In the previous lesson, we discussed the shoulder blade glide — moving inward toward center, toward your spine.
We explained how, if you keep everything connected, the shoulder blade glide gets everything moving correctly on plane and path without you having to consciously control anything during the golf takeaway.
It is a remarkably simple way to take the club back.
Now we are going to discuss the trail arm in golf and how it causes one of the most common faults in the takeaway.
By far, the most common fault we observe is the trail arm starting to fold too early in the backswing.
There are numerous reasons for this, and we will discuss some of them, but what we really want to focus on is how to execute it correctly.
Once you have set up to the ball and begin to take the club back, you need to understand that your hands are going to be approximately at the center of your chest. We call this the "center line."
Think of your body in terms of two halves — upper and lower — and two sides, lead and trail. As we do in the 4 Square Drill.
The center line is defined by your sternum in the front, or your spine in the back.
Try It Without the Club
Set the club aside for a moment. Get into your setup position and hold your hands approximately two inches apart, on your center line, as shown in the first photo.
As you move through the takeaway, your hands should stay in the center of your chest.
If you let your lead arm push across your body, you will start to see a significant gap forming between your fingers.
Your lead hand will fall short of the trail hand because you have swung your lead arm too far across your body.
Of course, once you are holding a golf club again, the only way your hands are going to actually separate is if you either slide your trail hand down the grip (which you are not going to do) or fold your trail arm too early.
If you find that you are folding the trail arm in golf too early, it is highly likely that you are pushing your lead arm across your chest, crossing the center line prematurely.
Pick the Club Back Up
Pick the club back up and set up so the club is at the center of your chest. Now just glide your trail shoulder blade back.
When you look down the line at the conclusion of the golf takeaway, you should see that the club is still essentially aligned with the center of your chest.
It may start to drift back just slightly, but that is perfectly acceptable.
That is exactly what you want.
Of course, if you move your arms instead of performing the shoulder blade glide, you can move the club around considerably without actually turning.
The photo at left shows a takeaway with no body turn at all.
If you just fold your trail arm and cock your wrist, you can bring the club back easily enough, but you will not be loading into your big muscles or preparing for an effective golf swing.
Your goal is to use your large muscles, not just fling the club around with your arms.
It is critically important that the trail arm stays straight. You should feel that the upper bicep of your trail arm remains connected to your upper chest the entire time. Do not let it swing out and drift away from your body. To see how your trail arm position and takeaway compare to elite standards, try a free AI swing analysis.
Focus on Your Body, Not the Club
When you bend the trail arm in golf too early, the club will start to get inside. You are going to stop turning because by the time you reach the top, you will feel fully loaded even though you have not turned your shoulders at all.
Obviously, if you want to turn your back to the target, you need to actually turn your back — not just move the club into a certain position. So focus on that.
Focus on moving your body, not on moving the club.
Remember the first takeaway lesson: you need to move your body in the opposite direction from the club.
Make sure to practice keeping that trail arm straight for as long as possible in the backswing.
In fact, it should stay straight all the way up through Move 2, folding very late in the swing.
That is going to help you maintain width and prevent the club from swinging all over the place. The longer you can keep a straight trail arm in golf, the better your golf takeaway is going to become. For real-time coaching on your takeaway mechanics, try a free AI golf lesson.
Watch part 2 now to see how you're moving your body in the opposite direction of the pros!
Your hands will be on the center line
Left arm push causes a gap to form
Look what happens when the right arm in golf folds too soon
The right arm folds late in the swing
