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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.

Improve Your Downswing Sequence with Tai Chi Drills

After this video, you'll be able to:

  • Use your lower body more effectively to initiate your downswing
  • Develop a smoother transition by practicing slow-motion swings
  • Understand how to apply Tai Chi principles to enhance swing sequencing

Learn how to enhance your downswing sequence using Tai Chi-inspired movements. This drill will help you build a smoother transition from backswing to downswing, improving your overall swing rhythm and consistency.

Video Transcript
WEBVTT

1
00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:04.300
This drill is Tai Chi downswing sequence.

2
00:00:04.300 --> 00:00:09.710
So again, many golfers struggle with getting the sequence right when they take

3
00:00:09.710 --> 00:00:10.420
a full length

4
00:00:10.420 --> 00:00:11.420
backswing.

5
00:00:11.420 --> 00:00:15.760
So it's much easier in these nine to threes when the club is kind of even with

6
00:00:15.760 --> 00:00:16.420
the height

7
00:00:16.420 --> 00:00:20.460
of my hands or my shoulders haven't been fully loaded.

8
00:00:20.460 --> 00:00:24.860
It's much easier to initiate that swing with my body.

9
00:00:24.860 --> 00:00:29.060
But when I start to get my shoulders more towards maximum stretch up at the top

10
00:00:29.060 --> 00:00:29.260
of the

11
00:00:29.260 --> 00:00:33.180
swing, sometimes it's a little bit harder to have the patience or the

12
00:00:33.180 --> 00:00:34.140
sequencing of

13
00:00:34.140 --> 00:00:35.940
use in the lower body first.

14
00:00:35.940 --> 00:00:40.350
So the two main sequence drills that I use are versions of pump drills where I

15
00:00:40.350 --> 00:00:41.360
'm rhythmically

16
00:00:41.360 --> 00:00:48.260
kind of going back and forth to trick my brain into using more my core.

17
00:00:48.260 --> 00:00:52.480
Because when I pump back and forth, it's very hard to do it aggressively and it

18
00:00:52.480 --> 00:00:52.900
's very

19
00:00:52.900 --> 00:00:58.460
hard to do it in a way that would complement a heavy arm pull.

20
00:00:58.460 --> 00:01:03.240
So the two main compliments would be more of an upper body lunge or more of an

21
00:01:03.240 --> 00:01:03.780
early

22
00:01:03.780 --> 00:01:04.780
extension.

23
00:01:04.780 --> 00:01:08.410
And it's really hard to pump back and forth with either of those two body

24
00:01:08.410 --> 00:01:09.220
movements.

25
00:01:09.220 --> 00:01:13.020
But some golfers aren't real comfortable doing pump drills.

26
00:01:13.020 --> 00:01:17.900
So the other common sequence training drill that I'll do is more of a Tai Chi

27
00:01:17.900 --> 00:01:18.540
or a slow

28
00:01:18.540 --> 00:01:19.860
motion swing.

29
00:01:19.860 --> 00:01:21.820
So we'll go up to the top of the swing.

30
00:01:21.820 --> 00:01:26.390
And now I'm going to ask you to take at least three seconds to make your down

31
00:01:26.390 --> 00:01:27.100
swing.

32
00:01:27.100 --> 00:01:31.020
We're going to go one thousand one, one thousand two, one thousand three.

33
00:01:31.020 --> 00:01:34.540
And I want you to make contact with the ground and with the ball.

34
00:01:34.540 --> 00:01:38.760
It's only going to go a few feet so you can actually hopefully do this in the

35
00:01:38.760 --> 00:01:39.220
comfort

36
00:01:39.220 --> 00:01:45.420
of your living room or off to the side.

37
00:01:45.420 --> 00:01:50.950
So if I'm doing these slow motion swings, oftentimes what will happen is some

38
00:01:50.950 --> 00:01:51.620
golfers

39
00:01:51.620 --> 00:01:57.120
will do these slow motion swings and they'll be up above the golf ball kind of

40
00:01:57.120 --> 00:01:57.860
like so.

