Fix Inside Takeaway - Belly Button Drill

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This simple takeaway drill will give you that one piece takeaway you've been looking for once and for all!


Struggling with your takeaway is going to be a thing of the past. When you walk through my drill, I call it the belly button drill. That's going to help you understand how to move your body together with the club. One of the things that I've always advocated to make the takeaway extremely simple is that if the club head is moving during the takeaway, it's because the buttons on your shirt are moving. What I mean by that?

I want the club and the buttons on

Your shirt to feel. And look as if they're rotating together that they're moving together, that the club head is being moved by your body. Now nearly every single lesson

I've given over the last 20 years has always looked like this for so many golfers. They start setting their risks. We do so much in our

Daily life with our arms and hands that we it's instinctive to want to use your arms and hands to move the golf club. But it's the last thing that you want to do if you give a darn about being a consistent golfer, because it's impossible to play consistent golf by just relying on your arms and hands. So this drill is going to make the take-away extremely simple, and it's going to help you understand how to move your body, to move the club instead of the other way around. So

Here's how we do this drill. Take your normal setup,

Access, tilt, proper stance, width, et cetera, and then take the club and stick the butt of the club and literally in your belly button, and then choke up on it as if you were taking the normal setup position. Now notice that the club shaft and my shoulders, or my chest form a perpendicular or 90 degree angle, what I want to try and to do during the takeaway is maintain this perpendicular angle all the way to the end of the takeaway. So what that looks like. So I'm going to turn my chest and move my belly button, and that's going to move the club. Now, technically the club will not stay perpendicular to your belly button. I don't want it to cause your chest is moving more so than your than your gut is, but this is a great drill to feel what it feels like to not do this and snatch the club way because instantly the club leaves your belly button, or if you start pushing it and pushing the left arm across your chest, you're going to feel it kind of jabbing in the belly.

And it's no, no longer anywhere near 90 degree angles. So your goal is to try and feel that it's maintaining more of a 90 degree angle from down the line. It's going to look a little bit like this. So now technically the club's moving a little bit behind and that's what I'm going to set my wrist just a little bit. When my hands are pocket high, the takeaway is done and my wrists are set just a little bit. Now we're going to exaggerate, not setting the risks to late in the swing. And so this is going to look a little bit different than your regular takeaway. Cause technically you would be moving your wrists during the initial moves off the ball, but it's very subtle and way less than what most golfers do.

So this drill is all about learning, how to rotate your body,

To control the club during the takeaway. Now you're getting, if you start doing a bunch of crazy stuff with your hands, the club's going to leave your belly button and you won't have a good takeaway, but sticking the club in your belly button makes it take away a piece of cake.

