One of the biggest mistakes made during the golf swing is actually something that happens before you swing. I understand that most golfers have heard this before. Hogan was the first to make this statement popular around the country, but obviously hearing and listening are two different things. Furthermore, agreeing with this statement but not understanding what a better set-up actually is does no good at all. Take the example of one of our club members, a three handicap who from time to time would get into some of the biggest slumps you would ever see. Being that he really takes a rip at the golf ball, many of his playing companions would blame his aggresive motion for the four or five rounds that his scores would grow exponentially. Recently, he came into the middle of one of these slumps just before a state championship team tournament. The time to figure out the problem was yesterday, and he came to me for the answer.

Through video analysis we could both see that none of the three imperitives of the golf swing were being broken. While there were components of his golf swing which could be tampered with, there simply wasn't anything in the mechanics of his motion which were creating this erratic play. I watched him hit a dozen more balls before saying, "Doc, let's take it out to the golf course." Once we were out there the symptoms of the problem began showing up. Through three holes he was three over, and the golf ball was going everywhere. On four tee we talked about ball position, the set-up, and the importance this made to the resulting ball flight. Over the next three holes he made one birdie and two pars. His next six rounds were all in the mid-seventies, and his game was back in shape for the golf tournament.

When learning about the set-up there are several different aspects you have to consider: ball position, face alignment, body alignment, waist bend, and axis tilt. Each of the five aspects of the set-up are very, very important to the flight of the ball. Furthermore, a mistake made in one of these aspects can lead to problem in the next. For example, if your ball position is constantly played too far back, the axis tilt of the player will begin to make compensations so the player can create the type of shot desired. The variables and variations are too many to discuss. Just understand that a problem in set-up sets off a chain reaction of compensations. By the same token, a proper set-up creates a chain reaction of positive reactions in the golf swing.

Ball position has been falsely dictated by a relationship to the feet for too long. The low point of the golf swing is where the club head reaches its lowest point during a normal golf swing. This point can be found opposite the center of the forward shoulder. From here, the sternum will be the center of the body as it rests directly in front of the spine. The forward shoulder and the sternum define the playing ground for the ball during normal shots. With the sand wedge being the shortest club and the driver being the longest, the sand wedge is played off the sternum and the driver is played off the forward shoulder. Remember the width of the stance concerning the feet can change. The width of the shoulders does not.

Face alignment is overlooked by most everyone, including some of the best players you know. The ability to align the face of the club square to the target is very important for your intended use of plane angles. Furthermore, face alignment has a significant impact on body alignment during the set-up. Practice your face alignment indoors and out by simply getting a visual equivalence of what a square leading edge looks like. The old idea of the railroad tracks is a good one for body alignments. While the clubface points directly at your target, the hips, thighs, shoulders, and eyes sit parallel to the clubface/target line. The best way to train your body to sit square to your target is to simply never, ever, for no reason go to the range without laying a shaft or some other straight lined object between yourself and the ball.

Waist bend is the anterior rotation of the hips. This is accomplished by pushing the hips or buttocks up and out while extending the club to the ball. Because most of us are not as flexible as the guys and gals on television we have a tendency to not set up to the ball with enough waist bend. Having enough waist bend is critical because it stacks the larger muscles of the upper body on top of the larger muscles of the lower body creating proper static balance. During the golf swing this static balance becomes dynamic balance as the body keeps its orientation to the ball.

Axis tilt is the tilting of the spine both at address and during the stroke itself by way of pivot motion. The tilting of the spine away from the target between 8 and 12 degrees is necessary during address positioning. This sets the left hip and left shoulder higher than the right hip and right shoulder. By accomplishing this, a player paves the way for the pivot to do its job of getting the player to the top of the swing. At the top of the swing the bottom of the spine moves slightly closer to the target (the left hip moves no further forward than the outside of the left ankle and the "feeling" is more of an "up" movement than forward movement) which creates the hip axis tilt to pave the way for the forward portion of the stroke. Keeping it simple, at address have the bottom of the spine closer to the target than the top of the spine. At the top of the swing have the "feeling" of the forward hip working up slightly while at the same time keeping the hips from opening or rotating for this split second.

Maybe talking about the second axis tilt is too much for this conversation, but for some it may give more information to a less than fully understood topic - the transition. Keep in mind the five set-up goals, and when you find that your game is lacking consistency go straight to these items. Sometimes taking a short cut gets us lost, and chances are if your game is lost, the road to your destination will begin in these six areas of the set-up.