Any tips on reducing the use of the arms in the golf swing?

[T-Bone NJ]

Generally speaking, I know that each player has to find the swing that best suits them so long as it has certain basic principles like adequate shoulder turn and staying over the ball, etc.   I'm a mid handicap golfer and was hoping that members could share any tips on how to reduce the arms in the golf swing?  Preferably, keeping advice in the 'keep-it-simple-stupid' camp would be ideal but necessary.  Many thanks.   -Tom, NJ

[Shapotomous]

I am not exactly sure what you mean by "reduce the arms" but it made me think of a tip from the Hogan 5 lessons book.  There is a sketch of the setup position with an ace bandage wrapped around both arms.  The idea is to keep the arms in that position through the swing.  I am not sure if this is the type of info you were trying to get to.

[RickyBobby_PR]

Reducing the arms isn’t the best way to go. Arms aren’t passive in the swing.

more than likely what is happening is you aren’t turning your hips properly and aren’t shifting pressure and as a result the club is out of position and you have to make compensations which leads to having to use the arms and hands to save the shot.

Your best bet is to find a good instructor near you and get lessons

[MoonLitNite]

Hmm, in fact too many would-be golfers do not use their arms enough, instead overgriping with their hands.  Without getting into the nitty-gritty, we want to fully extend our arms in order to leverage our large muscles in our shoulders and hips.

But perhaps we are misunderstanding what you characterize as overusing the arms.  If you mean to avoid pulling in with the biceps (as if lifting), then yes we want to avoid using muscles that can reduce our full arm extension, cause wrists to release prior to impact ("swinging from the top..."), etc.

Happy golf trails,   Michael 

[tdc1]

Erika Larkin, a swing coach, teaches about using very "soft" arms in the swing.  She argues many golfers use hands/arms to over-manipulate the club during the swing in search of "perfect" positions.

[Jbugai]

For me, I personally swing without “thinking” about my arms. I use my core and legs using a 3 count rhythm starting with a forward press. This allows patience in transition and a consistent follow through. 

[TexCAV]

Keep it simple with the "rope drill".

The most basic fundamental of all is that the golf swing is a rotational move of the body core, with the hands and club following that rotation through the impact zone.

Hope that helps.

[oldguy819]

Hold a towel under your armpits while practicing. Don't let it drop until complete follow through

[RickyBobby_PR]

1 hour ago, TexCAV said:

Keep it simple with the "rope drill".

The most basic fundamental of all is that the golf swing is a rotational move of the body core, with the hands and club following that rotation through the impact zone.

Hope that helps.

They hands/arms just don’t follow. They are actively applying force with max hand speed being reached between p5 and p6.

Hands/arms that just follow lead to golfers being stuck 

[T-Bone NJ]

.....ahh, almost forgot about the towel/armpit tip!   

Shapotomous, I just revisited the Ben Hogan regarding  the arms being together and also came across this left/lead wrist supination which seems like it also worth a try.   

Jbugai, can you please provide a little more regarding the forward press?

[Jbugai]

3 minutes ago, T-Bone NJ said:

.....ahh, almost forgot about the towel/armpit tip!   

Shapotomous, I just revisited the Ben Hogan regarding  the arms being together and also came across this left/lead wrist supination which seems like it also worth a try.   

Jbugai, can you please provide a little more regarding the forward press?

Absolutely, there was study done by a physicist at Yale university, who happened to love golf. He discovered that the club is a tuning device. Which means its frequency has three waves requiring three points of force. So how does that apply to the swing itself? Essentially you must apply force towards target before applying force away from the target in order to return force towards the target without disrupting the swing. 

[StrokerAce]

From Luke Kerr-Dineen on Twitter...

Strick seems to have the most simple and effective swing I've seen on tour

Edited February 21 by StrokerAce

[Ray Eaton]

If you are using too much of your arms in your swing then try the Portable Swing Arm Corrector. Or do like VJ when he practices, place your driver headcover under your left arm in the armpit area.

[russtopherb]

17 hours ago, T-Bone NJ said:

Generally speaking, I know that each player has to find the swing that best suits them so long as it has certain basic principles like adequate shoulder turn and staying over the ball, etc.   I'm a mid handicap golfer and was hoping that members could share any tips on how to reduce the arms in the golf swing?  Preferably, keeping advice in the 'keep-it-simple-stupid' camp would be ideal but necessary.  Many thanks.   -Tom, NJ

What makes you think you use the arms too much? Is this something a pro pointed out during a lesson?