41
00:01:57.860 --> 00:02:01.010
And I'll tell them you haven't solved the equation yet because you haven't

42
00:02:01.010 --> 00:02:01.580
connected

43
00:02:01.580 --> 00:02:07.900
in your mind where, how you're going to get the club down to the golf ball.

44
00:02:07.900 --> 00:02:10.750
So if I'm here, the easiest way to get it down to the golf ball is to go a

45
00:02:10.750 --> 00:02:11.340
little bit

46
00:02:11.340 --> 00:02:12.980
earlier with my arms.

47
00:02:12.980 --> 00:02:17.060
And so what then happens is they do these nice looking sequence drills.

48
00:02:17.060 --> 00:02:20.550
And then when they go to actually hit the ball because they haven't solved the

49
00:02:20.550 --> 00:02:21.140
equation,

50
00:02:21.140 --> 00:02:23.580
they go earlier and earlier with the arms.

51
00:02:23.580 --> 00:02:29.640
So oftentimes just by doing five or ten of these slow motion swings where I'm

52
00:02:29.640 --> 00:02:30.220
going to

53
00:02:30.220 --> 00:02:35.210
try and do all the movements that I'm hoping to train and that was actually a

54
00:02:35.210 --> 00:02:35.900
little bit

55
00:02:35.900 --> 00:02:36.900
quick.

56
00:02:36.900 --> 00:02:41.140
You can see I hit that a little too far.

57
00:02:41.140 --> 00:02:46.000
By doing all these movements in slow motion, it will help your body and your

58
00:02:46.000 --> 00:02:47.220
brain coordinate

59
00:02:47.220 --> 00:02:50.700
the sequencing and the timing of how these movements fit together.

60
00:02:50.700 --> 00:02:55.290
So we'll do one more good one, hopefully kind of thinking about it a little bit

61
00:02:55.290 --> 00:02:55.900
more.

62
00:02:55.900 --> 00:02:58.220
So shallowing as I turn.

63
00:02:58.220 --> 00:03:02.940
That was a pretty good one, finishing where I wanted to in that release

64
00:03:02.940 --> 00:03:03.860
position.

65
00:03:03.860 --> 00:03:07.700
Went a little bit further than I wanted, but the sequencing was there.

66
00:03:07.700 --> 00:03:12.230
Let's see if I can slow it down even more before I then try to add a little bit

67
00:03:12.230 --> 00:03:12.820
of speed

68
00:03:12.820 --> 00:03:14.060
to it.

69
00:03:14.060 --> 00:03:22.580
So if I go up to the top, that was pretty good.

70
00:03:22.580 --> 00:03:27.980
Now that I have this feeling of the sequence of what my arms are going to do

71
00:03:27.980 --> 00:03:29.040
while my body

72
00:03:29.040 --> 00:03:34.060
is initiating that downswing, now I can try and add a little bit more speed.

73
00:03:34.060 --> 00:03:39.340
Usually I'll say now do one at about 50%, 60% and then 80% and then we're

74
00:03:39.340 --> 00:03:40.220
pretty much

75
00:03:40.220 --> 00:03:42.540
back up to full swing tempo.

76
00:03:42.540 --> 00:03:50.780
So now this will be a little slow, closer to kind of a 50%.

77
00:03:50.780 --> 00:03:53.280
So that one worked out pretty well.

78
00:03:53.280 --> 00:04:02.220
Work up close to full speed after doing the half speed drill.

79
00:04:02.220 --> 00:04:06.630
So now we've got kind of a good rhythm going for the movements that we were

80
00:04:06.630 --> 00:04:07.540
training.

81
00:04:07.540 --> 00:04:11.760
As we put in more speed, maybe a feel will emerge or maybe we'll figure out a

82
00:04:11.760 --> 00:04:12.380
tempo that

83
00:04:12.380 --> 00:04:14.140
that we'll serve as our playing field

84
00:04:14.140 --> 00:04:15.900
for when we go to the course tomorrow.

Have questions?

