Even casual golf fans have probably noticed that Tiger's takeaway rehearsals are distinctly unique among tour professionals. You can often see him rehearsing his takeaway with what appears to be an exaggerated rotation — or "fanning" — of the clubface wide open during the initial move away from the ball.
For golfers who fight a slice, the idea of deliberately rotating the clubface open during the takeaway sounds like a recipe for disaster. So why does Tiger deliberately incorporate this into his technique?
There are two critical elements to Tiger's takeaway visible from a down-the-line camera angle. The first is that aggressive clubface rotation, and the second is that the club tracks back on the exact same swing plane it occupied at address. Study the photo below carefully.
In the left image, you can see how Tiger has taken the club back precisely on the shaft plane established at address while rotating the face significantly open, as indicated by the yellow line. In the right image, I'm executing the same movement in my takeaway — making the clubface angle at this point in the swing even more clearly visible.
The reason this seemingly dramatic amount of forearm rotation occurs is straightforward: this is the only way to keep the club traveling on the same plane all the way to the top of the backswing.
If the clubface were more square or shut going back, the club would track more upright and tend to get across the line at the top. Because Tiger has always despised getting "stuck" during his downswing, controlling the face rotation during the takeaway is one of the most important elements in preventing that problem.
When the club gets across the line at the top, it naturally wants to steepen during the downswing. A golfer compensates by shallowing out the club path from the top to approach the ball from the inside. But if that compensation is even slightly off, the clubface can be left open and behind the body — creating the dreaded "stuck" position that leads to blocks and hooks.
As the club continues back, Tiger works to maintain that open rotation of the clubface, keeping the club traveling on the same plane — or as we'll examine later, on a plane parallel to the address shaft plane — throughout the rest of the backswing. In the photo below, the clubface aligns with his hands while the left arm continues its rotation going back.
As we'll see at the top of Tiger's swing, he never gets across the line anymore — and this precise takeaway plane combined with the clubface rotation is exactly what makes that possible.
Even though the club has only traveled a few feet at this point, the takeaway is an absolutely critical component of Tiger's golf swing that must be executed correctly for the entire backswing to maintain its proper plane alignment. If you want to see how your own takeaway compares to elite mechanics, try a free AI swing analysis for instant feedback on your swing plane.
How This Differs From Tiger's Earlier Technique
Under Butch Harmon, the key focus during the takeaway was preventing the club from getting behind Tiger's body — achieved by taking the club back very wide and well outside his hands. In his current technique, the club is no longer outside his hands during the takeaway; instead, it tracks inline with his hands when the club reaches parallel to the ground.
I prefer this inline hand position at this point in any golfer's swing. For most amateurs learning the Rotary Swing, the common mistake is getting the club well behind their hands and beneath the plane at this stage. A swing that is more rotary in nature is NOT a flat swing — it's simply more rounded. You don't want the clubhead straying behind the hands during the takeaway.
Another significant difference is that Tiger's left arm now works more straight back rather than extending away from his body at this point. His arms are more connected to his body rotation than in years past — although certainly not to the degree of a pure one plane swinger. These adjustments put Tiger in a remarkably neutral takeaway position with no wasted movements or exaggerated positions.
Tiger Woods Swing From Face On
From the face-on view, Tiger still maintains tremendous width in his swing. When the club reaches parallel to the ground, his wrists have barely begun to set the club, and he has already moved his hands a significant distance from his body — establishing the foundation of an impressively wide swing arc.
However, Tiger now stays remarkably centered throughout the backswing, with far less lateral head movement than he exhibited under Butch Harmon. Tiger has mentioned his ongoing commitment to reducing this lateral head movement even further — a pursuit of efficiency that sets him apart. This kind of attention to eliminating unnecessary movement is something you can practice yourself in a free AI golf lesson with real-time tracking of your head position.
Learning Tiger's Move
It's essential that you work on the aggressive rotation of the lead forearm during this early stage of the swing. By the time the club is parallel to the ground, the clubface should be open to the point that the toe of the club points to approximately 11 o'clock when viewed from down the line.
At first, this movement will feel extremely unfamiliar — it's a significant amount of forearm rotation happening very early in the swing. This rotation must continue all the way to the top, as you'll see in the other sections of this analysis.
It's equally important that you get the club working up on the correct swing plane from the very start. Placing a shaft in the ground at the same angle as your club shaft at address can serve as a visual guide for your backswing plane, but video feedback is genuinely essential for grooving this motion with precision and consistency.
Watch part 2 now to see how you're moving your body in the opposite direction of the pros!
