The winner of 54 Tour events, Byron Nelson’s golf swing featured a unique slide through impact that has been described as helping him to lengthen the flat spot, or control the low point, of his golf swing. In fact, in a 2003 interview with Golf Digest, Nelson said he tried to keep the club moving as low as possible by dipping his knees after impact to achieve that lengthened flat spot. While it worked wonders for Mr. Nelson, at GolfTEC we find the average amateur struggles achieving solid contact consistently when they slide or dip their lead leg significantly during the downswing.
Sliding your lead knee through impact can take away a significant amount of clubhead speed and make it difficult to hit solid shots. What is typically lost with a slide is the ability to strike the ball consistently and hit shots with a repeatable low point. Perhaps you find yourself wondering why some divots are significantly behind the ball while others are far in front of the ball if there is a divot at all. One possible cause for this inconsistency may be a slide through impact.
If you struggle with sliding towards the target in your downswing, the No Slide Drill can help. Designed to get your lead knee, or the knee closest to the target, to extend rather than slide forward will help you create more clubhead speed and achieve the consistent contact you need to hit better shots and lower your score. See the drill in action below:
If you struggle with inconsistent contact and think sliding through impact is contributing, talk to a local GolfTEC Coach today.
I’ve been taught to bump or slide (modestly) with the left hip (I’m a righty). I couldn’t see from your video how you “extend your knee.” And what does your lead hip do?
Good question David. This drill is really focusing on ensuring you don’t dip your lead knee, or let it collapse during your swing. Here’s a video from a motion measurement study we did with Golf.com talking about hip sway and hip movement during the golf swing: http://trib.al/mTF0bRK.
Andy, this instruction appears to be in contradiction to a video “Use your hips for better contact” posted by Andrew Mart on 7/27/15. Could you explain how these two videos work together? Thank you.