Early extension in the golf swing happens when your lower body moves toward the ball too soon in the downswing. This causes you to stand up too quickly. It hurts your power and makes it hard to hit the ball straight. Fixing early extension golf is key to better scores.
Deciphering Early Extension in the Golf Swing
What is early extension in the golf swing? It is a fault where the lead hip kicks toward the ball before impact. This throws your spine angle out of position. You rise up instead of turning. This is one of the most common golf swing faults.
Why Does Early Extension Occur?
Several things can cause this problem. Poor setup habits are often the root. Sometimes, players try too hard to hit the ball far. They might also struggle with sequencing the downswing.
- Poor Setup: If you start too upright, it is hard to maintain posture.
- Trying to Steal Loft: Golfers often feel they need to stand up to “help” the ball get airborne. This is a mistake.
- Lack of Hip Turn: If the hips do not rotate correctly, the body tries to clear space by moving forward.
- Poor Balance: Being off-balance makes the body seek stability by moving toward the target line.
The Impact of Early Extension on Your Game
When you extend early, several bad things happen to your shot. Your ability to shallow the club in golf is ruined. Your low point moves ahead of the ball.
Shots Affected by Early Extension
| Shot Type | Common Result | Why It Happens |
|---|---|---|
| Thin or Fat Shots | Hitting the ground behind or before the ball. | Loss of consistent low point. |
| Loss of Distance | Power leaks out as the body stands up. | Inability to transfer ground forces up the chain. |
| Slices or Hooks | Inconsistent clubface angle at impact. | Loss of spine angle preservation golf swing. |
| Poor Contact | Hitting the ball on the equator or top. | The low point moves too far forward of the impact position golf swing. |
To achieve a solid impact position golf swing, you must keep your body geometry stable. Early extension actively fights this stability.
Steps to Stop Early Extension Now
Fixing early extension in golf swing requires changes at setup and during the swing. We need to focus on posture and sequence.
Setting Up for Success: Correct Posture Golf Swing
A good setup makes preventing early extension golf much easier. Think about setting up to squat slightly, not just bend over.
Hinging from the Hips
Your spine angle must be set correctly before you start moving.
- Stand tall with feet shoulder-width apart.
- Let your arms hang naturally.
- Hinge forward from your hips. Do not round your back.
- Your knees should have a slight, athletic flex. They are not locked.
- Your rear end should feel like it is moving slightly back. This loads your glutes.
This hinged setup creates an athletic posture. It puts you in a position where rotation, not sliding, is the natural move.
Ball Position Check
Where you place the ball affects how you react to it.
- With a driver, the ball should be forward. This naturally encourages a slight upward strike.
- With irons, keep the ball more central. Avoid letting the ball drift too far forward in your stance. A forward ball position can tempt players to lunge at it.
Sequencing the Downswing Correctly
The downswing needs to start from the ground up. This is the core of golf swing fix for early extension.
The Ground Force Reaction
Think about pushing down into the ground slightly with your lead foot as you start down. This subtle pressure shift is key.
- Transition: The lower body initiates the move. The hips start turning toward the target.
- Lag Maintenance: As the hips turn, the upper body and arms lag behind. This creates lag.
- Spine Angle Maintained: Because the lower body is rotating rather than lunging forward, your spine angle stays tilted away from the target. This is spine angle preservation golf swing.
If you pull your arms down too hard or too fast, you force your body to stand up to make room. Focus on letting your lower body lead the action.
Drills for Preventing Early Extension Golf
Drills help your body learn the new movement pattern without overthinking.
The Towel Drill
This simple drill forces awareness of your posture.
- Place a small towel or headcover across your chest.
- Hold it lightly with your hands, without gripping the club.
- Take your normal swing, focusing on keeping the towel in contact with your chest as you turn back and through.
- If you stand up early (early extension), the towel will often drop away from your chest too soon, especially on the downswing.
This drill reinforces turning around a stable axis. It helps immensely with golf swing fix for early extension.
The Wall Drill (The Best Early Extension Drill Golf)
This is perhaps the most effective drill for this fault.
- Stand about 6 to 8 inches away from a wall or a solid post.
- Set up as if you were going to hit a short iron.
- Take your backswing slowly. Your rear end should stay close to the wall.
- In the downswing, concentrate on rotating your lower body. Keep your backside brushing against the wall until after you have swung through the impact zone.
- If you lunge forward (early extension), your backside will kick into the wall early, stopping your motion.
This drill physically blocks the forward movement. It teaches the feeling of rotating into the space rather than moving into the ball.
The Step Drill for Sequencing
This drill focuses purely on the lower body initiating the downswing.
- Stand slightly closer to the ball than normal.
- Start your backswing.
- When your backswing is about halfway complete, take a small step with your lead foot toward the target. This step should be just a few inches.
- The goal is to step, then let your arms drop into position.
- This forces the lower body to move first, which is vital for shallowing the club in golf and avoiding extension.
