What Is the Downswing of a Golf Swing?

The moment your backswing ends and you start moving the club back toward the ball, you've entered the most powerful part of your swing: the downswing. This isn't just about pulling the club down hard, it's a beautifully sequenced chain reaction that generates speed, power, and consistency. This article will break down that sequence into simple, understandable pieces, giving you actionable advice and drills to transform your downswing from a source of frustration into a source of confident power.

The Critical First Move: Transitioning from Backswing to Downswing

The best golf swings look effortless because great golfers understand that the downswing doesn't start with a violent yank from the arms and shoulders. It begins with a smooth, almost subtle transition that sets the entire chain of events in motion. The goal isn't to create speed right away but to properly sequence your body so that speed arrives at the perfect moment: impact.

It All Starts from the Ground Up

Think about a quarterback throwing a football or a baseball pitcher throwing a fastball. Their power doesn't come from just their arm, it comes from their legs, hips, and core. The golf swing is no different. The very first move as you finish your backswing should be a slight shift of pressure into your lead foot (your left foot for a right-handed golfer).

This isn't a massive lunge, but a graceful transfer of weight. As you get to the top of your swing, feel your lead hip initiate the downswing by making a small move towards the target. This simple action does a few wonderful things:

• It creates an "inside" path: By starting with the lower body, you prevent the common fault of "coming over the top," where the shoulders and arms dominate the swing and lead to slices and pulls. This initial hip shift allows the arms and club to drop naturally into a powerful position behind you.
• It stores power: This lower-body-first sequence creates separation between your hips and your shoulders. This stretch, called lag, is like pulling back a slingshot. The longer you can maintain it, the more speed you can unleash at the bottom of the swing.
• It promotes solid contact: Shifting your weight forward ensures that the low point of your swing will be just in front of the golf ball. This is the secret to making that pure, ball-first contact with your irons that all golfers crave.

The Power Sequence: Unwinding For Consistent Speed

Once the transition is complete, the downswing becomes an unwinding of all the energy you coiled up in the backswing. The key is to let this happen in the right order. Rushing a step or letting one part of the body take over will throw the entire system out of sync. Here is the sequence you should strive for:

Step 1: The Hip Shift and Rotation

As we mentioned, it starts with that initial pressure shift and a slight lateral bump of the lead hip toward the target. Immediately following that bump, your lead hip should start to rotate open, pulling your torso along with it. Your belt buckle, which may have been pointing away from the target at the top of your backswing, should now start to turn back toward the ball and then open towards the target.

Step 2: The Torso and Shoulders Follow

You shouldn't have to consciously think about turning your shoulders. If your hips are rotating correctly, your torso and shoulders will naturally follow. They are connected, after all. At this point, your arms and the club are still largely passive passengers. You are simply clearing your body out of the way to create a massive corridor for your arms to swing through.

Step 3: The Arms Drop into the Slot

This is where many golfers go wrong. They try to actively hit the ball from the top of their swing. Instead, you should feel like your arms are just "dropping" due to gravity as your body begins its rotation. Because your lower body has created space, your right elbow (for a righty) will fall naturally into a position close to your side. This is often called "dropping into the slot," and it's a hallmark of a great swing. It sets you up to attack the ball from the inside, the foundation for powerful and accurate shots.

Step 4: Releasing the Clubhead Through Impact

If you've followed the sequence correctly, you've arrived at the delivery position with incredible stored energy. Now it's time to release it. As your body continues to rotate through, your arms and hands naturally whip the club through the impact area. You aren't trying to flip your hands at the ball, rather, the rotation of your body is pulling your hands through, causing the clubhead to accelerate. This is what it means to lead with the body. The feeling is that the clubhead is the very last thing to arrive at the ball, much like the tip of a whip is the last part to crack.

Common Downswing Mistakes (And How to Fix Them)

Understanding the sequence is one thing, but feeling it is another. Almost all swing faults are a result of this sequence getting out of order. Here are a couple of the most frequent issues and how to work on them.

Fault #1: The "Over the Top" Move

What it is: This is a classic slicer's move. Instead of starting the downswing with the lower body, the golfer's right shoulder and arms dominate, throwing the club out and away from the body. This forces the club to cut across the ball from an outside-to-inside path, resulting in weak slices or sharp pulls.

How to fix it: Try thePump Drill. Get to the top of your swing. From there, initiate three small "pumps" of your lower body, feeling your hips shifting and your arms dropping into the slot. Don't complete the full swing on these pumps. Then, on the fourth feel, go ahead and swing through completely, trying to replicate that initial feeling of the lower body leading the way.

Fault #2: Early Extension (Losing Your Posture)

What it is: This happens when, instead of rotating your hips, you thrust them forward towards the golf ball during the downswing. This forces your entire upper body to stand up, lifting you out of your swing posture. This usually leads to thin shots or tops because the low point of your swing has been raised.

How to fix it: Try theChair Drill. Set up a few inches in front of a chair or your golf bag, so that your backside is just touching it. Practice making slow swings where your goal is to keep your glutes in contact with the chair throughout the downswing. This forces you to rotate your hips correctly rather than thrusting them forward.

Fault #3: Getting "Stuck"

What it is: This feels like your arms are trapped behind your body. It happens when your hips spin open too quickly, leaving your arms no time to catch up. From this trapped position, the only way to get the club to the ball is to flip your hands at it, leading to big hooks or weak pushes to the right.

How to fix it: TheHeadcover Drill works wonders here. Place a headcover under your lead armpit (left arm for a righty). Your goal is to keep it pinned there until after you've made contact with the ball. This encourages your arms and torso to stay connected and turn through together, preventing your hips from outracing everything else.

Final Thoughts

The downswing is where speed is generated, but the real path to power lies in sequence, not sheer muscular effort. By starting the motion from the ground up and letting your body unwind in the proper order, you'll find a more consistent, powerful, and seemingly effortless swing.

Mastering this feel is a personal process, and getting intelligent feedback is part of it. If you're ever looking at a difficult lie and feel uncertain about the right play, or just want a clear answer to a swing question, our Caddie AI offers instant, personalized advice. You can snap a photo of your ball's lie for a smart strategy or ask it anything about your game, 24/7, helping you turn confusion on the course into confident action.