Ask Mulligan for help

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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.

Improve Your Downswing Sequence with Tai Chi Drills

After this video, you'll be able to:

  • Use your lower body more effectively to initiate your downswing
  • Develop a smoother transition by practicing slow-motion swings
  • Understand how to apply Tai Chi principles to enhance swing sequencing

Learn how to enhance your downswing sequence using Tai Chi-inspired movements. This drill will help you build a smoother transition from backswing to downswing, improving your overall swing rhythm and consistency.

Video Transcript
WEBVTT

1
00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:04.300
This drill is Tai Chi downswing sequence.

2
00:00:04.300 --> 00:00:09.710
So again, many golfers struggle with getting the sequence right when they take

3
00:00:09.710 --> 00:00:10.420
a full length

4
00:00:10.420 --> 00:00:11.420
backswing.

5
00:00:11.420 --> 00:00:15.760
So it's much easier in these nine to threes when the club is kind of even with

6
00:00:15.760 --> 00:00:16.420
the height

7
00:00:16.420 --> 00:00:20.460
of my hands or my shoulders haven't been fully loaded.

8
00:00:20.460 --> 00:00:24.860
It's much easier to initiate that swing with my body.

9
00:00:24.860 --> 00:00:29.060
But when I start to get my shoulders more towards maximum stretch up at the top

10
00:00:29.060 --> 00:00:29.260
of the

11
00:00:29.260 --> 00:00:33.180
swing, sometimes it's a little bit harder to have the patience or the

12
00:00:33.180 --> 00:00:34.140
sequencing of

13
00:00:34.140 --> 00:00:35.940
use in the lower body first.

14
00:00:35.940 --> 00:00:40.350
So the two main sequence drills that I use are versions of pump drills where I

15
00:00:40.350 --> 00:00:41.360
'm rhythmically

16
00:00:41.360 --> 00:00:48.260
kind of going back and forth to trick my brain into using more my core.

17
00:00:48.260 --> 00:00:52.480
Because when I pump back and forth, it's very hard to do it aggressively and it

18
00:00:52.480 --> 00:00:52.900
's very

19
00:00:52.900 --> 00:00:58.460
hard to do it in a way that would complement a heavy arm pull.

20
00:00:58.460 --> 00:01:03.240
So the two main compliments would be more of an upper body lunge or more of an

21
00:01:03.240 --> 00:01:03.780
early

22
00:01:03.780 --> 00:01:04.780
extension.

23
00:01:04.780 --> 00:01:08.410
And it's really hard to pump back and forth with either of those two body

24
00:01:08.410 --> 00:01:09.220
movements.

25
00:01:09.220 --> 00:01:13.020
But some golfers aren't real comfortable doing pump drills.

26
00:01:13.020 --> 00:01:17.900
So the other common sequence training drill that I'll do is more of a Tai Chi

27
00:01:17.900 --> 00:01:18.540
or a slow

28
00:01:18.540 --> 00:01:19.860
motion swing.

29
00:01:19.860 --> 00:01:21.820
So we'll go up to the top of the swing.

30
00:01:21.820 --> 00:01:26.390
And now I'm going to ask you to take at least three seconds to make your down

31
00:01:26.390 --> 00:01:27.100
swing.

32
00:01:27.100 --> 00:01:31.020
We're going to go one thousand one, one thousand two, one thousand three.

33
00:01:31.020 --> 00:01:34.540
And I want you to make contact with the ground and with the ball.

34
00:01:34.540 --> 00:01:38.760
It's only going to go a few feet so you can actually hopefully do this in the

35
00:01:38.760 --> 00:01:39.220
comfort

36
00:01:39.220 --> 00:01:45.420
of your living room or off to the side.

37
00:01:45.420 --> 00:01:50.950
So if I'm doing these slow motion swings, oftentimes what will happen is some

38
00:01:50.950 --> 00:01:51.620
golfers

39
00:01:51.620 --> 00:01:57.120
will do these slow motion swings and they'll be up above the golf ball kind of

40
00:01:57.120 --> 00:01:57.860
like so.

