Golf Tips » July 2001: How to Stop a Reverse Pivot

A very common cause of loss of power in the golf swing is a reverse pivot.  A reverse pivot occurs when the golfers weight moves onto the front foot during the backswing, causing the spine to tilt in the wrong direction.  The golfers attempt to "keep the head still" prevents a good shoulder turn and also prevents the proper weight shift onto the back foot.

Focus on the following two keys while practicing to correct a reverse pivot.

1. Make sure the hips stay still on the backswing.  Imagine that you are standing inside a barrel and the hips do not touch either side of the barrel on the way back.

2. The sternum is directly over the back foot at the top of the backswing.

Picture #1 shows me at the address and picture #2 shows me at the top.  Note that the hips are in exactly the same position in both pictures. (relative to the tree in the background.)

Also note in picture #2 a line could be drawn down from my sternum to directly over my back foot.

You are now in an extremely powerful position and should feel "tight".  This indicates that the correct windup has been achieved and you are now ready to start the downswing as discussed in last months article.