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There is a lot of skill when it comes to playing golf, so it is important to focus on your stance to make sure that you perform well and to the best of your ability.
Without a proper golf stance, performing quality golf shots will be nearly impossible, which will not showcase your skills and make playing golf more frustrating than enjoyable.
To drive the golf ball well, fixing your stance is the most important step. Without a good stance, you will struggle to swing on plane and hit the ball straight, so focusing on your driving golf stance is key. What should a good driving golf stance look like and how can you perfect it?
This article will take you through some tips for perfecting your driving golf stance to make sure that you can hit powerful drives and improve your game. Find out more about golf stances below to practice at home and implement into your playing.
How Should Your Stance Be When Playing Golf?
To perfect your swing when playing golf, focusing on your stance will allow you to see an improvement when you play. When hitting the driver, your stance should see your feet slightly more than shoulder-width apart and your knees slightly bent.
This stance will allow you to move freely and see a significant improvement in your golfing skills.
There are lots of ways that people can go wrong when it comes to the best golf stance. Positioning yourself correctly without any training can be difficult.
However, there are tips to make sure that you can successfully practice the driving golf stance so that you can start to see your golfing techniques develop and become more successful.
Why Does Stance Matter?
Stance matters when playing golf as you are using power from your whole body to hit the driver far and straight, not just your arms. When you are playing in the wrong stance, it can cause you to project less power onto the ball, which will result in a weaker swing.
Keeping your body in the right stance will help you to swing more consistently and powerfully, which will result in more speed, distance, and predictability.
The more that you focus on your stance, the better results you will have, as there will be a good chance for continuous improvement.
Lots of people believe that they are playing in the right stance, but they often have improvements that need to be made. If you are unsure about whether or not your golf driving stance is correct, find out more below on tips that will help you improve it.
Tips For Perfecting Your Driving Golf Stance
Although many people know what the perfect driving golf stance is when they see it, they do not often focus on it for their own swing. When the stance is wrong, you will not be able to effectively strict the ball and produce reliable results.
Adjustments should be made to your stance to maximize the power at which you can hit the ball.
To help you improve your driving golf stance, some tips will help you. Using these tips when you play will ensure that you are practicing the stance correctly, which will become more visible in your results.
Once you are aware of how your driving golf stance should be, you will be able to monitor your progress. Find out more below!
How Far Apart To Position Your Feet
This is a very common first mistake that people make when they are trying to get into the right golf stance. Having your feet too narrow will negatively affect your power, but having your feet too far apart will prevent you from turning properly.
Having your feet the correct width apart will keep you stable so you can make a powerful hit.
The best position for your feet is to have them slightly more than shoulder-width apart. This will give you good balance while enable your hips to turn smoothly. This stance will improve your overall power and speed at which you hit the ball, as well as the consistency of the result.
How Bent Your Knees Should Be
Bending your knees too little or too much can affect your overall performance. People tend to assume that speed and power comes from the arms and that the lower half of your body doesn’t make a difference to your driving distance.
However, this is completely wrong. Your legs contribute a great deal to the speed at which you hit the ball. The legs are also critical to keep you stable during your swing.
Your knees should only be slightly bent for the perfect driving golf stance. Bending your knees too much or too little will affect your ability to turn and limit your potential power, so only slightly bend your knees.
You should also bend slightly at the hips and keep your back mostly straight. A slight round of the spine is fine, but too much will make it very hard to keep the club on the correct line.
Where To Position Your Head
If your head is positioned in the wrong place, it will affect the balance of your body. Keeping your head in the right position will allow you to focus on the swing.
Your head should be positioned behind the ball when addressing the ball with your driver. But where should the ball be positioned?
The ball should be in line with the heal of your front foot. For right handed players this is the left foot.
A very common mistake that people make during this stance is that their heads are tilted too far back, which can throw you off balance. Keeping your head in the center of your stance will keep you more stable.
Follow Instructors Online
Practicing your driving golf stance at home is important for getting comfortable in the position, but following instructions from online instructors can help you to make sure that you are performing the stance properly.
