Golf Instruction Glossary
Impact
Impact or the Moment of Truth is where your nose is behind the ball, pressure on lead leg, body beginning to rotate open and back of the lead hand flat or bowed.
Address Position
How you set-up or position yourself over the ball before begin your swing and includes Grip, Athletic Posture, Stance Width, Side Bend & Post Alignment.
The Hold or Grip
The hold is how you place your hands on the grip and probably the easiest task in golf, least practiced, most important, of most overlooked.
Posture
Athletic posture is the forward bend of your body, knee flex and stance width the positions you for the length golf club you’re about to hit. Ideal posture will increase pressure between your feet & ground and position the center of your hips over your ankles and your arm pits over your toes.
Stance Width
In general, Stance Width gets narrower as you go down in club. The widest stance with Driver has your ankles equal/outside your shoulder width and gets incrementally narrower as you set up with hybrid and irons, and then the narrowest with wedges where your feet with be only inches apart.
Distance From Ball
When in good athletic posture yours arms will hang straight down. This is a good distance your hands should be from your body at address. A way to measure is a fist and extended thumb from your body to butt-end of club. Avoid your hands and arms reaching far away from your body or your hands cramped into your body.
Ball Position – Short Irons & Wedges
Position the ball in the middle of your stance for every full swing and half swing shot directly on the turf. The ball position will be in alignment with your sternum or in the middle of your stance width.
Ball Position – Mid Irons, Hybrids, Fwy Woods
Position the ball between your feet a ball or so the left of center for every shot requiring a full swing with the ball directly on the turf. The ball position will be in alignment with your left cheek or just inside the logo on your shirt for a right handed golfer.
Ball Position – Driver
Ball position with a driver will be forward toward the inside of your lead foot heal & aligned with the inside of your lead shoulder which allows the driver to travel past the low point of the swing and then upward to strike the ball sitting up on the tee.
Tee Height – Driver
In general, half of the ball should be on the driver face and half above the driver face to encourage the driver to swing up while striking the ball.
Tee Height – Fairways & Hybrids
Tee the ball up approximately 1/2 inch of the ground for fairways and hybrids to allow the sweet spot of the club to freely strike the ball.
Tee Height – Iron
Generally, tee up an iron shot so the ball looks like it sitting up on the top of the blades of grass like a perfect lie in the fairway. Teeing the ball too high for an iron will result in shots off the top of the iron face resulting in a loss of distance.
Target Line
The imaginary line that extends from the golf ball all the way to the target and also extends back from the ball. A target line is established for every shot in golf and is used to aim the golf club and plays a vital role in the direction and path of the golf club.
Inside or Outside the Target Line
Inside or Outside the target line is often used when describing the path or swing direction of the club head. Inside the target line is all the space between the target line and the golfer. Outside the target line is the space from the target line farthest from the golfer.
Body Alignment Line
The alignment line of your feet, hips and shoulders in relation to the target. The body alignment line should be trained to be parallel the Target Line for most golfers.
Open
Open to the target line refers to your feet, hips or shoulders are aligned/pointing left of the target line. Your shoulders open to target line is a common mistake at the address. Your lead leg, hips and ribs are open to the target line on a good golf shot.
Closed
Closed to the target line refers to your feet, hips or shoulders aligned/pointed right of the target line. Your shoulders and hips are closed to the target line on the downswing and open to target line after you hit the ball. Keeping your shoulders closed to the target line on the downswing is a good thing and helps eliminate a slice by delivering the club on a path from inside the target line.
Lead Arm / Lead Side
The lead arm or lead side of body is the side of your body closest to the target. The left arm and left side of body are the Lead Side for a right handed golfer.
Trail Arm / Trail Side
The trail arm or trail side of body is the side of your body farthest away from the target or direction you are trying to hit the ball The right hand, right arm and right side of body are the trail side for a right handed golfer.
Face-On View
Camera angle looking directly at the front side of the golfer with camera eye aimed level on the hands.
Down-the-Line View
Camera angle looking at the golfer to the side with camera view filming down the range and camera eye directly on & level with hands.
Center of Mass – Body
The Center of Mass of your body is basically your core region. How you move the center of mass of your body back and thru will influence the pressure the created between your feet and the ground.
Center of Mass – Golf Club
How you move the center of mass of the golf club is everything for swinging the club efficiently for power, accuracy and consistency.
Swing Direction & Path
Swing Direction is the path the club head travels as it approaches the ball and the path the club head travels after impact to the finish. An Outside-to-In swing direction as shown in this picture is the major influence if you slice the golf ball. The ideal swing direction will approach the ball from inside the target line and exit impact to the finish inside the target line.
Angle of Attack – Driver
The angle of attack when swinging a driver will be slightly up on the upward to side of swing arc. An upward angle of attack is supported by teeing the ball up off the ground and positioning the ball off the inside of lead foot.
Angle of Attack – Iron
The angle of attack for ANY club (iron, hybrid or fairway) when hitting a golf ball directly off the ground will be slightly traveling on the downward side of the swing arc allowing the loft of the club to hit the ball in the air and the club to continue traveling to its low point and interacting with the turf.
“Lie”
Your “lie” is how your ball rests on the grass or sand. The ball can lay or lie sitting up or be well into the grass or even buried. Understanding your lie and what shot is possible for each lie is critical to better golf. For example, if you have a ways to go to the target and your ball is buried in the rough you may only be able to advance it the farthest with a high lofted club as a less lofted club may not hit the ball in the air.
