The Proper Way To Use
Your Arms In The Golf Swing

I have been working on my own golf swing very diligently recently, and went through several frustrating sessions on the range, until…I had the epiphany! I think I am finally learning the proper way to use my arms in my golf swing, but it may be too soon to tell.

I first have to tell you I am a Type A, very analytical guy, which may be the death of my golf swing, but with that being said, I’ve studied thousands of slow motion golf swings, as well as my own, trying to find that “thing” that will get me striking the ball solidly, with compression.

Do Not Manipulate Your Golf Club

In this pursuit, I have been trying to physically manipulate the golf club, instead of “letting go”, and allowing the club to swing freely and naturally. This was my MOMENT on the range. Again, I need to continue to work on this to see if in fact this has been my fault all along, but I’ve got a strong hunch it was.

Do Not Try To Get Into Positions During Your Swing

I have been a “position” golfer for a long time. What I mean by that is trying to get my body into positions that I know are correct from all the swing videos I’ve analyzed, but what’s happened is in the pursuit, I have become very tense from a muscular standpoint, with my shoulders specifically, as well as arms, wrists and hands.

I’ve always known when you tense a muscle it slows it down. Try to squeeze a baseball bat tight with your hands and arms, then see how fast you swing it. Then totally “let go” of all the tension and swing it again. What happened? You swing the bat MUCH faster with relaxed muscles.

Let All Tension Go From Your Shoulders

What I became acutely aware of was how tense my deltoids (shoulders) were even before I took the club away. What this caused was my left arm getting off my chest from the getgo, and a disconnection happened. From there I lifted the club with my arms (physical manipulation) to the top of my swing with no coil in my core, and a very steep plane going back.

When you use your arms in the golf swing they MUST be relaxed. You may have heard this before, but I’m here to tell you to really focus on removing all tension, starting with your shoulders. If you have to give them a little shake before you take the club back, do it.

Stay Connected, But Don’t Force It

Secondly, feel some pressure (not tension) in the armpit of your left arm. This is called connection. You are not forcing this, you are merely recognizing it is there. When you start the swing, maintain this, but do NOT create muscular tension in that area to do it. Just feel it as you start the club back.

Now this is where I really had a “ah ha” moment. Instead of getting into positions going back, I LET my body move the club back, and my arms (and the club) naturally reacted to it. And guess what? I was in the PERFECT positions all the way to the top, without any physical manipulation of the arms, elbows or hands. I was absolutely blown away!

Let Your Downswing Happen Naturally

Here’s where it got fun. I have had a tough time in my downswing. My sequence was forced, tense, and all wrong coming into impact. Again, I was trying to get into positions in the downswing, and at 100+ mph that’s nearly impossible. With the tension at a minimum in my arms, I again, just let the downswing happen. I was really compressing the golf ball! Nice divots after the ball, with about 10 yards on all my irons.

This revelation for me at least all came down to RELAXATION! Letting go, and giving the control back to the club, rather than me trying to control it. This was not only a physical “ah ha”, but a mental one for me. It really made me realize how important it is to “just let it go” and trust you know how to swing a golf club.

If you’ve been playing for any amount of time, I assure you, you know how to swing a club. Now just let it happen, and don’t try to manipulate your club at all. Especially with your arms.

Here’s An Easy Way To Get That Natural Relaxed Golf Swing

I’ve been swinging my Orange Whip Golf Swing Tempo Trainer, and really feeling the sense of relaxed muscles, and the feel of this training aid whipping through effortlessly. It’s helping me get a better sense in my mind of how relaxed your arms should be throughout your entire golf swing.