The golf swing is a sum of moving parts. Your body, arms and clubhead (as well as many other subcomponents) are all moving at the same time during the swing in order to hit the ball. The tricky thing is all of these parts move at different speeds, and getting them to move in the proper order can be challenging.
This is what teachers mean when they talk about sequencing during the swing. It’s the order and speed in which all of those parts move so that you can hit a solid shot. If one bit is thrown off, it can screw up the rest of the sequence and result in poor contact.
One element of sequencing that often gets out of whack for recreational golfers (this writer included) happens in the transition phase of the swing. It’s easy to get quick with your hips as you fire them toward the ball, causing the other components to lag behind. When this happens, your contact is bound to suffer.
For a quick fix to this problem, take the advice of GOLF Top 100 Teacher Debbie Doniger. In a recent Instagram post, she shared a feel that you can use in transition to make sure everything stays in sync.
“Feel your trail hip, or even your pelvis, stay closed or loaded in transition,” she says.
This feel should help keep your hips from firing too quickly and outracing your arms and clubhead to the ball. Try it next time your sequencing gets out of sorts and you should get back to hitting them solid in no time.
Zephyr Melton
Golf.com Editor
Zephyr Melton is an assistant editor for GOLF.com where he spends his days blogging, producing and editing. Prior to joining the team at GOLF, he attended the University of Texas followed by stops with the Texas Golf Association, Team USA, the Green Bay Packers and the PGA Tour. He assists on all things instruction and covers amateur and women’s golf. He can be reached at zephyr_melton@golf.com.