[Macelroy]

For better arm-body connection, as well as arm structure at the top, try this device.
https://swingtrainer.com/products/swing-align-bundle

 

[Jbugai]

I like the tour striker smart ball by Martin Chuck. It forces you to use your core and legs to drive the golf swing. 
https://www.tourstriker.com/products/smart-ball?gad_source=1&gadid=563068398868&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIoMnbifW8hAMVNTnUAR2zbgP4EAAYASAAEgLptPD_BwE&utm_campaign=1597583981&utm_content=136771474304&utm_medium=paid&utm_source=google&utm_term=tour striker smart ball

[RickyBobby_PR]

5 minutes ago, Jbugai said:

I like the tour striker smart ball by Martin Chuck. It forces you to use your core and legs to drive the golf swing. 
https://www.tourstriker.com/products/smart-ball?gad_source=1&gadid=563068398868&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIoMnbifW8hAMVNTnUAR2zbgP4EAAYASAAEgLptPD_BwE&utm_campaign=1597583981&utm_content=136771474304&utm_medium=paid&utm_source=google&utm_term=tour striker smart ball

That is the concept, unfortunately I have seen too many swings with it where people are still getting the club too far inside. Training aids should be used to address problems or help build new/correct movement patterns, but unfortunately not many golfers understand what they need to do.

We can use the planemate as another example. A great training aid and despite videos walking one through what to do, poor understanding of the swing and what the videos are telling people to do they perform the drills incorrectly, make no progress and assume the device ain’t for them or it doesn’t do what it promotes

[T-Bone NJ]

russtopherb, it's been a few things where I believe the arms are the cause:

the lack of distance, especially on the 3 and 4 hybrids, 3 wood and driver,

occasional back pain,

inconsistent ball striking (fat/thin),

catching the left arm not being straight

I do like the tour striker smart ball.

[Jbugai]

3 minutes ago, RickyBobby_PR said:

That is the concept, unfortunately I have seen too many swings with it where people are still getting the club too far inside. Training aids should be used to address problems or help build new/correct movement patterns, but unfortunately not many golfers understand what they need to do.

We can use the planemate as another example. A great training aid and despite videos walking one through what to do, poor understanding of the swing and what the videos are telling people to do they perform the drills incorrectly, make no progress and assume the device ain’t for them or it doesn’t do what it promotes

They probably just need a little help with understanding and they’ll be pointed in the right direction. God back to the old saying give a man a fish, he’ll eat for a day, but teach him how to fish and he’ll never go hungry. 

[russtopherb]

2 hours ago, T-Bone NJ said:

russtopherb, it's been a few things where I believe the arms are the cause:

the lack of distance, especially on the 3 and 4 hybrids, 3 wood and driver,

occasional back pain,

inconsistent ball striking (fat/thin),

catching the left arm not being straight

I do like the tour striker smart ball.

A lot of things could be causing those issues such as a poor setup, lack of shoulder turn, lack of proper wrist hinge, being over the top, etc. 

If you're not taking lessons, try posting a swing vid here and I'm sure someone who's far more knowledgeable than I can give you some solid advice

[RickyBobby_PR]

2 hours ago, T-Bone NJ said:

russtopherb, it's been a few things where I believe the arms are the cause:

the lack of distance, especially on the 3 and 4 hybrids, 3 wood and driver,

occasional back pain,

inconsistent ball striking (fat/thin),

catching the left arm not being straight

I do like the tour striker smart ball.

All of these issues are from improper pressure shifting and improper hip turn.

Whatever your arms are doing in the downswing are compensations for what’s wrong in the takeaway and backswing.

Saying the arms are causing the problem is diagnosing a symptom rather than the actual cause

[RickyBobby_PR]

2 hours ago, Jbugai said:

They probably just need a little help with understanding and they’ll be pointed in the right direction. God back to the old saying give a man a fish, he’ll eat for a day, but teach him how to fish and he’ll never go hungry. 

Based on the videos I’ve seen it’s a little more than some guidance. Some have received that from members in forums and still are unable to do proper movements. 

[Jbugai]

2 minutes ago, RickyBobby_PR said:

Based on the videos I’ve seen it’s a little more than some guidance. Some have received that from members in forums and still are unable to do proper movements. 

Well yeah you can only do so much if you’re not present with them and able to be hands on. If you don’t like the idea of training aids just say so. Why beat around the bush. Lessons are important absolutely. Maybe not everyone has the time, nor can afford them. People are on here for answers, not to be belittled or talked down to condescendingly. 