Technical Keys to Fixing Early Extension in Golf Swing
To truly solve this issue, we must look at how the club moves through the impact zone. Early extension often means the club is coming “over the top.”
Shallowing the Club
When you stand up, you often drop the club on a steeper path. This is hard to control. Shallowing the club in golf means dropping the club shaft slightly behind you on the downswing. This creates an inside-to-out path.
How does posture relate to shallowing?
- If your spine angle is maintained, your arms have room to drop down and under the plane.
- Early extension forces your hands to move out and away from your body to clear space for the turning torso. This steepens the attack angle.
Focus on feeling like your hands drop down, staying close to your trail hip, as your lower body turns.
Maintaining the Trail Side Bend
A great golfer maintains some side bend away from the target throughout the swing, especially near impact. This is part of spine angle preservation golf swing.
Think of it like leaning slightly away from a heavy bag you are punching.
- Your chest should feel like it is rotating, but your head and upper spine should resist moving forward toward the target line until after impact.
- This resistance keeps your hips back long enough for the club to travel on the correct path.
If you are struggling with stop early extension iron play, this maintained side bend is crucial. It ensures a shallower angle of attack for crisp contact.
Adjusting Your Grip and Ball Flight Instincts
Sometimes, the way we hold the club or how we perceive impact leads to this fault.
Grip Influence
A grip that is too strong (turned too far right for a right-handed player) can encourage players to “flip” their hands at the ball to square the face. This flipping motion is often tied directly to standing up early.
- Review your grip. Ensure it is neutral. You want to see only two to three knuckles on your lead hand.
- A proper grip allows the proper release to happen naturally, without needing to stand up to “help” the face close.
Releasing Tension at Impact
Many players tense up right before impact. They squeeze the club and hold their breath. This tension causes muscles to fire inappropriately, often resulting in the body lunging forward for relief or stability.
Practice the feeling of releasing tension through the impact zone, not holding it until after. Your exhale should happen through impact. This relaxation aids in a smooth rotation rather than an abrupt lunge.
Drills Focused on Impact Position Golf Swing
To ensure you arrive at impact correctly, practice these focused movements.
The Post-Impact Hold Drill
This is the reverse of the setup drills. It confirms you did not stand up too soon.
- Hit 50% speed shots with a short iron (8-iron or 9-iron).
- Focus intensely on your balance and posture through the finish.
- At your finish position, your weight should be almost entirely on your lead foot.
- Your belt buckle should be pointing toward the target.
- Crucially, check your posture: You should still feel a slight flex in your trail knee, and your spine should still be slightly tilted away from the target line, even in the finish. If you feel perfectly straight up and down, you likely stood up early.
Tempo Control
Early extension is often a speed issue. When players rush the transition, they lose control of the sequence.
Use a metronome or a swing timing app. Aim for a smooth 3:1 ratio (3 beats backswing, 1 beat downswing). A smoother tempo gives your body time to shift weight laterally before rotating upward, which is key for preventing early extension golf.
Early Extension Drill Golf: Summary of Best Practices
If you are serious about fixing early extension in golf swing, integrate these into every practice session:
| Drill | Primary Goal Addressed | Key Feeling to Maintain |
|---|---|---|
| Wall Drill | Physical blocking of forward movement. | Hips rotating against resistance. |
| Towel Drill | Posture maintenance through the swing. | Chest staying connected to the arms. |
| Step Drill | Correct lower body sequencing. | Step first, then swing arms down. |
| Post-Impact Hold | Confirming stable posture at finish. | Slight flex remaining in the trail knee. |
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Can I stop early extension if I have an old injury?
Yes, often you can. If an old injury causes pain when rotating or bending, you might unconsciously compensate by standing up. Work closely with a golf pro or physical therapist. They can adjust your correct posture golf swing setup to account for physical limitations while still minimizing the forward lunge.
How long does it take to fix early extension?
This depends on how ingrained the habit is. For some, noticing the difference with drills helps immediately. However, making it automatic takes weeks or months of dedicated practice. Be patient. Focus on feeling the correct movement in practice rather than scoring well immediately.
Is early extension worse with woods or irons?
Early extension can affect both. However, it is often more noticeable and damaging with irons because iron play demands precise low-point control to stop early extension iron play. With the driver, standing up slightly can sometimes feel like it helps launch, but it usually sacrifices solid contact and control.
What is the difference between early extension and a reverse pivot?
A reverse pivot is when the weight stays too far on the trail side during the backswing, and the upper body sways toward the target on the downswing. Early extension is the specific action of the hips moving toward the ball too soon, causing you to stand up. They are related faults, as poor backswing mechanics can lead to compensatory movements like early extension.
How does proper hip rotation help stop early extension iron play?
Proper hip rotation means the hips turn around the body’s axis rather than sliding toward the target. When the hips rotate fully while maintaining the spine angle (side bend), the arms and club drop naturally into the slot. This allows for excellent shallowing the club in golf and keeps the low point stable for solid iron strikes.