What’s a good drill to avoid “coming out” of your swing, or standing up during impact? Especially when swinging hard.

13 Professionals Contributed |
We all want to crush the golf ball and hit it farther. However, there's often a tradeoff: if you swing hard, you probably won't hit the golf ball as good as you normally do. So how can you still hit the golf ball well while swinging out of your shoes? Our golf professionals weigh in...

Keep Your Head Still

Keeping your head still is the key to centered impact! Your shot on the sweet spot is certain to yield greater distance and more accuracy. Watching the back of the ball throughout the length of your swing, especially at impact, is the drill! Be athletic. Turn and shift your weight as you swing. And when you swing down to the ball, it is OK to use ground forces to launch your body upwards at impact! Just don’t move your head!

The Country Club of Virginia
"Keep Your Head Still" Click to Tweet

Early extension? Load properly!

It’s a very common issue to see someone explode toward the ball with their hips, often in an effort to get more distance. However, pushing off the ground is an integral part of maximizing your power! What’s the trick? The proper loading of weight and the corresponding push off the ground is the secret: When you make the transition into the downswing, make sure the lead shoulder doesn’t pop immediately up. Additionally, keeping a feeling of the shoulders staying a bit closed while the arms swing down a bit is another piece of the puzzle. Once you nail this part of the swing, go ahead and push off the ground all you like! You’ll be in position to do it properly. Reach out to me on Skillest for more information.

Golf Development Complex
"Early extension? Load properly!" Click to Tweet

Really want to improve your golf game? Get incredible swing tips delivered to your inbox every week.

Raise up (Early Extention)

Early Extension where the back KNEE and Belt Line move toward the ball. 2 things that we can do!!!!

One place a golf club across your chest with the club head outside your back shoulder. From your address position you should FEEL that you are tilting down toward the ball but correcting your leg/foot work to.

2nd stand an inch off the Wall, swing back with your Hands together as you do your back BUTT cheek should touch the wall. As transition forward you Hips will come off for a second but then your Right cheek as you get to Impact position.

Fox Hollow Golf Club
"Raise up (Early Extention)" Click to Tweet

Stand tall at the address position.....

One issue with this problem is bad posture at the address position…Standing over the ball like at senior citizen…Stand tall with an athletic posture…This will keep you centered a bit better throughout the swing…

"Stand tall at the address position....." Click to Tweet

Stay in Your Swing

Coming out of your swing also referred to as early extension is generally caused by more of a physical reason rather than a mechanical reason. Meaning something in your body is too tight and you can’t hold your posture. In my case my upper back and shoulders are very tight. The best thing to try and avoid this is shorten your back swing, work on getting your hands wider instead of higher on your back swing. Deep overhead squats and goblet squats are good exercises as well.

Big Sticks Golf
"Stay in Your Swing" @bigsticksgolf Click to Tweet

It’s impossible to come out of your swing and hit a thin shot if you take a divot.

Get in your golf posture and have your butt next to a wall. Make swings without a club and your butt has to stay connected to the wall.

Whispering Pines Golf Club
"It’s impossible to come out of your swing and hit a thin shot if you take a divot." Click to Tweet

It’s not about keeping your head down!

We hear constantly from our friends & golf buddies to “ keep your head down” when coming up out of the shot… it’s really is “stay in your posture” … maintain your tilt of your chest over the ball until your arms help bring you up.
Too often people stay down too long when being focused on your head only… you’d head should stay back, not just down!

Links O'Tryon
"It’s not about keeping your head down!" Click to Tweet

Proper unload

Practice starting the forward swing by shifting “weight” or “pressure” from the rear foot to the forward foot while keeping the front hip basically “closed”. The “step” drill basically promotes this move. Club is halfway down and the hips have squared with knees flexed. No hyperextension or “standing up”.

