Posture and How Far to Stand from the Ball

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By Ben Blalock

  • 13 Likes
  • 11 Replies
  1. Hi Everyone,

    Happy July 4th week!

    Thanks to all of you who are watching what I've been releasing lately and interacting. I hope things are working well and you're seeing some improvement.

    Have you ever spent time on the practice tee struggling to get your posture correct? How about wondering how far away you should stand from the ball? In my view, these two challenges of the proper set up are very closely "connected" to each other. In this video, you'll get a sense of how to "kill 2 birds with 1 stone".

    By nailing down the set up, which includes all of the information I've shared thus far, you greatly enhance your chances of striking the ball consistently in the center of the face of the golf club.

    Thanks again and play your best!

    -BB

  2. Team Titleist Staff
    Ben, thanks for the tip. Do you give any thought to how much to flare your feet at address?

    Best,

    Rick
  3. Hey Rick,

    Thanks for the question!

    In my view, foot flare is directly correlated to lower body rotational movement. Generally speaking, if a player’s lower body turn reaches its end range of motion in the DOWNSWING prior to impact, it’s a good idea to flare the lead toe. The earlier the hips stop rotating, the more flare I would usually recommend.

    The same goes for the backswing... if the lower body doesn’t turn very far - meaning the player’s hands fail to reach the height of the trail shoulder *** without bending the lead arm *** - then I’d go ahead and open up the back foot as well.

    I hope this helps out, thanks again!!!

    -Ben
  4. John P

    John P
    NJ

    Great simple video. Sometimes just doing the basic fundamentals can help tremendously. Thanks!
  5. Don O

    Don O
    Madison, WI

    DOH! So much more simple than my awkward attempts at being comfortable for full swings of short irons. Thank you!
  6. Eric H

    Eric H
    Ridgway, PA

    Set up videos and tips, underrated!! Set up is something we can all control!
  7. Dr. Kovatchian

    Dr. Kovatchian
    Carlsbad

    Any advice for players that are fitted into 45.5" driver shafts that are on the shorter side of 5'10"?
    What posture adjustments thru the bag need to be made to improve a consistent strike?
    Recently went back to a 44.5" driver which improved my smash factor...more distance and more fairways.

    Cheers,
    Dr. K
  8. Hi Dr. K-

    I think you bring up a good point here with your question...

    The word "standard" has always concerned me, but I understand that every manufacturer has to have a baseline, so I take it with a grain of salt.

    That being said, I generally work with my players on shaft length using a TrackMan to keep an eye on the Data Point referred to as: "Swing Plane". This is a measure of how the shaft angle relates to the ground at the moment the ball separates from the club face.

    Generally speaking, all things being equal, longer shafts tend to produce "Swing Plane" numbers that are closer to zero than shorter shafts. In my experience, golfers do better when they can keep the "Swing Plane" number as measured with the driver, from becoming drastically different than it might be with a hybrid club with which that player has a reasonable amount of success. So, shorten the shaft and enjoy the improvement!

    As to your question about posture, I worry when a club causes a player's posture to change dramatically. Unless I deem that it needs to of course! But I'd have to see the golfer in person to really know for sure. That being said, I think that a shaft that's potentially "too long" will require you to stand up taller and get further away from the ball. This will cause that "Swing Plane" to flatten though and usually adds up to a less than ideal fit.

    Hope that helps,

    -Ben
  9. Never approach it like this but seems a really decent way to go about with minimal fuss.
  10. joe t

    joe t
    roseville, MI

    Great video, as I have been working on getting a full shoulder turn.
    Hopefully it helps be to make better contact with the sweet spot of the clubface.
  11. This seems to be a good way to get into position, I'm certainly guilty of raising my arms at address. Would you apply the same procedure to setting up with the driver?
  12. GStuart

    GStuart
    Blackfoot, ID

    Military
    Fantastic video Ben, thank you for clarifying. I've struggled so much with set up lately, never really know how far to stand away from the ball.

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