Kyle Voska Golf

You Must Keep Your Head Down: Myth or Truth?

YOU MUST KEEP YOUR HEAD DOWN, RIGHT?  WRONG!

Have you ever hit balls at a crowded driving range and overheard beginner golfers teaching other beginner golfers?  It’s a riot, isn’t it?  After every bad shot the “experienced” beginner offers a completely different thought to try to help their struggling friend.  You may overhear them saying, “keep your head down”, or “your left arm isn’t straight” or, “you’re losing your balance”, or “the center of your axis is tilting causing the centrifugal force of your downswing to bottom-out behind ball at a decelerating rate.”  Just kidding about that last one of course.

There are many quick fix swing thoughts that are believed to be absolute staples in a good golf swing.  Some swing thoughts are great while others can be damaging to both your swing and body.  One of the myths I’d like to dispel today is the thought of intentionally trying to keep your head down at impact.  Many of you may be shocked by this, but I am certain that trying to keep your head down at impact will not make you better and it could make you worse.  That being said, it’s not wrong if your head is down at impact, I just don’t want you to overdo it.

THE TRUTH

Simply, your head is attached to your neck which is attached to the rest of your body.  When you’re swinging the golf club back down to the ball and through to your finish, your body is turning and twisting a lot.  To maximize the speed of your club, your body must turn through the ball at a pretty good clip.  The faster your hips turn the faster the club will travel.  And the faster your body is turning the more stress you put on your body.

Now, the question I ask is this.  If your body is turning at a fast pace why would you want to keep your head behind?  In fact, wouldn’t you risk hurting yourself trying to do this?  When you talk to someone standing up do you turn your body 90 degrees to the left, but still look straight at them?  I didn’t think so.  It’s not comfortable and it might actually strain your neck.  Now, imagine how much torque you’re putting on your neck when you intentionally try to keep your head down.  Keeping your head down will not only increase your chance of injury, but it will also prohibit a full turn through the shot which results in a slower downswing and restricted finish.  Allow your head to turn with your center through impact to your full finish.

Many of you, including myself, have hit shots where you’ve felt your head raise.  It doesn’t feel good, but, believe it or not, it’s not your head that’s the problem.  It’s your body.  The golf swing starts from the ground up.  Your body is actually pushing your head up.  Some part of your downswing is causing you to lose the spine angle you created at address which pushes your head giving you that head-lifting feeling.

RECOMMENDATIONS

To help you with this problem, I would recommend a couple of thoughts to try:  1) Try to keep your spine angle you created at your setup position by maintaining constant knee flex throughout your swing.  If your knees tend to rock or lock up your center will move too much.  2) Continue turning your belt buckle all the way to the finish where your buckle faces your target.  If your center stops turning, the force of your arms swinging will force your center to move up, hence your head raising.

By the way, Annika Sorenstam and David Duval both turn their heads well before impact.  Neither of them come close to seeing the ball at impact.  This didn’t stop either of them becoming the #1 player in the world.

Thanks for reading!

January 12, 2010 - Posted by Kyle Voska | Golf Myths, Golf Tips | Golf, Golf Myths, Golf Tips, improvement, keeping your head down, left arm straight, myths, quick fix