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Bob
Craig it’s bob moon. Thanks for the nicest comments on my last review the issue I have on your comment of too much access tilt shoulders should be square on impact. Correct me if I am wrong my shoulder should have a little access tilt when hitting my driver. More square on impact with the irons. I can see my shoulders being more forward at impact driver andirons. Is this what you are saying in my review
May 20, 2020
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Craig (Certified RST Instructor)
Hello Bob. The shoulders should be square to the target line on both the driver and iron. Less secondary tilt/shoulder slope at impact. Driver will tend to have a little more than an iron. But, you get into too much secondary tilt dropping the club under plane.
May 21, 2020
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Bruce
I’m a little confused with the setting of the wrists in the takeaway. From all the other RST videos I’d understood that all the wrist (thumb up) movement happened via soft hands and wrist and the natural momentum of the club when moving shoulders back and when transitioning. However in this video Chuck seems to suggest some manufactured wrist set to get the club parallel at the pocket. Which is correct? When I takeaway my club is low at 90 degrees as I haven’t made any wrist set. Thanks
March 23, 2020
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Craig (Certified RST Instructor)
Hello Bruce. This drill above will have to because the belly button position will limit setting of the wrists. The takeaway has 25% of your wrist set because your are 25% done with the swing. Take a look at Wrist Cock vs Wrist Hinge and RST Pencil Tee Drill.
March 23, 2020
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Stephen
I have lost some flexibility as I've gotten older. When I rotate in this drill I don't get to 90 degrees. So the handshake position will have my hand s and arms somewhat independent of my core.. Should I wrist cock and go up early? I cant stop lifting club. Or am ok as long as hands are still in front of my body but not 90 degrees
August 17, 2019
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Craig (Certified RST Instructor)
Hello Stephen. At the end of the takeaway you should have 45 degrees of shoulder rotation. If you are trying to get 90 that sounds much too excessive. You will need a little elevation and wrist set in the takeaway. But, the goal is 45 degrees by the time the hands are inline with the trail pocket.
August 17, 2019
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Ramu
Love the drill since I always had trouble getting the torso to start rotating at the beginning of the Takeaway...two questions 1) do you want us to rotate the torso along with the right shoulder glide at the start of the takeaway? 2) when the club is parallel to the ground on the takeaway, do you still continue to rotate with the torso or use the momentum of the club to get you to the top of the backswing..I remember Chuck mentioning ( momentum of the club) that in the drill video. Thx!
July 12, 2019
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Craig (Certified RST Instructor)
Hello Ramu. As you rotate the core you will need to pull on the trail lat (glide) to facilitate rotation. You will continue to rotate the core and use momentum & elevation to help you reach the proper position at the top. Take a look at My Golf Backswing Secrets and 4 Square Drill Video.
July 12, 2019
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Mohnishkumar
Hello , do we need to do one peice takeway . With the pitch as well ? Thank you
June 13, 2019
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Craig (Certified RST Instructor)
Hello Mohnishkumar. Yes, it will still be a one piece takeaway, but the wrist will set/hinge a little quicker than a normal stock shot.
June 14, 2019
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James
Because I have not been keeping my right (trail) arm straight in the initial backswing being caused by a handsy action, I tend to pick up the club causing my elbow to fly out. I did this drill as advised by Craig and it has helped to correct it. When I checked it looking in the mirror it has improved but what I found helped to stabilize it was to try to feel that my humerus rotates clockwise backwards (looking at my trail arm to my right) as my right arm folds at the top. I find that this tends to make my elbow point more forward and not fly out, with angle of the humerus almost matching my spine angle. Is this ok?
April 1, 2019
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Craig (Certified RST Instructor)
Hello James. It sounds like you are adding external humeral rotation of the trail arm. This clockwise rotation not only helps place the trail scapula and elbow in the proper position for the backswing. It also aids with transfer of speed from core rotation in the downswing.
April 1, 2019
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James
Further to my comments, despite the bitter cold, got down to the practice area and I am getting my elbow into a better position.
April 5, 2019
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Craig (Certified RST Instructor)
Hello James. It is definitely getting better. Looking at the picture. Just make sure you are getting a full shoulder turn. Looks a hair cut off.
April 5, 2019
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James
Yes Craig that about nails it on the head; mind you I had to look up where the scapula was! but I do feel that bone involved and as you say this external rotation does put my elbow in a much better position at the top of my back swing and a good feeling of being fully loaded up. Also, on checking in the mirror, I can see that my club face is parallel with the target line. Doing this drill has made it easier to get the club in the correct position, plus it has given me a more awareness of where my club face is in the swing and more importantly, at impact. I am thinking less of what my arms and hands are doing; my mind has become more focused on what the face of the club is doing, so that my arms and hands react more to that rather than the other way round! When the weather improves, I'll try and get a capture of my swing at the top to show you.
April 2, 2019
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Hector
In this drill , the club at pocket high is at the level of the ankle line if we can say that , not at the toe line . In the downswing the club shaft should be at the same position ? At ankle line ?
October 9, 2018
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Craig (Certified RST Instructor)
Hello Hector. It will look a little different due to wrist set, elevation and placement of the club on the ground. It will seem a little more inside while doing this drill. The goal of the video is to get rotation being the overall factor to move the club. The takeaway in the real swing will be closer to the toe line than ankle.
October 9, 2018
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Jack
These drill videos are excellent. I have a very real concern that you will ultimately remove much of this older website and replace with the RST university format only. Please don't do that. I like the check list format of the original site and I am using both sites for additional information. I can also bookmark the pages in the old format whereas I can't do that in the university format as the webpage is the same for all the videos. Thank you for your consideration.
May 19, 2018
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Craig (Certified RST Instructor)
Hello Jack. Thanks for the compliments. No worry. The videos are here to stay. We are gearing the RST University format to simplify the training for our members that get bogged down with info. However, we know there are some golf nuts out there that want all the nuts and bolts of the swing and every drill possible we could provide.
May 20, 2018
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Jack
For someone who doesn't know me at all you've got me pegged. I love the detailed instruction. Thanks again.
May 20, 2018
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Douglas
Great video. Assuming you're doing everything right, do you have any advice or a training program to increase swing speed? Suppose you swing a driver at 105, how do you get that to 110 or higher?
March 8, 2018
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Craig (Certified RST Instructor)
Hello Douglas. The key would be understanding where the power loss is coming from. Lag should be your first check. Work on the 4 Step Lag Builder, Lag and Speed Drills and Sledgehammer Video.
March 9, 2018
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Garrett
I have really enjoyed these “Takeaway” videos Chuck has been putting out as of late. They have been much needed. Now what we need is a “How do the wrists work, and appear to the golfer going from that 9 O Clock position up to the top?” Chuck talks about maintaining the cupped left wrist from setup to 9 O Clock position, but what’s the feeling going from that to the desired “Flat/Neutral wrist” position at the top of the swing? Also, getting up to the top the right wrist, to me feels like the right palm kind of angles towards my face.
March 4, 2018
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Craig (Certified RST Instructor)
Hello Garrett. It's tough to teach feel being that it is subjective. As you go from the takeaway position the lead wrist will gradually flatten while the lead arm rotates slightly from the lead shoulder socket. Take a look at Using the Wrists in the Golf Swing and How to Keep the Left Arm Straight for the rotation. The trail wrist will hinge a some, but not completely back like holding a tray. Also, described in the Using the Wrists Video.
March 4, 2018
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Hector
In the takeaway when you do this drill the club is inside the toe line . Can I apply the low and slow to this concept ? Can this concept apply to all the clubs ? I ask because when I do the slow and slow I hit good the ball , but when I try to do it thinking about the belly button , in the takeaway the club is outside the toe line and I tend to come over the top , help
February 26, 2018
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Craig (Certified RST Instructor)
Hello Hector. The drill is designed to give you the feeling of rotation. Elevation will happen in the takeaway. If you notice the starting position of Chuck's arms/club he has already elevated slightly. I want you to have the feeling of always rotating in the takeaway. But, if you don't add the slight elevation the club would tend to end up to low and start getting behind the chest. Keeping it slow is fine. Forcing it low might keep you away from the proper vertical motion.
February 26, 2018
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Martin
I used this drill a long time ago. I dropped it because it caused me to over rotate my hips. I think it would be worth adding a reminder in this video about keeping your hips pretty static during takeaway so that you feel a tension build between the belt buckle (which keeps pointing forward) and belly button.
February 19, 2018
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Craig (Certified RST Instructor)
Hello Martin. Much appreciative of the post. It will be a good reminder for students that may experience the same issue you had while performing the drill.
February 19, 2018

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