Should the golf swing be led by the shoulders or the lower body?

My golf instructor has taught me to lead the swing with the shoulders, but I have heard other golf pros saying that the swing should be led by the lower body and the shoulders should follow. Which is correct? To me, it feels more natural to lead with the twisting of the lower body.|||I think that there is really two actions that initiate the golf swing. They are the 'pulling' down by the upper body/shoulders and the start of the rotation of the hips. In order for a golfer to hit the ball nearly facing the target line, the hips have to be cleared. This _requires_ that the hips move ahead of (or at minimum) faster than the shoulders. Since the latter is almost impossible to pull off, the former is the solution. The hips lead the body rotation.





Personally, If I lead with my upper body, nasty, nasty stuff happens... If I lead with the hips and pull the club down into the slot, beauty can be achieved. As a previous tennis and baseball player... The actions are almost identical to golf and in those sports the hips also lead first. As mentioned before this increases the torque release (spring) in the rotation, and builds the lag needed for the release to 'catch' up with the rest of the inertia developed in the swing.





Wow, that got technical in a hurry.|||The downswing is initiated with the lower body.The arms and club just follow through.


The earlier the weight transfer back to finish,the more distance you will have.


it's physics....I recommend watching a Ben Hogan video on youtube....

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|||Jono..Golf is an action and reaction game which means simply that you intentionally perform an action that will produce the desired reaction. In golf you perform certain movements in sequence during the back swing to produce the desired sequence during the downswing. The last thing that moves during the back swing would be the left heel whether it comes off the ground or not. The planting of the left heel begins the downswing as a reaction and the rest of the lower body simply follows suit in the sequence that you were forced to follow. Having said that it is quite possible to feel that you can control the swing with an unwinding of the shoulders in a way of covering the ball but you can't really make a move without starting from the bottom up. Your instructor is not leading you astray but sometimes a little more information can be a good thing.|||well i was always taught to lead with your shoulder but i started working at a country club and met some players on tour like the nationwide or korean or Japanese and after talking to them and playing a couple rounds with them they some time gave me a lesson or two and they have always told me to led with my hips. because when leading with your shoulder you can over extend you body and cause yourself to slice the ball but by leading with your hips it causes you coil your body and generate all the energy you have and if you time it right and go into your downswing and follow with your hips and have everything connecting as one you will see your ball striking and swing plain all on target. but it takes alot of practice and patience.|||Well it depends in full swings it should be lead with thhe lower body, but when there are approach shots it should be more of an upper body swing that is why you should open your stance, because when you open your stance it is like haveing your lower body cleared out of the way|||You would be correct. If you watch any golfer on tour, they lead with their lower body. Reason? Because power is stored from torque, generated from a large shoulder turn and a limited hip turn. Then at the top of the swing, your hips must turn and lead the way to clear out for the upper body.|||I believe the back swing is based upon the upper part of your body turning in unison, with the upper body leading the legs with the right leg in a state of tension. The downswing is led by the lower half of the body leading the upper half.|||Both the upper body and lower body have to work in unison for the golf swing to be useful. Planting the lead foot is the start of the whole process for the down swing. If you prefer to swing flat footed the upper and lower body still have to swing as one.|||i've taught golf for 11years now . i can hear myself repeatively telling my students that the golf swing is an upper body rotation. the legs are there for your stability and balance. consider your shoulders to be the engine of the golf swing.





Rachael Petralito


allyourgolfneeds.com|||The downswing works from the ground up. Look at a good swing in super slow mo. The lower body goes first, hips, shoulders, arms, hands, clubhead. Period. Read Hogans 5 fundamentals. Its a great book and explains this better than any book.|||both the upper and lower body should work together but with the lower body leading the transition. this brings the club through on plane whereas when you start with the shoulders you have a greater chance of coming over the top.|||You should always lead with your upper body as leading with your lower body can cause you to lunge into the ball and this will cause inconsistent ball striking|||The correct golf swing should lead with the upper body but the lower body should follow almost instantly. The golf swing is all about timing.|||Start with upper body rotation with the shoulders as the catalyst|||ur lower body should lead the swing which will automatically pull ur shoulders and upper body