Justin Rose lifting left heel on backswing

[richart]

Lifting the heel encourages a sway which makes your contact more inconsistent.
Therefore pros will never teach it.

Nicklaus, Tom Watson, and Miller lifted their heels and managed not to sway.

I get your point that it could encourage a sway, but it can be done without swaying. I only opened the thread, as I thought it was interesting if you suffered from a bad back.

As I said I only saw end of the Rose piece, so not sure if he just used it in practice, just with his driver, or what.Perhaps someone else saw it at the Open Zone ?

 

[Crow]

I assume no one is taught these days to lift their heel in the swing ?

Can't answer for these days but I've just finished reading Abe Mitchell's "Essentials of Golf", he promotes a raised left heel, as did most of the players of that era.

 

[BubbaP]

Not the OP, but good to see Rose win his last two tournaments.

 

[the_coach]

I assume no one is taught these days to lift their heel in the swing ?

I only opened the thread, as I thought it was interesting if you suffered from a bad back.

- at it's basics you can only rotate the upper body with in a certain range of motion (speaking about most folks who do not/are not able to do all the gym work that many tour pro's/elite golfers tend to - to aid their flexibility) without the hips turning

you can only rotate the hips to a certain range of motion part through the range of the hip flexors - then the hamstrings - calf muscle etc - ankle structure .... it's all linked

through age & a general lack of flexibility because to have a decent shoulder turn (pivot) you have to have to be able to internally rotate into the trail hip - that's what a hip turn really is - then if the hams are tight same with calf muscle same with ankle structure - so often times then the lead heel will to rise up some

so depending on the physicality of folks taking lessons it is often times necessary to allow that lead heel to rise some - but then it should only rise as the last movement in the chain - as a result of the motion that comes before - so it's important that there is no 'independent active' just 'lifting' of the lead heel

to deal with a bad back in a golf motion particularly if that's issues with the lower back it's imperative the hips are allowed to turn (that internal rotation into the trail hip) & to allow all that to happen then the lead heel - it's okay - for that to lift off of the ground but not be 'lifted' more think of it being 'pulled' up - if you can get a sense of that difference

to accommodate this the lead knee will then move both a tad out & a tad back as the lead heel is 'pulled' a tad up

- as long as the pattern of movement of the hips has been that 'internal rotation' into the trial hip with weight pressure downwards into the inside half of the trail foot along with the trail leg being allowed to straighten a tad (but not lock out ramrod straight with all the weight pressure moving to the outside of the trail foot)

plus as long as the upper body has not initially swayed trailside during the start of the takeaway - then as part of the last part of the backswing the lead foot lifting would not initiate a sway - but if it's 'actively lifted' at the start of the swing it can definitely initiate an unwanted lateral sway trailside a ways of the ball that then most folks don't recover from in their downswing to strike so the issues with a bunch of inconsistencies

& yep if for the above reasons it has been 'lifted up' then putting the lead heel back down into the ground should start the transition sequence

 

[SwingsitlikeHogan]

You wanna check Padraigs current footwork.

Caught a moment of PH taking a tee shot this last comp. It may have been my imagination but I thought he actually lifted his left foot just as he started his downswing and actually moved his left foot a little to the left (relative to his stance). But I may have imagined that.