This movement is seen in all effective golf swings.
GOLF.com
Welcome to Play Smarta regular GOLF.com game improvement column that will help you play smarter and better golf.
No two golf swings look exactly alike, but when you break them down into their individual components, there are many similarities. In almost every good swing, you’ll find a few key positions that are crucial to generating consistent contact.
For example, if you look at Jon Rahm’s swing and Rory McIlroy, at first glance you won’t find much in common. However, once you take a closer look at their movements, you’ll find that they have a lot more in common than you first thought.
One of those key positions comes in the form of hunched shoulders during squats, which GOLF Top 100 Teachers Jonathan Yarwood talks about it in the video below.
Correct shoulder slope
When amateurs move to the top, they will often keep their shoulders very level. This causes a number of problems, including power leaks and grease contact.
Professionals don’t have that problem. If you watch them take the club to the top, they get a lot of shoulder tilt, which puts them in position to hit the ball powerfully.
“On the way back, the (bullet) shoulder tilts down as they wind,” says Yarwood. “This is the core movement that makes all very effective swings. From here, they take a deeper slant with that shoulder (lead). The shoulder goes even lower as it goes forward and then goes around.”
To get a feel for this move, grab a stretch stick and run it through the armholes of your shirt so it sits across your chest. When you make your swing, make sure you feel the push point of the stretch coming down and then round during the swing.
“This is a great workout if you want to hit your cleats sharper and further,” says Yarwood. “When you start to lower that shoulder more, it pushes the energy into the ground (and) lets your chest come back into the ground, which is a prerequisite of a lot of good iron players.”
