PGA.com

Shop PGA
 

Check Your Centers

By Dave Baker, PGA Professional- PGA.com

Did you know the golf swing has two centers, an upper, and a lower?

The approximate location of you upper center is the top button on your golf shirt (if you have it buttoned). The approximate location of your lower center is your belt buckle.

center_190.jpg
Controlling both of your centers will lead to better contact every time. (Photo: Getty Images)

I use two good drills to check for proper positions of these two points before and during my student's swings.

Prior to hitting a ball, your two centers will be vertically in-line with themselves. To experience this alignment, grab a club and a golf ball, and put yourself your normal setup position. In this position, you should notice that your two centers are in a straight vertical line. If they are not, then your set-up position is out of balance, and you should make a correction to this position to insure the two centers form a straight line. A good drill to practice is setting up in front of a mirror, visually checking to see if your two centers are in line. Drawing a line down the middle of the mirror will assist you in achieving the correct position.

When you are in an impact position in your swing, your centers are no longer in line. Your lower center must be ahead of the ball, on its way to facing your intended target. You upper center should be in line and/or behind the ball. If they are not in these positions, chances are you are making a reverse weight shift. A good drill to achieve this desirable position is to again use a mirror. This time, try to insure that as you swing the club down, your lower center passes the line you have drawn on the mirror, while your upper center remains behind the line.

Dave-Baker.jpg

Dave Baker is a PGA Class "A" Professional. As one of this country's elite instructors, Dave instructs one-to-one golf school programs for Advantage Golf School at most of their Florida locations. You can reach Dave at info@advantagegolfschool.com.

 
Ask The PGA Experts
Ryder Cup
 

Most Popular Lessons

Beating the Bunker Blues

In all my years of teaching I have found the Bunker Shot to be the hard... continue reading

Taking Your Lessons to the Course

Taking a golf lesson to the course can be a challenge. Making a swing c... continue reading

A Lesson Learned: The Tour Championship and keeping the faith

(ATLANTA, GA) -- Though the FedExCup was settled before the first shot ... continue reading

Play Golf America

Helping To Grow The Game

One of the most important missions for the PGA of America is to promote and grow the game of golf.

PGA.com
About PGA.com | Advertising | Feedback | Privacy Policy | Terms of Use
© 2003-2008 PGA / Turner Sports Interactive. All rights reserved.
PGA.com is part of the Turner Sports and Entertainment Digital Network