Ernie Els shares 5 secrets for elite ball striking

Golf instruction is ever-evolving, but the best advice stands the test of time. In GOLF.com’s new series, Timeless Tips, we’re highlighting some of the greatest advice teachers and players have dispensed in the pages of GOLF Magazine. Today we look back to our June 2011 issue when Ernie Els shared his secrets for elite ball striking. For unlimited access to the full GOLF Magazine digital archive, join InsideGOLF today; you’ll enjoy $140 of value for only $39.99/year.

Ernie Els might have the smoothest swing in all of golf. If you watch him take a few hacks, you’ll be tempted to ask yourself if he’s even trying. But don’t mistake that nonchalance for ineffectiveness — Els is one of the greatest players of his generation.

In his prime, there were few golfers who could match up with Els. With 19 PGA Tour wins and four major titles (all coming during Tiger Woods‘ dominance), the Big Easy put together a hall-of-fame career.

Back in 2011 when Els was officially inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame, he joined GOLF Magazine to share some of his best secrets for elite ball striking. Check ’em out below.

Ernie’s 5 ball-striking secrets

It’s hard to believe that I won the U.S. Open — my second major — at Congressional Country Club so long ago. A lot has changed since then, including my swing, but one thing that hasn’t changed is my reliance on the key moves that got me my Tour card in the first place, and ultimately 64 wins worldwide.

Like any professional — golfer, banker, politician, movie director, whatever — you continue to adapt yet stay true to your base ideals. For me, these are the fundamentals of address and taking the club back and through without concern for intricate positions or angles — my best swing secrets. I’m still going strong after two decades on the pro tours, so I must be doing something right.

1. Take an athletic stance

I know, I know — you’ve had it up to here hearing about the importance of address. Sorry, friends, but success starts here, especially with your driver. Every Tour pro — every one! — practices his or her setup religiously. The secret here is to be fundamentally sound yet still feel relaxed and ready to tap your innate sense of athleticism. Copy my setup keys and you’ll be in a good place to do just that.

SETUP KEYS

2. Swing and turn back at the same time

A lot of amateurs see my swing and assume it’s mostly arms because I get the clubhead so high above my head. The truth is that I rarely think about moving my arms at all. I make my best driver swings when I power the club back with my shoulders. Notice here how I’ve started the club back but the clubhead is still almost hugging the ground. You can’t get that by swinging your arms or hinging your wrists to start your backswing.

Of course, your arms will swing back and lift the club up as part of your built-in hitting motion, but thinking more about turning your shoulders will go a long way toward giving you more power while also keeping the club on plane. You must turn your shoulders! A weak shoulder turn is the number-one amateur mistake.

3. Complete your backswing

A lot of people talk about my transition and how it looks so smooth. Honestly, it just sort of happens — making a smooth transition isn’t something I really think about when I swing, although I do know why it happens. Good transitions happen when your body and mind recognize that your backswing is complete and full. If you stop too soon your body senses that you haven’t built enough power into your backswing, and it then speeds up in a jerky rush. The same thing happens when you overextend your backswing: Your body senses that you’re too long and steps on the gas.

Instruction

So how do you know when your backswing is full and complete? For me it’s always been when I feel that my left shoulder has gotten behind the ball. When my turn gets to this point I know it’s time to start back down. No indecision, no hesitation, no rush. If your transition isn’t as smooth as you want it to be, it’s because you never get your left shoulder behind the ball. Most amateurs turn, but hardly any of them turn enough. Spend an entire practice session forgetting about your swing and focusing only on turning your shoulders as far as you can. You’ll be surprised at how much power you get without swinging any harder.

4. Transition by dropping

In addition to making a full and complete backswing, a good way to ensure a smooth transition is to drop your arms immediately from the top without doing anything else. This has been a solid key for me ever since | first picked up a club. Two things to keep in mind: 1) It’s not just your arms that drop, but your arms, hand and shaft; and 2) Everything must drop straight down.  You can get away with dropping your arms and shaft a little behind you, but Bon never in front of you. Although your weight is shifting forward and your hips are turning while you’re doing this, it’s nonetheless a singular move to focus on and practice on its own.

5. Sync your upper and lower halves

There are a lot of moving parts to your motion, especially as you swing down from the top and into impact. A little-known secret is that you can move your upper body and lower body as fast and slow as you want to — as long as you keep them in sync.

I run into trouble when my lower body out-races my upper body, so I constantly strive to keep them working together. Even though my hips are the first to move from the top of my backswing, I want my upper body and my lower body to arrive at impact at the same time. I don’t want to be late with my upper body and hang back too far on my right side, nor do I want to be too early, spinning out with my shoulders and hooking the ball left.

You know you’re doing it correctly if you feel your chest is over the middle of your stance as you strike the ball. Since you tee the ball forward in your stance, keeping your chest over the middle gives you just a little bit of hang back to correctly hit up on the ball and max out your yardage.