By Seán Hawker
Step 1
Check your posture. Usually you are swaying off the ball because you are off balance to start with. Check to ensure your weight is evenly distributed on both feet at address and is on the balls of your feet. It also helps to feel like your chin is up and back is fairly straight, with enough knee flex to feel balanced.
Step 2
Turn, don’t slide. Assuming your posture is good, make sure you turn your upper and lower body and not slide it off of the ball. Ideally, you have very little lateral motion in the backswing but just enough to get your weight to the inside part of your back leg. If you are swaying off the ball, you have too much lateral motion or you are changing your spine angle at the top of the back swing. A good way to correct this is to feel like you turn in place. You can practice this feeling by hitting balls with your feet together.
Step 3
Keep your head quiet. Your head should feel like it stays in place as you rotate your body around it. A couple of good practice drills are: get the sun directly behind you so you can see your shadow; from there, place a tee where your shadow lies on the ground. The idea is to make swings where you can see the shadow of your head on the tee when you are swinging. The other drill I recommend is to pigeon toe your feet and bring them close together where they are almost touching. Hit balls keeping your feet on the ground while your feet are pigeon toed. This drill will help you isolate your lower body and make it difficult for you to sway.
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Seán Hawker is a bilingual PGA professional available all across the Algarve. He is available for golf tuition for players of all levels, from complete beginners to tour winners.
969 188 981 | hawkersean@gmail.com