The instructors can guide you and you will be able to see someone else performing it, which will give you a perfect stance to mimic.
Online golf instructors that will help you achieve the perfect stance are Bobby Lopez, George Gankas, Jim Venetos, Mike Malaska, Shawn Clement, and Monte Scheinblum.
They will be able to help you improve your golf stance and you will see more progress in your form by seeking advice from these online instructors.
Try Other Stances
Some professional golfers play with an open stance and others play with a closed stance.
Trying different stances will help you find what feels comfortable for you and what helps you play to the best of your ability, even if you are already sure that you are comfortable with the way that you are currently playing.
An open stance will not work for everyone, and neither will a closed stance, so you need to test them to find the right one for you. For most people, a completely square stance is the best option to start.
The only way that you will be able to tell which stance works best for you is by trying them out, but what are an open stance and a closed stance?
Why Use An Open Stance
To practice an open stance, you will need to aim your toe line to the left. The main reasons why open stances are popular are that they provide you with a lot of power, keep your hips out of the way, and let your arms fall from the top of the swing.
It is a very popular stance and common among many players. However, it can cause you to slice the ball, especially with the driver. You may want to consider a more square or even slightly closed stance if you frequently hit a slice.
Why Use A Closed Stance
To practice a closed stance, your feet will need to be pointing either towards the target or to the right of the target.
Using a closed stance has several benefits as it allows you to rotate your hips back more easily, it is a comfortable position, and you can more effectively draw the golf ball from this position.
Trying new stances will help you to learn more about what stances work for you, so you should always try them. There is no harm in practicing different stances, even if you believe that you have found a stance that works for you.
You might find that there is another one that works better for you, so try them all the determine if you have found the right one for you.
To improve your driving golf stance, following the tips above will help you to see an improvement in the way that you play. The best way to improve your driving golf stance is to practice, as this will help you to become familiar with the stance and to easily practice it during a game.
Helping your body become accustomed to the movements will help them become second nature, which will make the stance easier to practice on the golf course. If you are unable to practice golf as regularly as you would like, what can you do to practice your golf driving stance?
Why Purchase A Golf Simulator
If you are looking to greatly improve your driving golf stance, a golf simulator can help you to do so. Some people purchase golf simulators for fun, but others purchase one to practice their stance and to see an improvement in the way that they play.
One of the main issues that people find when they play golf is that it can be hard to find the time. If you have a busy work schedule, you may not get home until it is dark, which prevents you from being able to go out and play golf.
Having a golf simulator in your home or garage allows you to practice whenever you want, no matter the time of day.
Practicing your driving golf stance on a golf simulator is more effective than without one as you will be able to see the speed or flight of the ball.
This will make it easier to implement when you practice golf. You won’t need to wait weeks to find out if your stance is working as you will be able to see how you have improved on the golf simulator.
Are Golf Simulators Realistic?
Some golf simulators are more realistic than others, so you need to make sure that the one that you purchase can provide you with the feedback that you want from your shots.
For this reason, looking at several different golf simulators will allow you to see which one you like best and which one looks the most realistic to you.
If the simulator does not tell you accurate information about the speed or curvature of your ball, you will not be able to see an improvement in your playing on the course.
Having feedback from a simulator is helpful and will allow you to make changes to your driving golf stance that you can mimic in real life.
Ball Flight Laws
Understanding the ball flight laws on the golf course will help you to improve your game. You will know the flight of the golf ball and be able to make corrections to your performance, which will help you to see an improvement in the way that you play.
When you understand ball flight laws, you will be able to give yourself feedback on your playing. Understanding where the face of your club was on impact and whether the swing path was either left or right of the club face will help you to determine what needs correcting.
You will need to understand the target line and start line, which will determine how your ball will fly. Most golfers aim to have the ball begin on either the left or right or the target line so that it then curves back to the target.
However, striving to hit a perfectly straight ball for most shots will produce the most consistent and repeatable results. The draw and the fade are important and valuable shots, but the straight ball is still best in most cases.
