The moment your club reaches the top of the backswing and changes direction is the single most important part of your golf swing. Get this transition right, and you'll unleash a powerful, effortless sequence that delivers the club squarely to the ball. Get it wrong, and you’re setting yourself up for inconsistency and weak shots. This guide will break down exactly how to start your downswing with a simple, repeatable motion that puts your body - your true engine - in charge.
From the top of the swing, the overwhelming urge for most golfers is to hit the ball. This instinct makes sense, but it’s a trap. It causes you to immediately throw your hands and arms at the ball from the top. Your shoulders spin out, the club gets steep and comes "over the top," and all the power you stored up in your backswing is gone before the club even gets halfway down. This is a move driven by the arms, and it’s a recipe for slices, pulls, and thin shots.
Think about a baseball pitcher. Do they start their throw by shoving their hand forward? No. They plant their front foot, drive their hips, rotate their torso, and their arm just comes along for the ride, accelerating like the end of a whip. The golf swing is no different. Your arms are not the power source, they are the delivery system. The power comes from the ground up, starting with your lower body.
This misguided "hit" impulse is often what separates high-handicappers from skilled players. Tour pros look smooth and effortless because they are masters of sequencing. They don’t rush the downswing from the top, they let it unfold in the correct order. Let’s learn how they do it.
The correct start to the downswing has little to do with your hands and arms. It's a chain reaction that begins with your lower body re-connecting with the ground and starting its rotation towards the target. This creates a powerful lag, shallowing the club and putting it on the perfect path to attack the ball from the inside.
We can break this down into one foundational move that kicks off the entire sequence.
Before your shoulders unwind or your arms drop, the very first move to begin the downswing is a subtle shift of your lower body towards the target. Imagine you've finished your backswing, and your body is a coiled spring. To uncoil it, you don't release the top first. You start by shifting pressure back into your lead foot (the left foot for a right-hander).
A great mental image is to feel like you’re trying to press a button on the ground with the inside of your lead heel. This minor pressure shift initiates the entire kinetic chain without you even having to think about your hands.
Once you’ve made that subtle forward shift, the next move is to rotate. With your weight starting to transfer to your lead side, your hips are now free to turn aggressively toward the target. Your lead hip should feel like it's clearing out of the way, moving back and around as your belt buckle turns to face the target.
The entire start of the downswing is about letting your lower body lead the dance. Shift, then turn. Everything else will follow in a powerful, natural sequence.
Knowing the theory is one thing, but feeling it is another. These drills are designed to help you internalize the feeling of a lower-body-led downswing and overcome the instinct to hit with your arms.
This is one of the best drills for learning the proper sequence. It trains your body to start down without fully committing to a swing.
This exaggerated drill forces you to use your lower body correctly. It's impossible to do this one with an "arms-only" swing.
One common fault is to slide the hips towards the target instead of rotating them. A lateral slide prevents true power and can cause blocks and hooks. This drill helps promote pure rotation.
Mastering the start of your downswing changes everything. It's the difference between a jerky, arms-driven slash at the ball and a smooth, powerful rotation that feels effortless. The key is to trust the sequence: begin with a subtle shift of pressure to your lead side, then let your core and hips rotate to pull the arms and club through a powerful impact.
Building a new feel takes repetition, and getting the right kind of targeted feedback can make a world of difference. When you’re at the range working on these drills, I know our tool Caddie AI can help solidify your progress. You can ask for clarification on a drill you're struggling with or get an analysis of a swing video. If you're on the course and feeling lost, you can even snap a photo of a tricky lie, and Caddie AI will provide a simple strategy. The goal is to remove the guesswork on and off the course, so you can focus on building a swing you can finally trust.
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