Swing Basics · Golf Grip · Knee Flex · Backswing · Downswing · Impact Position · Follow Through · Weight Transfer · Swing Tempo · Alignment
The downswing is the fastest half-second in golf — and the most scrutinised. Get the sequence right and you'll hit it longer and straighter with less effort. Get it wrong and no amount of compensating on the backswing can fix the result. This guide breaks the move into four checkpoints, names the five most common mistakes, and gives you four drills to lock in the correct pattern.
The downswing begins before the backswing is complete. The lower body starts rotating toward the target while the club and arms are still finishing their backswing motion. This "kinematic sequence" is what creates lag.
The club shaft is parallel to the ground and parallel to the target line, with the toe pointing up. The hands are still well above the hip line. This is the mirror image of the halfway-back checkpoint.
As the hands drop to hip height the lag starts to release. The right elbow slots close to the right hip ("the slot"), the wrists begin to unhinge, and the club is pointing down the target line.
At the moment the club face strikes the ball, the left arm and shaft form a straight line (the "impact line"). The hips are fully open, the head is behind the ball, and weight is loading into the left side.
Signs: Thin shots, loss of distance, weak divots in front of the ball.
Fix: Feel like you are holding the angle longer. Drill: pause at the top, feel the weight of the clubhead drop naturally before the wrists release.
Signs: Consistent pull, pull-slice, or a divot pointing left of target.
Fix: Initiate with the lower body first so the club drops to the inside. Drill: place a head cover just outside the ball and try to miss it on the downswing.
Signs: Block to the right, a fat contact pattern in the middle of the face, hips sliding toward the ball at impact.
Fix: Keep your tailbone pointing at the wall behind you through impact. Drill: stand near a wall and practice not bumping your hips into it.
Signs: Thin or fat iron shots, inconsistent contact, a loss of distance.
Fix: Lead with the handle — feel the grip end pointing at the left hip at impact. Drill: hit shots with your lead wrist bowed under a rubber band or wrist brace.
Signs: Fat shots, topped woods, ball tends to go right.
Fix: Drive the left knee toward the target in transition. Practice making full swings onto your left side finishing with 90%+ weight on the left foot.
At the top of the backswing, the very first move is a lateral bump of the left hip toward the target, immediately followed by rotation. Imagine stepping onto your left foot before your upper body has a chance to unwind.
The lower-body lead naturally pulls the arms and club down to the inside. Do not actively pull the hands down — the feeling is that the arms are passenger, the hips are driver. This is what drops the club "into the slot."
Maintain the wrist hinge — the angle between the left arm and the shaft — until the hands reach hip height. Only then allow the wrists to release. Every frame earlier you release costs distance.
At impact, lead with the handle, keep the left wrist flat, and continue rotating the body. A full finish with weight on the left foot and the belt buckle facing the target is proof the downswing sequenced correctly.
The left hip. A slight lateral bump toward the target followed by rotation is the correct starting movement. Leading with the arms instead — the most common amateur error — produces an over-the-top path.
Focus on keeping the angle between your left arm and the club shaft (lag) intact until your hands drop to hip height. Imagine you are holding a bucket of water and do not want to spill it until the last possible moment.
It means the club transitions from the top of the swing to the inside path naturally — not across the ball — by letting the lower-body lead pull the arms inward. When the club is "in the slot," the shaft approaches the ball on a shallow, inside-out path.
The transition should be gradual — a smooth change of direction, not a jerk. The acceleration happens from mid-downswing through impact. Rushing the transition is the number-one power leak for amateur golfers.
Early extension is when the hips thrust toward the ball during the downswing instead of rotating. It forces the arms to flip in compensation. Fix it by feeling your tailbone stay on the same plane through impact — a wall drill (stand with your backside near a wall and practice not bumping into it) helps immediately.
A small amount of lateral head movement toward the target is fine. The key is that the head should stay behind the ball at impact. Excessive lateral slide — especially back away from the target — causes fat shots.
Over-the-top happens when the upper body starts the downswing before the lower body clears. The club is pulled across the ball from outside to inside. The fix is lower-body first: bump, rotate, then let the arms follow.
Record your swing from behind (camera at hand height) and check the shaft at the halfway-down position. The shaft should point at or inside the ball — not above the original shaft plane. Divots that point straight at the target (not left) are also a great sign.