Golf Monthly created this content as part of a paid partnership with TaylorMade. The contents of this article are entirely independent and solely reflect the editorial opinion of Golf Monthly.
How to rotate your hips for more power
While it’s easy to say that you need to rotate your hips if you want to hit the ball further, it’s vitally important that you do it the right way. In the video and article below, PGA pro Gareth Lewis shares his tips on how to rotate your hips properly in the golf swing to generate more power and hit longer drives…
Yes, you need to rotate your hips, but it’s vital you do it in sequence. For example, when you get to the top of your driver backswing, it’s no good to just hit through the shot before turning your hips. It might look pretty, but it’s pretty inefficient.
We want you to create power, so you need to get the golf downswing sequence correct. To do that, from the top you almost want to feel like your hands are staying pretty still, with your left or lead hip moving forward and clearing out the way to trigger the beginning of the downswing.
With the hips clearing, the shoulders should start to turn, followed by the hands and arms, which bring the club through the hitting zone and into a powerful impact position.
Of course, this is easier said than done, so here is a drill to help. If you've ever wondered how to use alignment sticks, this is one of the best ways. That's because this drill provides a great visual to understand what your hips are doing during your swing. So, take an alignment stick and pop it through your front-facing belt loops, leaving most of it sticking out on your lead side as Gareth demonstrates in the video above.
Then, get into your driver address position and turn to the top. If you’ve made a nice, full shoulder turn, you’ll notice the stick will be pointing roughly towards your ball. From here, try and keep your hands as still as possible while you begin to open up the hips. You’ll see the stick starts to move towards your target.
From the top, open the hips to start the downswing and keep clearing them as the club approaches impact
As you work through a proper downswing sequence, the alignment aid will continue to move, and by the time the club has reached impact, the hips will have completely cleared and the stick should be pointing way left of target.
By the time you reach impact, the alignment stick should be pointing well left of your target
While it’s fine to do this at full speed, we would recommend rehearsing this move in slow motion first when you’re practising. Maybe do five exaggerated rehearsals before upping the pace. The more you do this, the more you’ll start to hone this move, which will enable you to swing the club faster and generate more power.
-
The Three Most Confusing Rules In Golf And How To Interpret ThemAt times, golf’s rules can be complex and confusing. Here we look at three of the most confusing rules in golf and give you the info you need to understand them.
-
There's A Growing Divide Between Club Members And Nomadic Golfers When It Comes To Handicapping... And I'm Concerned About ItSome golfers believe competition play should be a pre-requisite to achieving a ‘valid’ handicap, while others feel you should be able to submit a card whenever you want
