.880
just have
10
00:00:27.880 --> 00:00:32.240
a good idea of how the trail leg works, how the lead leg works, what the pelvis
11
00:00:32.240 --> 00:00:32.900
is going
12
00:00:32.900 --> 00:00:36.120
to do and how that's going to relate to the side bend movement which is so
13
00:00:36.120 --> 00:00:36.800
critical for
14
00:00:36.800 --> 00:00:40.000
having a good path for the longer clubs.
15
00:00:40.000 --> 00:00:45.850
So essentially what's going to happen is I'm going to push the ground on a
16
00:00:45.850 --> 00:00:47.080
slight angle
17
00:00:47.080 --> 00:00:49.040
kind of away from me like so.
18
00:00:49.040 --> 00:00:55.720
Now the image that I like is Barry Sanders making a cut back.
19
00:00:55.720 --> 00:00:59.450
I like to look at a lot of other sports for inspiration for the movements that
20
00:00:59.450 --> 00:00:59.920
work in
21
00:00:59.920 --> 00:01:04.900
the golf swing and if you look at a running back who's making a cut going back
22
00:01:04.900 --> 00:01:06.000
45 basically
23
00:01:06.000 --> 00:01:10.980
what you will see is to push through the ground this way that will cause my
24
00:01:10.980 --> 00:01:13.120
body to go back
25
00:01:13.120 --> 00:01:14.640
this way.
26
00:01:14.640 --> 00:01:19.720
If I was to take a normal step I'm basically going to push the ground away from
27
00:01:19.720 --> 00:01:20.320
me like
28
00:01:20.320 --> 00:01:22.480
so and that's going to propel me forward.
29
00:01:22.480 --> 00:01:25.990
So I'm pushing through my toes and I'm pushing the ground that way to cause
30
00:01:25.990 --> 00:01:26.840
myself to move
31
00:01:26.840 --> 00:01:28.000
that way.
32
00:01:28.000 --> 00:01:32.340
If I want to get my pelvis to actually go back this way then what I need to
33
00:01:32.340 --> 00:01:32.720
feel is
34
00:01:32.720 --> 00:01:38.600
I need to feel like my foot is pushing almost on an angle kind of like so.
35
00:01:38.600 --> 00:01:42.600
So I'm going to try and push my foot through the ground this way and if I keep
36
00:01:42.600 --> 00:01:43.160
my upper
37
00:01:43.160 --> 00:01:48.930
body in kind of the same spatial kind of orientation what will happen is when I
38
00:01:48.930 --> 00:01:49.480
go and
39
00:01:49.480 --> 00:01:55.280
push that's going to create this Jackson 5 movement or this side bend.
40
00:01:55.280 --> 00:02:00.270
We always want things to be moving kind of in the direction of the target so
41
00:02:00.270 --> 00:02:01.060
this side
42
00:02:01.060 --> 00:02:06.050
bend movement being initiated from the lower body will help create leg and
43
00:02:06.050 --> 00:02:07.360
delay the arms.
44
00:02:07.360 --> 00:02:11.700
What can happen is if you are trying to just manufacture this side bend by
45
00:02:11.700 --> 00:02:12.480
tipping backward
46
00:02:12.480 --> 00:02:16.350
with the upper body it will be very hard to have the proper arm movements and
47
00:02:16.350 --> 00:02:16.800
so you'll
48
00:02:16.800 --> 00:02:22.580
usually dump those arms and kind of hit fat shots where the club gets bottomed
49
00:02:22.580 --> 00:02:23.160
out because
50
00:02:23.160 --> 00:02:25.880
my arms are extending and my path is too rightward.
51
00:02:25.880 --> 00:02:30.860
So in order to do this side bend correctly ultimately we want to connect it to
52
00:02:30.860 --> 00:02:31.040
what the
53
00:02:31.040 --> 00:02:34.610
feet are doing with the ground or at least what the hips are doing where the
54
00:02:34.610 --> 00:02:35.120
hips are
55
00:02:35.120 --> 00:02:39.600
working kind of in this back 45 back 30 kind of direction.
56
00:02:39.600 --> 00:02:43.100
So if I were to do it from this point of view basically what you'll see is that
57
00:02:43.100 --> 00:02:43.700
I'm going
58
00:02:43.700 --> 00:02:49.980
to push the ground away from me kind of like so and I'm going to let my hips go
59
00:02:49.980 --> 00:02:50.880
backward
60
00:02:50.880 --> 00:02:54.280
kind of like so so I'm pushing the ground that way.
61
00:02:54.280 --> 00:02:58.110
Now it doesn't have to be a super aggressive push it's not like I'm trying to
62
00:02:58.110 --> 00:02:58.600
push as
63
00:02:58.600 --> 00:03:04.200
hard as I can it's more like I'm trying to push just like I'm taking a step.
64
00:03:04.200 --> 00:03:08.220
So about the same amount of push as if I was throwing the ball.
65
00:03:08.220 --> 00:03:13.690
If I were to push too explosively it'll usually throw off the rotational speed
66
00:03:13.690 --> 00:03:14.860
that I'll want
67
00:03:14.860 --> 00:03:16.440
later in this wing.
68
00:03:16.440 --> 00:03:22.980
So you can actually hit golf balls this way and but I recommend if you're going
69
00:03:22.980 --> 00:03:23.380
to hit
70
00:03:23.380 --> 00:03:28.560
golf balls this way you got to be about a 10 handicap or better.
71
00:03:28.560 --> 00:03:31.700
You're welcome to try it at higher it's just going to be very tough for you to
72
00:03:31.700 --> 00:03:32.360
make solid
73
00:03:32.360 --> 00:03:34.480
contact with this much movement.
74
00:03:34.480 --> 00:03:37.260
But basically the way you would do it is if I'm going to push that way that's
75
00:03:37.260 --> 00:03:37.560
going
76
00:03:37.560 --> 00:03:41.620
to cause me to step about a foot back kind of like so.
77
00:03:41.620 --> 00:03:47.560
So if I was to make a back swing and then basically as I'm starting transition
78
00:03:47.560 --> 00:03:47.980
so well
79
00:03:47.980 --> 00:03:52.970
before my arms finish the swing if I was to step back this way this is going to
80
00:03:52.970 --> 00:03:53.380
build
81
00:03:53.380 --> 00:03:55.940
the proper feeling for that trail leg.
82
00:03:55.940 --> 00:04:01.830
So I'm basically going to swing and step back just like so and I should still
83
00:04:01.830 --> 00:04:02.540
be able to
84
00:04:02.540 --> 00:04:06.470
hit a nice little draw in fact that's gonna help create the space for the
85
00:04:06.470 --> 00:04:07.840
proper arm movements.
86
00:04:07.840 --> 00:04:11.140
If you feel like you've got kind of a or you've done this and you've had some
87
00:04:11.140 --> 00:04:11.640
success
88
00:04:11.640 --> 00:04:15.510
and you feel like you have a good idea then your goal is to try to initiate
89
00:04:15.510 --> 00:04:16.500
that feeling
90
00:04:16.500 --> 00:04:21.480
of the step without actually stepping.
91
00:04:21.480 --> 00:04:25.110
Doing this will help create that side bend help create this shallow angle of
92
00:04:25.110 --> 00:04:25.680
attack and
93
00:04:25.680 --> 00:04:28.740
allow you to make the good arm movements that we want to build during the
94
00:04:28.740 --> 00:04:29.200
release.
Have questions about this video?
Ask Mulligan for personalized guidance on technique, drills, or how to apply what you've learned.
Ask Mulligan