Matt Every - Right Shoulder Drill

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Congrats to Matt Every for winning the Bay Hill Invitational for the 2nd straight year! In this video, I'll show you a great way to use your lower body to motor your downswing and I'll also show you a neat checkpoint for your trail shoulder at impact. If you have struggled with being over the top or spinning your body through the hitting area, this simple checkpoint could be the key to your ball striking success!

  • Allow the lower body to unwind the shoulders in downswing transition. 
  • Keep the trail shoulder away from the trail ear for more power. 
  • Keep the trail shoulder behind the trail ear to eliminate shoulder spinning issues. 

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Mike
What was the name of that "Over the Top Stick Drill" Video. I can't seem to find it in the video library.
November 23, 2020
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Craig (Certified RST Instructor)
Hello Mike. That drill is no longer on the site. I apologize. By the time we get that lead arm with club in hand. You won't need it anymore .
November 24, 2020
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Dennis
My instructor is all about the right hand ( HOGAN ) to increase club head speed . I’ve been trying to take the right shoulder out of my swing for 20 years . It appears your drill and method accomplishes this . Any thoughts ! Thank you Dennis
April 6, 2018
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Craig (Certified RST Instructor)
Hello Dennis. In my opinion, Hogan overused his trail hand to fight a hook. However, your trail hand is your speed hand. To apply the force properly the trail shoulder must stay back in reserve versus spin. The above video is referring to adding the trail hand speed properly versus solely spinning the shoulders. The Sledgehammer Video would be a good follow up for you.
April 6, 2018
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T David
I have been focusing on my right leg and knee through the different parts of the swing, as well as keeping a relaxed upper body... Then ran across this video. I noticed that Matt has only a slight knee flex at setup and maintains this to the top. When I have this much flex at setup, I tend to loose my extension getting straight kneed at the top. So, I added a bit more knee flex at setup, and considering I am tall (6'4"). But I am thinking this might not be a good idea for consistency and power in the swing. Could I be making an improper move at the takeaway that causes this? Should the same knee flex be consistent going to the top? Any takeaway drills on the site?
June 4, 2017
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Craig (Certified RST Instructor)
Hello Dave. Maintaining Knee Anchor, Weight Shift Video Part 2 and Laser Beam Knee Drills will help. You don't want to overly bend at the knees because the tendency will be to get the weight forward. Being with your height a little added knee bend is probably okay. You want to try and achieve the same consistent knee bend to the top.
June 4, 2017
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bradley
You know how you see the big shoulder turn finish where the right shoulder points at the target or past it I.e. Sergio's eight iron into 15 at Augusta. I get more distance when I do that because I let the right shoulder come through hard in the swing. But when I then try to hit it hard with the right shoulder it gets bad.my question is if I hit it with the legs and let that be what brings the shoulder around I know at that split second of impact the right shoulder is back and square but can't I still use the power of that right shoulder swinging All the way to a full finish as long as it was all powered by pushing off the ground with my left leg?
April 26, 2017
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Craig (Certified RST Instructor)
Hello Bradley. Technically, you won't be using trail shoulder push to add power. However, like your previous post in the Sledgehammer. You can be too restrictive. Use the legs to trigger the release and allow them to work naturally. It seems you are trying to achieve more of a "stop and go" which hurts your distance.
April 26, 2017
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Paul
Hey guys, I'm assuming that the extension of the right shoulder away from the right ear is done by weight shift. Is there an awareness in the right shoulder/back/lats that we can use to 'feel' the shoulder staying back? Cheers,
March 17, 2016
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Craig (Certified RST Instructor)
Hello Paul. Other than feeling the back to the target or the shoulders staying relatively shut. There isn't a quick fix or tip to keep the trail shoulder back.
March 18, 2016
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Jeffrey
Please help. I am looking on clarification/confirmation regarding the proper position and "feel" related to having a cocked, flat left wrist position and hinged "waiter holding a tray" right wrist/hand position in the backswing weather it be a half, three quarters or full swing. Is this the proper position/feel at least conceptually for the left/right hands/wrist weather it be a half, three quarters or full backswing? While this this position/feel for me seems to promote a more sequenced "connected", functional, powerful and unified body, arms hands turn in the downswing toward the inside of the ball, I am concerned about making this swing change before receiving some confirmation it is at least conceptually correct and will not lead to an overly flat swing. This position in the backswing feels much "flatter" to me, (yet right?) than my current backswing position which leads to a left wrist that feels slightly "cupped" and a right wrist that feels hinged facing a direction that is behind me and not toward the ground which would be necessary to prevent me/a waiter from dumping a tray of drinks. Assuming form follows function, I believe with a little work (which I have not been confident enough in the concept to undertake religiously to date) will lead me to the adjustments/refinements necessary in my balancing/transition/follow thru etc to experience better compression/direction/trajectory than I have experienced to date due (I think) to the limited time/effort I have applied thus far incorporating this concept/swing change into my swing. Long question I know, but I hope it is descriptive enough for you to understand so you can give me some direction. Finally, if the concept is correct, what practice tips might you have for me to bear in mind as I attempt to execute this change to a flatter swing.....Thank You
August 16, 2015
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Craig (Certified RST Instructor)
Hello Jeffrey. Yes, you want the left wrist flat and for the right wrist to have a little hinge/set. The right wrist shouldn't be maxed out if actually holding a tray, but at a slight angle. You can see this well in the Using the Wrist Effectively and Efficiently Video in the Introduction Advanced Section and the Checkpoints Video in the Backswing Section. Those should help you with achieving the position.