[T-Bone NJ]

Appreciate all the insights and suggestions everyone!   My takeway from everything here is to be patient and experiment a little bit at the driving range (incorporating some selfie videos perhaps), consider trying the tour striker smart ball and get a lesson (which I just booked with PGA professional Jeff Severini).  

Edited February 21 by T-Bone NJ

[Macelroy]

Some training aids like the Tour Stryker ball make you squeeze your arms together which is good for short shots but not always easy for longer ones.  Some training aids like Swing Align hold the arms at proper spacing keeping them from flying apart vs having to squeeze.  If you can keep the proper arm spacing (instructors call this arm structure), and rotate the lead shoulder down to rotate the club to the top versus lifting with the arms, you are on the right path.  Rotating the trail hip to create some space helps as well.

[RickyBobby_PR]

4 hours ago, Jbugai said:

Well yeah you can only do so much if you’re not present with them and able to be hands on. If you don’t like the idea of training aids just say so. Why beat around the bush. Lessons are important absolutely. Maybe not everyone has the time, nor can afford them. People are on here for answers, not to be belittled or talked down to condescendingly. 

I think training aids are good. Thur have a purpose but not all training aids are good for all golfers. Determining what the golfers problem is and then getting a training aid that works to address their issue. 
 

I agree lessons are important and especially in person. I’ve seen enough videos and threads of members on forums trying to go it alone struggle for a long time and make no progress despite putting in hours and hours trying to improve and in some cases regressing. I’ve been a part of two different paid membership sites and watched golfers not progress despite continued feedback from the teaching staff along with members of different forums take online lessons and struggle despite years of working with the same instructor to see that online lessons aren’t for most golfers.

I am here to help those looking for it but to also be honest with feedback based on my experience.

The golf swing isn’t easy and it takes time to fix bad movement patterns. Saying a training aid will fix someone’s issue isn’t honest. Explaining why it may or may not work and what might be a better option is more helpful. Seeing someone’s swing first and seeing what their issues to them say what is wrong and what to work on and then recommend a training aid is a lot more helpful.

Another issue that’s hard to deal with is the ones looking for a quick fix because there aren’t any.

yea a lot of people don’t have a lot of time so knowing what their actual issues are and giving them a recommendation based on that and not something general will be more help to them. 

[RickyBobby_PR]

53 minutes ago, Macelroy said:

Some training aids like the Tour Stryker ball make you squeeze your arms together which is good for short shots but not always easy for longer ones.  Some training aids like Swing Align hold the arms at proper spacing keeping them from flying apart vs having to squeeze.  If you can keep the proper arm spacing (instructors call this arm structure), and rotate the lead shoulder down to rotate the club to the top versus lifting with the arms, you are on the right path.  Rotating the trail hip to create some space helps as well.

Agree. Using the ball for full swings can create other issues, a roll of toilet paper is just as good as the smart ball especially for some smaller built golfers because it keeps the arms closer together than the balls. 
 

Some instructors don’t like the lead shoulder down feeling because it can cause improper movements and prefer the the trail shoulder back. Depends on what the golfer is doing and what they may need to change 

[Jbugai]

4 minutes ago, RickyBobby_PR said:

I think training aids are good. Thur have a purpose but not all training aids are good for all golfers. Determining what the golfers problem is and then getting a training aid that works to address their issue. 
 

I agree lessons are important and especially in person. I’ve seen enough videos and threads of members on forums trying to go it alone struggle for a long time and make no progress despite putting in hours and hours trying to improve and in some cases regressing. I’ve been a part of two different paid membership sites and watched golfers not progress despite continued feedback from the teaching staff along with members of different forums take online lessons and struggle despite years of working with the same instructor to see that online lessons aren’t for most golfers.

I am here to help those looking for it but to also be honest with feedback based on my experience.

The golf swing isn’t easy and it takes time to fix bad movement patterns. Saying a training aid will fix someone’s issue isn’t honest. Explaining why it may or may not work and what might be a better option is more helpful. Seeing someone’s swing first and seeing what their issues to them say what is wrong and what to work on and then recommend a training aid is a lot more helpful.

Another issue that’s hard to deal with is the ones looking for a quick fix because there aren’t any.

yea a lot of people don’t have a lot of time so knowing what their actual issues are and giving them a recommendation based on that and not something general will be more help to them. 

I respectfully agree and thank you for elaborating on what you were trying to say. 

[Donn lost in San Diego]

In Europe, they use Futbol.

[Donn lost in San Diego]

More seriously, try to keep your hands low and close to your body.  The further away the hands are from the body, the harder it is to control the club head.