The Keys To Power In The Golf Swing

Hitting the ball further has been shown to give golfers a significant advantage over their competition. In the video and article, PGA pro Peter Dawson shares his top tips for generating power.

Power isn't everything in golf, but there are plenty of occasions when getting it out there a long way will give you a distinct advantage. On par 5s or long par 4s where maximum distance off the tee is required, many high handicappers - and others too - make the mistake of setting up to the ball thinking, 'The harder I hit it, the further the ball will go!' Sadly, that is generally not the case as they then tend to take the club away as fast as they can, chop back down at the ball, and it goes nowhere.

The secret to power in the golf swing is the arc - the pendulum - that generates your power via good posture. When you turn, turn your shoulders to the maximum, keeping the swing as wide as possible and, crucially, turning the big muscles in your upper body into the back leg.

Then you can unleash the forward power that this stores up. At the point of impact, you need to turn quickly through the ball and keep turning on into the follow-through too. Power stems from good posture, width in the backswing and an effective turn and transfer of weight.

Keep the width 

Width in the backswing is essential but don’t sway to achieve it – it must be achieved while turning the shoulders and upper body into the back leg to help store up power.

Turn through the ball 

All the good of a powerful backswing can be undone if you don’t then turn properly through the ball at impact and on into the follow-through.

Don’t hang back 

The head must go with the ball through impact. Many golfers keep the head back behind the ball (above) resulting in a flick, which dramatically decreases power.