"Proper unload" Click to Tweet

Weight Shift to Maintain Posture

For me the main cause of coming out of your spine angle at impact is improper weight shift toward the target through impact. Any flat footed swing with no finish would give the player the coming out of it feel. By loading and then shifting your weight toward the target to finish should help this problem. A couple of great drills would be hitting balls off a slight downhill lie on the target side of the shot or the Gary Player drill of actually stepping over and walking toward the target after the strike. Very important to maintain posture and I think these drills will help! Good luck and strike that finish pose!!

"Weight Shift to Maintain Posture" Click to Tweet

Coming up out of posture may be a necessity to hit good shots

If you struggle raising up out of posture from time to time, it might be because your swing calls for it. If someone has a steep downswing, it may be a necessity to raise up to avoid hitting overly fat shots. To see if you qualify, check your transition and swing plane.
If you are steep, try flattening out your transition so you can increase tilt and feel your rear and pressure go back toward the heels.

"Coming up out of posture may be a necessity to hit good shots" Click to Tweet

Stand tall and close

A good drill for EARLY EXTENSION or Loss of posture , is practice making smooth easy swings 50-75% perceived effort standing a smidge closer and a smidge taller than normal. Then on the downswing feel your pelvis getting farther away from the ball while rotating your chest into the ball keeping your chest down ! At impact the address forward bend should be replaced with right side bend !

"Stand tall and close" Click to Tweet

Cover the ball

Feel as if your chest is covering the ball as you focus on watching impact

Precision Golf Academy
"Cover the ball" Click to Tweet

Steady head , Steady golf

I can’t think of any key that is more important when it comes to solid ball striking!

Keeping the head reasonably steady and your eyes keenly focused on the ball, is the bottom line if you want to hit solid golf shots!

Every golfer knows this,yet most golfers neglect this huge key to solid play. Tour players do not!!!

When I interview PGA Tour Players, LPGA Tour Players, and PGA Champion’s Tour players, I always ask what are your three most important physical swing keys, EVERY one includes keeping the head still and ” keeping the head “behind the ball” as the most important thought when it comes time to pull the trigger, and execute a solid, in control, consistent golf shot! ANY club, ANY situation.

Those who don’t play well are generally focused and consumed with things that don’t really matter. Their mind is wandering around looking at the backswing,and worried about their swing look,s etc…. I don’t care! Learn to keep your % $#*&*@ ing !!!!! head down and trust your swing, bottom line! Master this key and then take care of all of the fashion and appearance stuff later! Try these simple drills, and get busy playing better golf! Start by taking ten full swings without stopping, while focused on a tee or blade ao grass. Look at your eyes or head while you swing in a sliding glass door or mirror, and insist on keeping your head still.Try Jack Nicklaus’s head- tilt to stay down better. Explore and focus on this all-important Key , and you WILL become a more confident ball striker

Olde School Golf School
"Steady head , Steady golf" Click to Tweet

TLDR: A quick summary of what our Backswing professionals have to say on the topic “What’s a Good Drill to Avoid Coming Out of Your Swing or Standing Up During Impact, Especially When Swinging Hard?”:

  1. “Try the ‘Impact Bag Drill’ to develop a proper impact position by focusing on striking the bag with a downward motion while maintaining your spine angle.”
  2. “Practice the ‘Towel Drill’ by placing a towel under your armpits and swinging, ensuring that the towel remains securely in place throughout the swing, promoting a connected and stable motion.”
  3. “Utilize the ‘Chair Drill’ by placing a chair behind you and making swings without touching or knocking over the chair, encouraging a more balanced and controlled swing.”
  4. “Experiment with the ‘Head Cover Drill’ by placing a head cover under your trailing armpit and swinging, ensuring that the head cover stays in place, promoting proper extension and body rotation.”

Incorporating these drills into your practice routine can help you maintain a consistent and effective swing, preventing the tendency to come out of the swing or stand up during impact. By focusing on the correct impact position, connection, balance, and body rotation, you can improve your swing mechanics and achieve more powerful and accurate shots.

The Professionals in this Roundup

The Backswing Fix

Delivered to Your Inbox

Get swing tips delivered to your inbox every week.