Many golfers have been taught to keep their head down when hitting. But according to great champion Padraig Harrington, the opposite feel could be the key to cleaner contact, more spin and a better short game.
The secret? Learning to use the soil.
If you look closely at the elite players, you will see that most of the novices have not yet mastered it. As the club nears impact, it presses down on its lead foot and moves up through touch.
“We’re not trying to sit down. We’re not trying to bow our heads,” Harrington said. “I actually push myself back with that left foot. It gives a really good strike.”
Subtle movements that are almost impossible to see at full speed, yet play a big role in producing those crisp, spinny chips.
Although they are difficult to see in other golf swings, they are surprisingly easy to learn.
Practice ball contact first by practicing the alignment stick
As Harrington points out, a simple stick straightening drill is a great way to get rid of this feeling. Simply place a stick‚—or other alignment tool—on the ground to mark the center line of your stand. Then, play the ball two or three inches in front of it.
Your goal is simple: hit the ball without touching the stick. If you can’t always miss the stick, you train yourself to go down behind the ball, produce clean contact, and the ball first is all the good chip required.
Once that strike becomes second nature, add in a change in pressure. As your club approaches the ball, press into the ball of your lead foot and let that pressure push you up through impact.
“Get yourself out. You’re on the left. You have to trust that, okay?” Harrington says, “We don’t want any of this support.”
An easy way to check if you are doing it correctly is to look at your lead leg after impact. If your lead knee stays bent, there’s a good chance your weight will shift back during the swing. If your lead leg is straight, you are probably using the ground correctly.
“If your knees bend … that’s because your center of gravity is back and that’s opposing forward motion,” Harrington says.
“And, if you leave them, you’ll just send them like that.”
Perhaps the biggest advantage is that this feeling doesn’t stop in your short game. The same changes in pressure and downward force that Harrington teaches sprinting are an important part of a full athletic run. Get good at getting around the greens first, and not only will you be hitting shiny chips with more swings, but you’ll also build a movement pattern that runs through your entire game.
