Long or short backswing?

[jack1]

Up at the range last night i was doing my usual 7 iron stuff with my longish backswing and getting the usual results, (mixed disspersion), so i tied shortening the backswing. I lost say 10 yards in distance but probably improved accuracy by 50%. What,t the problem then? It just felt less satisfying, which I know sounds stupid, but it did. Anyone felt this?

 

[Doh]

Never felt like that but remember that it is far better to have a reliable repeatable swing rather than having one with mixed results. If you stuck at it you would probably start hitting the same distance you do with a longer back swing, some people claim to be able to hit it further with a shorter swing. What would you rather do shot 80 with a shorter swing or 90 with the longer swing.

 

[pokerjoke]

This is me in a nutshell.
I have a very short backswing but still generate good distance,however it does frustrate
me sometimes as it doesn't look like the traditional full flowing swing.
If I try to lengthen my swing I too lose a bit of control and have a much wider dispersion.
A lot of pros advocate completing the backswing however how much I try I just cant do it.
The most important thing I suppose is to be comfortable and of course on the short stuff.

 

[woody69]

I have a very short backswing and it annoys the hell out of me as I don't have the time to generate the club head speed to get any distance. As soon as I try to lengthen it I lose all control and hit duffs, tops, you name it. Anything but a clean strike. I would love the ability to be able to lengthen and shorten my swing as required.

 

[RobertB]

This winter I'm working on fixing backswing. Now IMHO there are a couple of issue to consider. 1. Majority associate backswing with swinging arms back rather than rotation of shoulders. Likewise speed on downswing comes from sequencing and having body unwind bringing arms along with it. 2. If you get someone to look at you or video or get pro - you'll probably see that the left arm is breaking down on your long backswing (at top) also likely to put you across line too ... this introduces all sorts of new angles and things to re-compensate for on downswing.

So better to make a full shoulder turn and keep left arm straight (not rigid) I see it as as sort of 3/4 as compared to my full which has a slackening of left arm. With pro + lessons on the gc2 I was hitting ball just as far, with better strikes and less dispersion - it is beneficial.

 

[Billysboots]

My backswing is long - way beyond parallel. I've tried shortening it, but find if I do that I don't complete my shoulder turn. The bottom line is I don't think the length of a backswing is the issue - it's whether it's on plane.

 

[duncan mackie]

I have a very short back swing - but it's no barrier to club head speed in itself.

 

[MadAdey]

Up at the range last night i was doing my usual 7 iron stuff with my longish backswing and getting the usual results, (mixed disspersion), so i tied shortening the backswing. I lost say 10 yards in distance but probably improved accuracy by 50%. What,t the problem then? It just felt less satisfying, which I know sounds stupid, but it did. Anyone felt this?

Whats more important, distance or accuracy? How far are you hitting your 7i, 150 is about the average from what I have seen. Short controlled backswing is what you need for your irons.

 

[ScottBaxter]

I did the exact same thing 2 years ago... I was always striving for the perfect looking golf swing with parallel at the top, I almost became addicted to it asking all my friends to 'film my swing' so I could analyse it...

I now have a short more compact back swing and I haven't looked back, all my shots are more consistent and I know exactly how and where the ball is going to go... to be honest I didn't really see a drop in distance though.

 

[tsped83]

Feel like you're hitting every shot 80%, you'll hit it better and will probably go further and straighter anyway.

 

[Robobum]

By length of backswing - are you talking about how far the club travels or how far your shoulders turn?

 

[Craigg]

My backswing is long - way beyond parallel. I've tried shortening it, but find if I do that I don't complete my shoulder turn. The bottom line is I don't think the length of a backswing is the issue - it's whether it's on plane.

Agreed. If I don't complete the turn to a full backswing, I invariably end up outside the plane on the way down. I won't say I generate any more power really. It just helps me get the club down slightly inside.

 

[HawkeyeMS]

Most club golfers would benefit from shortening their swing and it doesn't usually mean a loss of distance. A lot of players swing too far back and in trying to achieve their long swing they make fundamental mistakes which cause loss of power. A shorter, more controlled swing would see most players hit the ball better, straighter and further.

 

[Bobirdie]

I try shorten my swing with my mini driver. Has increased accuracy and distance for me

 

[HomerJSimpson]

My backswing is long - way beyond parallel. I've tried shortening it, but find if I do that I don't complete my shoulder turn. The bottom line is I don't think the length of a backswing is the issue - it's whether it's on plane.

You and I have the same thoughts. I'm long as well but have issues if I try and shorten it and while it's on plane and the strike is good I'l stick with it

 

[Lump]

By who's gauge are you either long or short?
If your making a complete turn then your doing as much as you can. No 2 swings are the same and there are plenty of ways to swing a club.

 

[Cheifi0]

Was next to a guy today at the range and he got no where near to parrallel on the back swing but his ss was impressive and he was striping them. Short backswing doesn't necessarily limit your distance.

 

[chellie]

I'm currently working on a shortened backswing following a playing lesson with our Pro.

 

[Canary_Yellow]

A long backswing, assuming what is meant by long is that the arms are in position such that the club is parallel to the ground, doesn't in of itself generate power.

The key is a full shoulder turn and maintaining good connection and having the club on plane.

Sequencing on the downswing generates the power.

However, this is very hard to get right, especially for newer golfers. I have too much independent arm movement in my swing. When I manage to eliminate that I can hit the ball well, but it goes against my natural inclination for the golf swing so it's very difficult to achieve consistently.

I'll get there one day, maybe.

 

[need_my_wedge]

To say I have developed an overswing is an understatement - it's absolutely horrible to look at. I'm trying to fix it, badly - had lessons, now just practice. For irons, it's great, I can swing shorter, seem to have lost a bit of distance at the moment, but I don't think winter conditions are ideal to get caught up in that. The problem I still have is with woods - practice swing is great, feels good and doesn't overswing.... but put a ball in the way and everything goes out of the window....

Was discussing with a playing partner at the weekend as he has a similar issue. He's not looking to fix it as long as he can get the club face back square at impact - he suggested harder to fix because as men, we can't think/ do two different things at the same time, i.e. shorten backswing and hit ball..... don't know whether that''s true or not, but gonna keep working on fixing it for myself - shorter backswing please.