How to Keep the Right Arm Tucked in a Golf Swing

Struggling to stop your right elbow from flying out during your backswing is one of the most common and stubborn frustrations in golf. That chicken wing movement not only feels weak but it actively kills your power and is a primary cause of that dreaded over-the-top slice. This guide will walk you through exactly why a connected right arm is so essential and provide simple, effective drills to train the correct feeling, helping you build a more powerful and predictable golf swing.

Why a Tucked Right Arm Changes Everything

Before we learn how to fix it, let’s quickly understand why this is so important. When your right arm and elbow stay connected to your body's rotation during the backswing, it sets you up for success. When it flies away, it's a huge power leak and a recipe for inconsistency.

Benefits of a Connected Right Arm:

• Effortless Power: A tucked right arm allows you to properly load into your right side and store energy. As you unwind in the downswing, this arm structure helps you deliver that stored power directly into the back of the golf ball, creating what coaches call "lag." A flying elbow, on the other hand, wastes that energy by casting the club from the top.
• The Proper Swing Path: When your right elbow points down towards the ground at the top of your swing, it's in the perfect position to drop onto a shallow, inside path in the downswing. This is the secret to hitting powerful draws and solid, straight shots. a flying elbow almost guarantees an over-the-top move, where the club comes down steeply and across the ball, causing weak slices and pulls.
• Superior Consistency: A connected swing that uses the big muscles of the body for power is far more repeatable than one that relies on timing-intensive arm and hand manipulations. By keeping your arm structure sound, you remove a major variable, making it easier to hit the sweet spot more often.

Understanding the Correct Position (and Feeling)

One of the biggest misconceptions is that you need to actively "pin" your right arm against your side. This isn't true and often leads to a restrictive, flat backswing with no power. The goal isn’t to force your arm down, it’s to allow it to fold naturally in sync with your body’s turn.

The One-Piece Takeaway is the Start

Most flying elbows are born in the first two feet of the backswing. If you start the swing by lifting the club with just your hands and arms, your elbow is already detaching. Instead, the takeaway should be a "one-piece" movement. This means your shoulders, chest, arms, and club all start moving away from the ball together. You're using your torso rotation to move the club, not just your arms.

As you rotate away from the ball, your right arm should stay relatively straight for the first few feet. It's the continued turning of your shoulders that will naturally bring the arm across your chest.

Feeling the "Waiter's Tray" at the Top

A fantastic mental image for the correct top-of-backswing position is the "waiter's tray." Imagine you are a waiter carrying a tray of drinks on your right hand. To keep the drinks from spilling, your palm would be facing the sky, and your elbow would be pointing down towards the ground, tucked underneath to support the tray.

This is the structure you want in your golf swing. At the top:

• Your right wrist is hinged back.
• Your palm is facing skyward (or at a similar angle).
• Crucially, your right elbow is pointing down towards the ground, not out towards the horizon.

This position doesn't mean your elbow is glued to your ribs. There will and should be space. However, the elbow itself maintains its "downward" orientation, keeping the arm’s structure intact and ready to deliver power from the inside.

Drills to Master the Tucked Right Arm

Knowing what to do is one thing, feeling it is another. These drills are designed to take the concept and turn it into a repeatable physical sensation. Start slowly and without a ball, just grooving the motion.

Drill 1: The Headcover Under the Armpit

This is a classic for a reason - it works. It provides instant feedback on connection.

1. Setup: Take a golf headcover (a towel or even a glove works too) and place it in your right armpit. Apply just enough gentle pressure to hold it in place.
2. Execution: Make slow, half-to-three-quarter backswings. Your goal is to keep the headcover in place as you rotate back. You need to use your body to turn, because if you lift your arms independently, the headcover will immediately fall.
3. The Feeling: This drill forces your right arm and torso to move in unison. You'll feel how the bicep and pectoral muscle stay connected. Importantly, as you transition into your downswing, it's perfectly fine - and even desirable - for the headcover to drop. This shows your arm is now extending and releasing a stored powery to the ball.

Drill 2: Right-Hand-Only Swings

This drill helps you feel how the right arm should naturally fold and load without the left arm pulling it out of position.

1. Setup: Grip a mid-iron with only your right hand, supporting your right elbow with your left hand for stability if you need it at first.
2. Execution: Make very slow and short backswings. Feel how the club's weight naturally hinges your wrist. As you rotate your shoulders, feel the right elbow fold and drop downward into a position of support, just like a quarterback preparing to throw a football.
3. The Feeling: You'll quickly notice that to support the club's weight at the top, you have to keep your elbow underneath it. You can't let it fly out or you'll lose control of the club completely. This is the supportive, powerful structure you're aiming for.

Drill 3: The Split-Hands Drill

This drill is exceptional for golfers whose right arm tends to take over and dominate the swing too early.

1. Setup: Grip your club normally with your left hand. Slide your right hand down the shaft about 4-6 inches, leaving a significant gap between your hands.
2. Execution: Take slow, smooth practice swings. With your hands separated, your right hand and arm cannot overpower the takeaway. a is going to promote the desired one-piece takeaway motion, forcing both arms and your body to work together as a single unit a during your entire backswing.
3. The Feeling: It will immediately highlight how a connected turn feels different from an "all-arms" lift. You’ll feel stability and a width in your swing that a flying elbow destroys.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

As you work on this, watch out for these common tendencies that can send you down the wrong path.

• Forcing it, Not Feeling it: Remembere, the goal isn't activelyjamming your elbow into your side. If you try to over-tuck, your swing will become too flat and you'll struggle to get the club back to the ball. Focus on a controlled body rotation allowing your arm to fold naturally.
• A Narrow Backswing: While we want the elbow tucked, we still need width in the backswing. 'Width' means creating space by extending your left arm away from your chest. Don't feel like you must shrink your entire swing. Get length with your left arm while maintaining structure with your right arm.
• Losing Connection on the Way Down: Correctly tucking your arm in the backswing is only half the battle. On the downswing, you must maintain that structure and let the arm drop into "the slot." If you immediately throw your right shoulder out towards the ball from the top, the elbow will get pushed out and you'll be right back to an over-the-top path.

Final Thoughts

Fixing a flying right elbow is not an overnight cure, but it is one of the most rewarding changes you can make to your golf swing. Focus on syncing your arm movement with your body's turn - don't think of it as pinning your arm down, but rather as your right arm folding into a supportive structure as a result of a good body rotation.

Mastering a new swing feel requires practice and clear feedback, and it isn't always easy to know if you're doing a drill correctly on your own. For those moments when you need a quick, reliable answer to understand a swing concept or to figure out the right shot on the course, we built Caddie AI. It's like having a 24/7 golf coach in your pocket, ready to diagnose a problem, explain a feeling in simple terms, or give you the confidence to execute a shot, removing the guesswork so you can play better golf.