How To Fix Your Golf Swing Posture

If you have a poor and inefficient golf swing posture, the chances are you’re going to have to make compensations during the swing that result in inconsistency. In the video and article below, PGA pro Ben Emerson discusses the common faults and shares his tips on how you can improve in this area…

So, what we’re looking for here is to find a neutral posture. One of the things tour players do that you don't is to have a really flat back, as well as a nice hip hinge - this is what we call a neutral posture.

Alternatively, what we see with higher handicappers is that they don't know how to set their spine angle and fall into two types of posture categories. The first one is known as ‘C’ posture, which is quite a lazy position where the shoulders drop down, the head tucks in and the top of the back rounds out to form this curved shape.

The other one is the ‘S’ posture, where the shoulders look like they are being squeezed together to form an inward arc in the back, which causes problems. While not insurmountable, both of these can lead to a lack of consistency in strike in particular. If you fall into one of these categories, it's probably one of the reasons you aren't improving at golf.

As well as knowing how wide your golf stance should be, understanding what these postures feel like will help you to find a middle ground of neutrality that will likely lead to better golf. 

To do this, take a club and hold it across your shoulders as Ben demonstrates in the video above. When you’ve done that, go into the ‘S’ shape posture, hinging your hips and really pushing your shoulders back to get a sense of exactly how it feels to put your body into this position. Without removing the club, go from there into the ‘C’ shape, so round out the back, drop the shoulders and tuck the head into your neck a little. 

Do that a few times to start to hone these feelings before working on finding the middle ground between them. With your senses more heightened, you should be able to achieve a neutral golf swing posture without much hassle. With a flatter back, you’ll quickly notice how much easier it is to rotate around your body throughout the swing.

However, if you’re still struggling, there is another great golf drill for you. Again, take your club but this time put it just below your belt line while standing nice and tall. With your hands at either end, feel like you push the club back into your hips, which should push your bum out while keeping the back straight. 

From there, all you need to do is introduce a little knee flex and let the arms hang naturally down, and you’ll be in a great position from which to swing consistently and play better golf.