Dangers Of Having The Wrong Golf Stance
Although having the wrong golf stance can affect the way that you play golf, there are also other risks associated with having the wrong golf stance.
The wrong stance can have a number of negative effects that you will want to avoid, but what are they and how can you prevent them from happening to you?
Injuring Yourself
Lower back pains are very common for golfers and they can be brought on by poor posture or a poor stance. If you are not standing in the correct position, you could be damaging your body.
Therefore, standing in the correct stance when playing golf will help you to prevent back pains as you will not have a rigid form or an off-balance swing.
Swinging from a bad angle with poor form and posture could damage your back and cause an injury, so it is important to make sure that you are in the right stance to prevent this from happening.
Warming up before playing can not only improve your playing, but it can help reduce the risk of injury. However, warming up only protects you when you are in the correct stance.
Losing Balance
Keeping your body stable when playing golf will prevent any injuries as losing balance can cause you to fall over.
Having your feet too wide apart can cause you to lose balance as you will not have any support, but having your feet apart too narrow will cause you to lose your balance when you swing.
Falling over can cause you to injure any part of your body depending on how you fall, which could affect your golfing. Having an injury could prevent you from golfing for several weeks, which could impact your technique.
Therefore, standing in the correct driving golf stance will stop you from losing balance and allow you to continue practicing golf.
Final Thoughts
To conclude, there are several tips that you need to consider to make sure that you have the correct driver stance.
Without the right stance, you will not be able to see any improvement or development in your golfing skills, so make sure that you perfect the right stance. You are also more at risk of developing an injury when using the wrong stance.
Making sure that your feet are the correct width apart, slightly bending your knees, and keeping your head in the right position will help you see an improvement in your golf as you will be able to hit the ball more powerfully and accurately.
Your whole body contributes to hitting the ball powerfully, not just your arms, so the right stance is important.
If you want to improve your driving golf stance, the most effective way to do it is to practice regularly. Practicing regularly will help your body to become more accustomed to the position and you will be able to perfect the stance.
Purchasing a golf simulator could be helpful to practice regularly if you have a busy work schedule.
Frequently Asked Questions
How Far Apart Should My Feet Be In A Driving Golf Stance?
A common misconception is that your feet should be shoulder-width apart when you are playing golf, but they should be slightly more than shoulder-width apart.
It is important to get the stance right as when your feet are too narrow or too wide apart, it can affect the way that you play golf.
You should practice the stance to see what fits you most comfortably, and it is advised that you consult an online instructor to make sure that your feet are the right width apart.
Having your feet too far apart can make you more susceptible to falling over, so they need to be narrow enough that you are stable, but wide enough to swing powerfully.
Can You Injure Yourself When Playing Golf?
You can injure yourself when playing golf as people can get hit by golf balls or clubs if they are not keeping safe on the course. This is why it is important to remain a safe distance away from golf balls and golf clubs when other people are playing.
You can also become injured from not having the right stance when playing golf.
Back injuries are very common in golf from over swinging, so making sure that your posture and stance are correct can reduce your risk of injury.
Warming up can prevent your body from straining when you are playing, but swinging in the wrong stance can cause you to injure yourself, so it is important to make sure that this doesn’t happen.
Can Golf Simulators Help Improve Your Golf Driving Stance?
Golf simulators can improve your golf driving stance as you can practice as much as you want. If you have a busy work schedule, having time to practice golfing can be difficult.
However, if you have a golf simulator in your home, you can practice whenever you want, it won’t matter if it is early or late in the day.
You can accurately track the speed of the ball and how much power you hit it with when using a golf simulator, making it easy to implement on the golf course. Some golf simulators are more accurate than others, so make sure that you are happy with the one that you purchase.
My name is David Shelly and golf has been my passion since early childhood. For more than three decades now, I’ve been trying to make sense of this crazy game.
Golf is the greatest game ever played. I want to help more people experience its joys. Let's hit the links!