41
00:01:57.860 --> 00:02:01.010
And I'll tell them you haven't solved the equation yet because you haven't

42
00:02:01.010 --> 00:02:01.580
connected

43
00:02:01.580 --> 00:02:07.900
in your mind where, how you're going to get the club down to the golf ball.

44
00:02:07.900 --> 00:02:10.750
So if I'm here, the easiest way to get it down to the golf ball is to go a

45
00:02:10.750 --> 00:02:11.340
little bit

46
00:02:11.340 --> 00:02:12.980
earlier with my arms.

47
00:02:12.980 --> 00:02:17.060
And so what then happens is they do these nice looking sequence drills.

48
00:02:17.060 --> 00:02:20.550
And then when they go to actually hit the ball because they haven't solved the

49
00:02:20.550 --> 00:02:21.140
equation,

50
00:02:21.140 --> 00:02:23.580
they go earlier and earlier with the arms.

51
00:02:23.580 --> 00:02:29.640
So oftentimes just by doing five or ten of these slow motion swings where I'm

52
00:02:29.640 --> 00:02:30.220
going to

53
00:02:30.220 --> 00:02:35.210
try and do all the movements that I'm hoping to train and that was actually a

54
00:02:35.210 --> 00:02:35.900
little bit

55
00:02:35.900 --> 00:02:36.900
quick.

56
00:02:36.900 --> 00:02:41.140
You can see I hit that a little too far.

57
00:02:41.140 --> 00:02:46.000
By doing all these movements in slow motion, it will help your body and your

58
00:02:46.000 --> 00:02:47.220
brain coordinate

59
00:02:47.220 --> 00:02:50.700
the sequencing and the timing of how these movements fit together.

60
00:02:50.700 --> 00:02:55.290
So we'll do one more good one, hopefully kind of thinking about it a little bit

61
00:02:55.290 --> 00:02:55.900
more.

62
00:02:55.900 --> 00:02:58.220
So shallowing as I turn.

63
00:02:58.220 --> 00:03:02.940
That was a pretty good one, finishing where I wanted to in that release

64
00:03:02.940 --> 00:03:03.860
position.

65
00:03:03.860 --> 00:03:07.700
Went a little bit further than I wanted, but the sequencing was there.

66
00:03:07.700 --> 00:03:12.230
Let's see if I can slow it down even more before I then try to add a little bit

67
00:03:12.230 --> 00:03:12.820
of speed

68
00:03:12.820 --> 00:03:14.060
to it.

69
00:03:14.060 --> 00:03:22.580
So if I go up to the top, that was pretty good.

70
00:03:22.580 --> 00:03:27.980
Now that I have this feeling of the sequence of what my arms are going to do

71
00:03:27.980 --> 00:03:29.040
while my body

72
00:03:29.040 --> 00:03:34.060
is initiating that downswing, now I can try and add a little bit more speed.

73
00:03:34.060 --> 00:03:39.340
Usually I'll say now do one at about 50%, 60% and then 80% and then we're

74
00:03:39.340 --> 00:03:40.220
pretty much

75
00:03:40.220 --> 00:03:42.540
back up to full swing tempo.

76
00:03:42.540 --> 00:03:50.780
So now this will be a little slow, closer to kind of a 50%.

77
00:03:50.780 --> 00:03:53.280
So that one worked out pretty well.

78
00:03:53.280 --> 00:04:02.220
Work up close to full speed after doing the half speed drill.

79
00:04:02.220 --> 00:04:06.630
So now we've got kind of a good rhythm going for the movements that we were

80
00:04:06.630 --> 00:04:07.540
training.

81
00:04:07.540 --> 00:04:11.760
As we put in more speed, maybe a feel will emerge or maybe we'll figure out a

82
00:04:11.760 --> 00:04:12.380
tempo that

83
00:04:12.380 --> 00:04:14.140
that we'll serve as our playing field

84
00:04:14.140 --> 00:04:15.900
for when we go to the course tomorrow.

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