When you want to get full distance from your golf shots, you need to be able to swing through the ball with power. The swing should feel free and unobstructed.
However, there are times when players feel as though they are getting stuck on the downswing. This feeling is frustrating. It makes you lose power, and sometimes it will even increase dispersion rates in your golf shots.
If you are getting stuck in your golf swing, try these four steps to start swinging freely again.
What Does Getting Stuck in Your Golf Swing Mean?
Getting stuck in your golf swing is a common swing flaw in which you feel as though the club can’t get through the ball. It feels almost as if on the way down, there is nowhere for the club to go, and your arm does not fall into place the way it should.
You may hear golfers talking about dropping the golf ball into the slot on the downswing. This is something that helps to get the downswing on track.
Getting stuck may be something you feel when taking practice swings or when hitting full length shots. The results of getting stuck could end up with shanks, chunks, blocked shots, and more. It’s best to get rid of this issue as soon as possible.
3 Common Reasons You Could Be Getting Stuck in Your Golf Swing
There are 3 common reasons you could be getting stuck in your golf swing. They include standing too close to the ball, poor transfer of weight, and a swing plane that is too upright.
Standing Too Close
Standing too close to the ball is a very common reason for feeling stuck in your golf swing. When you are close to the ball, there is nowhere for your club to go, and you may struggle to release the club.
Many golfers make the mistake of standing too far from their golf shots but standing too close can be just as much of a problem for some.
Remember that as a golf club gets longer, there are times that you will have to stand further from the ball. If you are standing the same distance from the golf ball with your pitching wedge as your driver, that is a problem.
Always adjust based on the length of the club you have in your hand and find a spot that is more comfortable.
Poor Weight Transfer
One of the causes that I have seen the most often in golfers getting stuck in their golf swing is they don’t correctly transfer their weight. If the weight does not make its way back onto the right leg, it will have a hard time getting to the left leg as you go through impact.
The result is a player feeling as though they are loaded up on their right side with nowhere to go. Players struggle to get that push forward, and then the club and the weight feel as though they are lagging behind.
Ask yourself where you should be when you finish a swing. The answer is finished with your weight forward on the left side. However, most golfers are leaning backward, barely trying to maintain balance.
Too Upright of a Swing Plane
Another common cause and something that you don’t see too many pro golfers doing is an upright golf swing that creates an issue with the club being stuck behind. When the club is more upright, sometimes there is no room for a golfer’s elbow to fit in to release the club.
These feelings of getting stuck typically release in a slice-type golf shot.
4 Tips to Help You Stop Getting Stuck in Your Swing
Now that we have identified why you get stuck in your golf swing let’s look at a few of the ways you can ensure that you stop getting stuck. The good news is that these tips can make this process considerably easier than you might think, and you shouldn’t have a hard time getting it done.
Stand Further from The Ball
The first way to ensure that you are not getting stuck in your swing is to make sure you have enough room for your arms to swing. Sometimes you get stuck simply because there is a lack of space to swing through the golf ball.
Of course, there is a fine line between standing too far from the ball and standing too close. Try to make sure your arms are hanging freely down your sides. Don’t feel as though your hands are too close to your thigh, and don’t reach out to extend your arms too far.
Standing further from the ball means that you will be able to cast the club out just a bit more too. If you have had a hard time with the swing inside out, this can certainly help.
If you start to lose balance and feel as though you have to bend over to reach the golf ball, chances are you are standing much too far from the golf ball, and you need to move up.
Start The Swing With a Weight Transfer
So many of golfers’ swing flaws are because of how they start their golf swing. If your swing does not get started the right way, it’s very hard to recover and start swinging correctly. Therefore you must ensure that you start your back with a weight transfer back to the right foot.
This is not difficult to accomplish if you take a low and slow takeaway. The club moving back low and slowly helps the weight transfer onto the right foot, making it considerably easier to get the weight onto the left side.
When you swing properly with the correct position of the weight to start, you have a much lower chance of getting stuck on the right side (for right-handed golfers).
One of my favorite drills to help focus on weight transfer and ensure that it is more efficient is to swing with my legs completely together. Standing with the legs together teaches you how to get more balanced and simplified in your swing; in the end, this will translate into the regular swing when you are ready.
Shallow Things Out a Bit
A shallow golf swing can undoubtedly lead to some issues.
However, for the most part, shallow golf swings are really good for a draw style ball flight and a much easier time getting distance. In addition, when you swing more shallow, you help to get that space in your downswing for the club to fit.
One of the best ways to determine if your golf swing is too shallow is to take a video of the swing with a camera. When you take a video, ensure it is a down the line view. Ensure your alignment is correct and your spin angle is good.
Once these are in place, take a look at the actual swing plane.
The swing plane that is too upright could cause you to get stuck. The shallower swing plane involves a more rounded move around your body. Play around with this to see how it impacts your ball flight and whether or not you have done too much, and it causes you to start hooking the ball.
Don’t Close The Stance Down
Another great tip to ensure that you will not get stuck in your golf swing is to open up your stance and setup a little bit. So many players make the mistake of closing things down. Their shoulders, hips, and even their feet will be closed off to the target.
When this happens, players will notice that the club can swing back just fine, but once it is back there, the room to swing through is significantly impacted.
The best way to do this is to start by opening up your lower body a bit. Take your feet and your hips, and just turn them slightly left of the target.
Remember that a slight move to the left is all it will take in golf. There is no need to exaggerate this movement; it won’t help you!
If you find this creates some space in the swing for you to swing down the target line, you may want to check your shoulder position as well to ensure that it is properly aligned. Take some practice swings with this more open stance first and see if it is easier to get the club face angle you are looking for.
Brittany Olizarowicz
Britt O has been playing golf since the age of 7. Almost 30 years later, she still loves the game, has played competitively on every level, and spent a good portion of her life as a Class A PGA Professional. Britt currently resides in Savannah, GA, with her husband and two young children.