
Keep your shoulder line perpendicular to the spine angel throughout the swing.Next, rotate your shoulders from an upright position so the club stays horizontal on the backswing and follow through.It should be across the back of your neck. Stand up straight and take a club or alignment rod and put it over your shoulders.Follow the steps below to feel the right shoulder motion in your swing. Tom Watson, a legend of the game provided a simple drill in a 2008 Golf Digest article. Click here to learn more about uneven lies in golf. Keep your normal shoulder tilt with side hill lies where the ball is above or below your feel. You’ll also need to change the ball position slightly further back in your stance too. With downhill lies, you actually want to drop your front shoulder down so you swing with the slope. Plus, don’t forget to change your ball position slightly further up in your stance as well. This will ensure you swing with the slope and don’t bottom out at the wrong part of the swing. Whether you’re in the fairway, rough, or bunker, your shoulders need to match the slope.įor example, if you’re hitting from an uphill lie you need to drop your right shoulder down further to match the slope. Since golf isn’t played on flat surfaces all the time, your shoulders do need to adjust at times. See our article on the Reverse K setup position. On the driving range try out different amounts of tilt to see what feels comfortable and what produces the best results. When setting up to the golf ball with your driver, you want a lot more shoulder tilt level shoulders are the enemy with your driver. Since the ball is teed up you want to hit up on it to increase launch angle and total distance. With drivers, you want an ascending angle, not a descending blow like you do with irons. Shoulder Tilt With WoodsĪs you know, there’s a big difference between hitting an iron off the deck vs. The only time you want to adjust your shoulders this way is if you have a downhill slope (more on that upcoming).

This will cause your axis to get off-line and move the bottom of your swing arc. The worst thing you can do is lift your back shoulder above your front. Instead, it’s something to assess while you’re on the driving range and/or recording your swing on video. Shoulder tilt isn’t something you necessarily want to think about while you swing. In general, more tilt is better as most golfers don’t have enough and tend to rotate on the incorrect axis. This means for right-handed golfers the left shoulder is slightly higher than the right shoulder.Īs you swing the club, your tilt will change and increase (Dustin Johnson gets up to 45 degrees). According to the same article the average PGA Tour player has their shoulders at 28 degrees when the club is parallel to the ground. People just don’t play golf that way.”Īt address position, you want a small amount of tilt when hitting irons but not too much.

I have never tested a low-handicap golfer who has had their shoulders tilted level or ever so slightly to the right. “If I start with my shoulders level to the ground and continue to level them out, it’s really hard for me to get my hands inward enough, which is the start of me swinging the golf club from in to out,” This article summed up the importance of shoulder tilt in the swing.

Because with either shot it’s essential to hit the ball, then the turf with a descending blow. Let’s start by learning more about shoulder tilt when hitting irons – both off the deck or on a tee. The amount of tilt in your shoulders changes based on the lie, club, and other factors.Your shoulder tilt has a direct impact on ball striking when hitting off the fairway.
STACK AND TILT GOLF SWING BASICS DRIVER
More shoulder tilt is needed when hitting the driver since it’s teed up.Shoulder Tilt in Golf Swing Key Takeaways Today, we’ll simplify the shoulders in the swing and help you improve your golf swing. But the amount of tilt isn’t the same for every swing, every lie, and every club which is why golfers can get confused. If your shoulder tilt (or lack thereof) isn’t correct at setup, it’s going to cause a ton of ball striking issues. One part that doesn’t get talked about enough is shoulder tilt in the golf swing. Golf has a lot of moving parts – legs, upper body, wrists, and even head position all play a pivotal role in making solid contact.