August 17, 2015
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Richard
Laying not paying
June 28, 2015
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Craig (Certified RST Instructor)
Gotcha!
June 29, 2015
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Richard
Does the RST swing incorporate the feeling of paying the club on a table behind you and in the same vein where should the but end of the club point as you squat into your left heel on the way down?
June 28, 2015
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Craig (Certified RST Instructor)
Hello Richard. I wouldn't say laying so far as a table behind you. But, you will feel a shallowing out of the club at the start of the downswing. There is a little lead arm internal rotation when you start to come down. The butt end of the club will be pointed roughly around the outside of the ball after you shift into the lead heel. Take a look at Proper Muscle Activation to see the shallow out look/feel in the Introduction Advanced Section and Proper Golf Swing Plane in the same section.
June 29, 2015
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Richard
Thanks Craig. Think mainly I need to keep the muscles activated but relaxed to allow the proper fall off or fall back of the club as I saw in the videos you recommended.
June 29, 2015
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gerald
Holding the shoulder back seems to contradict what Jimmy Ballard taught. Or did I misunderstand Ballard idea of firing the right side?
May 10, 2015
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Craig (Certified RST Instructor)
Hello Gerald. Yes, it differs from Ballard opinion.
May 11, 2015
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Louis
Do you think his lack of shoulder elevation (keeping his arms close to the body) has something to do with his ability to keep the club working inside while pivoting on the lead side? To me it seems that he uses good footwork, a strong hip turn through impact to generate his club head speed & his connection of the arms allow him to turn hard at the ball. Wouldn't this be a "more rotary" motion than the "Rotary Swing"?
March 26, 2015
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Patrick (Certified RST Instructor)
Hi Lou, the club works inside because he sequences the downswing properly with a shift to the left side before the shoulders unwind. This flattens the swing plane coming down from the top. Spinning the shoulders open from the top will always cause a more "out to in" path unless some compensation is made during the downswing.
March 29, 2015
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Louis
understood.....I get that he pulls the club inside and doesn't open up....I was more referring to his move away the ball and why his right leg straightens....That's simply because there is less lower body weight on the right side in the backswing..... Many players don't seem to have that two pivot motion....I notice a lot of LPGA players pivot on both sides.... I find myself moving to the right post a lot less with shorter clubs....
March 30, 2015
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Louis
"Is that simply because there is less lower body weight on the right side in the backswing?" Sorry I meant to phrase this part as a question & I can't edit my comments..
March 30, 2015
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Louis
Patrick....also wanted to mention that my ball striking has improved tremendously and am already noticing lot of improvement on the golf course and much better awareness and feel with what my lower body is doing during the swing on the golf course.....my main focus in my practice for the past month has been pulling inside with the left from the top....very pleased with the swing fundamentals I am grooving with your help....
March 30, 2015
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Louis
Hey Chris, Does Matt Every actually pivot on to his right leg like RST teaches? To me, It looks like his entire pivot is on the left hip ball joint (as his right leg seems to straighten a lot as he works the club to the top). I've noticed a lot of shorter pros seem to avoid the shift of the pivot in the transition to allow for more power while bigger guys with less flexibility have that right heel down as a "break for the hip spinning". Great video as always. I like the practice point / swing thought here regarding the left (lead) shoulder working away from the right shoulder. The left arm lever seems to be the main lever that absolutely must work properly to hit consistent & from the inside.
March 25, 2015
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R.J. (Certified RST Instructor)
Lou, your eyes aren't lying to you. Matt does get his trail side leg straight in the backswing. He does a good job getting his knee back where it needs to be in the downswing. The reason why he gets away with it is because he doesn't allow the straightening of the right leg to tilt him back towards the target in the backswing and he recovers well. R.J.
March 25, 2015
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Anthony
Hi Chris, great video( I am a shoulder spinner), I went to the ranger this morning to pratice the points made in the video. When I do this correctly I feel that my lower body is unwinding my shoulders and my shoulders are staying behind the ball and turning perpendicular to my spine. Also, I feel my lead side stretching and my trail side working under. Are these the proper feels to have.
March 25, 2015
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Chris (Certified RST Instructor)
That is a great feel Anthony! Glad you enjoyed the video and are finding it useful.
March 27, 2015
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Anthony
Just to follow up on my previous comment, I looked at the level shoulders video and I am confused between that video and the Matt Every video, can you clarify these two videos, thanks
March 27, 2015
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Chris (Certified RST Instructor)
Level shoulder is designed to fix too much secondary axis tilt (spine leaning away from the target) in the hitting area. This move that I was talking about was geared towards stopping the rotation of the shoulders. Hope that helps.
March 27, 2015
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Mads
Any chance of you guys doing a swing analysis on Happy Gilmore ? A danish europeantour player recently made a test to see, if a running approach/backswing would do any diffenrence, and he actually increased his clubhead speed with a whopping 4 mph
March 25, 2015
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R.J. (Certified RST Instructor)
Mads, ESPN Sports Science did the same thing with Padraig Harrington. He picked up club head speed as well. His reasoning for not using it in his regular swing (as there is nothing against doing it in the USGA rules), he's horribly inaccurate while swinging that way. Accuracy is much more important than 4 mph of club head speed. R.J.
March 25, 2015

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