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live4golf
5th September 2014, 06:02 PM
I was checking myself out in the mirrors in the bathroom just now and I happened to have a driver with me. I noticed that when I set up like I would to hit the ball, my shoulders were not sitting naturally. Instead, they were both turned in and forced forward. Something like this:

@ - Shoulders
- - collar bones
O - head

Normal, relaxed:
@--O--@

What I was seeing:
@-O-@

I tried this again with a wedge and saw the same thing. I then relaxed and set my shoulders back so they were in a line with my head and it felt comfy. So for the past however long I have been lacking a bunch of distance and missing primarily to the right. Would this shoulder jutting forward thing I seem to be doing possibly be the cause? What is the expected result of having the shoulders too far forward?

TIA

yoyo
5th September 2014, 06:48 PM
Absolutely.

During one of my initial 'back in ze game' lessons over a year ago now, one of the key things i was given to work on was to make a conscious movement of drawing the shoulder blades together at address. This forces a 'chest proud' ball address. I was going right alot as well and this was the key reason for it. The slumped shoulders prevented full and proper rotation and cause quite an upright takeaway. This all equals an underpowered inside out swing.

razaar
5th September 2014, 06:50 PM
With the shoulders forward the shoulder blades are pulled away from the rib cage which can destabilise the shoulder girdle muscles. These shoulder stabilizers are part of the deep core muscles which provide a solid foundation for the arms (especially the target arm) to work off. If the shoulders float around then there will be a break in the kinetic chain from the ground to the tip of the shoulders. Pulling the shoulders back and down may not get the job done, particularly if you have developed a habit of internally rotating the shoulders at address. The answer is to get your hands on a Ramsey posture belt and do the exercises that fire the stabilizing muscles. The Australian Amateur squad members and many tour players use the belt on a daily basis.

JADO75
5th September 2014, 08:17 PM
I'm often in the bathroom, looking in the mirror with my big dog in hand

mrbluu
5th September 2014, 08:56 PM
I was checking myself out in the mirrors in the bathroom just now and I happened to have a driver with me. I noticed that when I set up like I would to hit the ball, my shoulders were not sitting naturally. Instead, they were both turned in and forced forward. Something like this:

@ - Shoulders
- - collar bones
O - head

Normal, relaxed:
@--O--@

What I was seeing:
@-O-@


TIA

Why did your head shrink, forgot to put the bathroom heater on???

matty
5th September 2014, 09:31 PM
@ - Shoulders
- - collar bones
O - head

Normal, relaxed:
@--O--@

What I was seeing:
@-O-@


I am confuse.

matty
5th September 2014, 09:32 PM
I'm often in the bathroom, looking in the mirror with my big dog in hand

You play a shorter shaft?

JADO75
5th September 2014, 09:42 PM
Loooooooong drive shaft brotha!

virge666
6th September 2014, 06:35 PM
It is balance...

Move your weight back towards your heels until you can open your shoulders to the position you want.

Pull your shoulders back and down... Then get your hips in the right place so you feel comfortable and balanced...

Hatchman
6th September 2014, 07:50 PM
Very interesting live4. When I think about my own set up I must say I've been guilty of the narrow example and might explain the inconsistency over the last few months.

live4golf
7th September 2014, 11:18 AM
Thanks for all your comments and suggestions. I spent a bunch of time feeling how it should feel with the shoulders relaxed and where they should be and it seemed to make a pretty big difference. Played today and had 4 over. Everything was better. Drives were not lacking distance and were accurate, 3 wood was exceptional, irons were really good and even my wedges were on today. Putting was a bit blech, but that is just me. relaxing my shoulders seems to have helped, especially with the irons...I hit a ton of good shots today and got distance back.

One thing I noticed was that I was hitting the ball much more in the middle to heel of the club face rather than the extreme toe.

Definitely something I will continue to focus on.

Thanks all!!!

Hatchman
15th September 2014, 05:15 PM
Was concentrating on this today during a practice round. Good crisp contact with every thing from Driver through to pitch shots.
For me I found that if I focus on making sure my left shoulder stays down and back (I'm right handed), my right one will follow and do the same.
I also had a think about this with my putting stance and alignment. My putting has gone right off the boil over the last couple of months. Missing putts heaps wide of the intended line which I normally don't do as well as my usual very good distance control all over the place. Found the left shoulder was high forward and narrow. Got that down and back and hey presto finding the cup from short range and going very close again from long range. Distance control was back to where I'm accustomed. My smooth flowing accelerating stroke down the intended line was back.

To put it in simple terms it's a relaxation thing. Shoulders down and back (wide) are relaxed. Shoulders up and forward (narrow) are tense. Most of us would know that tension is a big swing killer.