PGA Professional Sam Truman
In a golfing sense, power comes from altering and increasing two forms of speed. Ball speed and club speed. There are multiple other factors that can affect how far a ball can travel, however we’re going to keep it simple. We will learn to change how fast the ball comes off the face of the club and we will explore some new ways to get the club moving faster.
Club Speed
We will split the club speed section into two parts – How to train speed in your practice and how to encourage greater speeds through technique in the swing.
Training
Weighted Clubs – Removing the ball and focusing on increasing peak speed.
If you don’t have the time to spend hours in the gym, training your speed with items like speed sticks/weighted clubs could be very useful! By learning to move a heavier club faster and faster over time, it’s inevitable that your body will be able to swing your normal clubs way faster on the golf course.
Some people use swing speed radars to monitor the speed of these exercises (without hitting a ball). It’s often healthy (and fun) to learn how to swing the opposite way faster as well (Right handed compared to left handed etc).
Step Drill – Learn how to sequence your swing for maximum speed and efficiency.
This drill, loosely based on a rather famous golfing film, is superb for generating speed. The images below show the sequence of the swing. Start in your normal set up, drag your lead foot next to your trail foot. Swing back and then plant your lead foot before impact. If you don’t move the club away at the right time or if you plant the foot at the wrong time it will be very difficult to find the middle of the club and generate any speed. This drill will really teach you about proper weight transfer and how to correctly time and sequence your swing.
Technique
Heel Up – Maximise your body turn and create a longer, faster swing.
If you can create a big body turn and you can get the butt of the club travelling further back behind you, you have a greater chance of increasing speed on the way down. The heel up drill will help you maximise your hip turn and upper body rotation. To find this position simply go to the top of your normal backswing – pause – and then allow your lead heel to lift off the floor as your increase your turn back. Try to feel a nice big stretch across your body!
Ball Speed
One of the key reasons amateurs and pro’s lose distance is when they see a breakdown in strike pattern on the club face. Any off centre strikes often cause changes in spin rate, curve and most importantly ball speed. If we can increase our club speed and retain a centred strike, you will see an increase in overall distance.
One of the best ways of monitoring strike is to use a face spray (usually an athletes foot spray will do the trick). Hit a group of shots with the face spray on and see what the pattern looks like?
Sam Truman is a PGA Professional based at The Surrey Golf Lab at Reigate Hill Golf Club.
Current Roles Include: Performance Coach - Hugh Marr Golf Surrey
Boys (U12’s & U14’s)
Girls (U18’s) County Coach Elite Academy Coach for Whitgift School
Sam Truman is regarded as one of the best young performance coaches in the region. Under the tutorship of European Tour Coach Hugh Marr, Sam prides himself in providing the best holistic coaching experiences for his players. Sam works with all levels of golfers from the young aspiring junior all the way up to European tour professionals.
Based at The Surrey Golf Lab, renowned as one of the best practice facilities in the UK, Sam is able to provide clients with access to the most up to date golf coaching technology. Clients are exposed to Trackman club and ball tracking and also to the SAM Putt Lab Analysis System in his new indoor putting studio.
For more information follow Sam on: (Twitter Logo) @SamTrumanGolf
(Instagram Logo) @SamTrumanGolf Or Email Sam - SamTrumanGolf@gmail.com