When the ball-striking discussion comes up in golf circles, countless instructors and golf purists always go back to the swing of Ben Hogan and the key positions that made him a legendary player.
One of the positions that made Hogan so incredible was his hand position at the moment of impact — his left wrist was “supinated” which means slightly bowed-down at that magic moment.
It is that left wrist supination position that comes up when experts discuss/analyze Hogan’s swing.
It’s not an easy position to achieve but today, we’ll present something everyone can work on that can help them with that concept.
In the full swing, you have to imagine or feel that the logo on your golf glove points toward the ground. That’s an over-exaggeration but it’s something to think about. You try to get that feel and you won’t get the logo pointing down — as Butch Harmon used to tell Tiger Woods — “There’s a big difference between feel and real.”
An easy way to practice this is with your chipping work.
Keep your left wrist firm as you chip the ball. Start with some short chip shots and use only your left hand. This will accomplish two things — first, it will build strength in your left wrist and hand — a really good thing for your full swing. Second, it will teach you to keep your right hand neutral when chipping. Look at high handicappers and most will be “flipping” that right hand through impact and that action cups the face of the club rather than squaring it.
For those chip shots, start with your left hand just a bit in front of the ball at address, and make it gets back to that point at impact. There are more dynamics involved in the full swing that complicate things a bit, but the general concept is the same.
Take a look at Dustin Johnson’s left wrist in the above photo. It is overly-supinated at the top but D.J. does a great job at impact and it has made him the No. 1 player in the world and one of the most consistent players in the world of golf.
So start small, with those left-hand only chips.
You’ll get better and you might even find a little of that “Hogan Magic.”
