Video Transcript

SETTLE in Your Golf Swing Transition to Use the Ground Like the Pros!

How to Use the Ground in the Golf Swing the Right Way

“So, you’ve probably heard or been told that you have to use the ground in your golf swing. And while there’s plenty of truth in that statement, I see many golfers going about it the wrong way.

Many of the students I get on my lesson t are pushing out of the ground incorrectly at the wrong time. And this causes a slew of ball striking issues like early extension, early release, chunks and thins, and a big loss in speed and power.

So today I want to share with you a more dynamic move in transition that the pros are making to better utilize their lower body, better use the ground, and power their swing more efficiently. Today, I’m going to teach you how to settle in transition for better ball striking. So here we go. Let’s see if I can hit a nice nine iron here or I feel that settle move in transition.

Okay, pretty happy with that one. I really felt that transition move. Let’s break it down. So, hey there. Thanks for stopping by. Henry Fall here back in the lab today. And if you are new here, I’d really appreciate if you hit that subscribe button. Really helps me out.”

The “Settle” Move in Golf Swing Transition Explained

“Okay, so using the ground and transitioning in the golf swing. This is a really distinctive move. you’re going to see from the top players and the best ball strikers throughout history. And one that I see a lot of amateurs just don’t get.

So, the word you’re going to hear me say a lot in this video is settle. I want you to feel like as the club is going up, still going up, you’re starting to settle in, dig in, flex in, whatever you want to call it. But that little move there in transition is doing a few important things that we’re going to talk about today. And to me, that settle move is one of the marks of a great and powerful golf swing.”

Why Amateurs Push Out of the Ground and Early Extend Too Early

“So before we go into a couple drills that I’m going to want you to do for this, I think it’s first important to break down this move, why we’re after it, and where most amateurs are going wrong. So many golfers I see on the lesson tee or online amateurs, what they’re kind of doing is winding up and then somehow out of the top they are pushing out of the ground quickly in transition.

This also tends to coincide with pushing of the golf club and pushing of the right arm of the trail arm in the golf swing. So, it’s like this is going up, my body is going up, and my hands and arms and club are all going down.

To me, I’d like to see a little the opposite. And this is what I tend to see from most of the professionals out on tour where the club is still going up while the golfer is working a little down. That it’s opposite of what we see with amateurs.

So, I like to think of this settling in as kind of two things. One, you’re getting into the ground, using the ground more athletically, which we’ll talk about in a second. But two, it’s also giving you a little bit of time to kind of organize and collect yourself to then be able to unwind and turn through the shot –– where most of you are in such a rush out of the top that things spring up out of the ground and really everything extends.

Your legs extend, your body extends, your arms extend, and even the club head extends more quickly down into the ground. So, this little settling move is really twofold. Getting us to kind of get dug in or into the ground and then also sequence things more dynamically so then we can really sling it.”

Weight Shift and Ground Force Pressure in the Downswing

“Once I’m at the top, I mean, it really is a it’s a it’s a shift onto my left side. And I try to get all that weight onto my left side as quickly as I possibly can. Yeah. You know, so from here, bump to my left side. I sort of pressure into the ground so that, you know, I can then, you know, it’s a bit like a a box job for a squat.

You’re really trying to put force in the ground so that you can get that force coming up through your legs like that. I’ve seen a lot of tour players do on the range. They take the left foot off in the back swing and they they try and stamp or step into the shot.

People have talked about walking through the shot sometimes, but I particularly like I’ve seen a lot of guys take it back stamping. On the way down, I feel like I um I mean I press my feet into the ground. I’d like to use the ground. So, I always feel like if I can get really grounded with my feet, kind of a kick start. And if if I just let it fall from there without me doing anything, I don’t try and sort of pull down or anything.

I’ve also found that this settle move can help your golf swing feel and look more smooth. Whereas most amateurs I see in a rush to push out of the ground, use the ground and speed things up early out of the top, their swing looks really forced and full of tension.

So, by adopting this settle move like we see with Tour Pros, you’re creating a nice sequence and flow to things more like a one and two. So, let’s see if I can add that little settle move there in transition. Okay, so not bad.”

Breaking Down the “Settle” Move: Lower Body and Hips in Golf Swing

“So, let’s define this settle move. What we’re doing is dropping in just a little bit there in transition. So, as that club is still going up, I’m flexing just a little bit extra into my knees here, into my legs. My quads are now kind of engaged, and I’ve kind of worked myself into the ground. I’ve also hinged from my pelvis just slightly.

It doesn’t need to be crazy. It doesn’t need to be like and it’s not really a squat because a squat would be more back. I like to feel like my chest is still on top. But that little drop in or settle move is just as much about again the sequence of things giving us a little time there to collect ourselves at the top instead of just pushing out.

And very important again, this is while we’re still feeling like we’re winding up and the club is still going up and back. So that that’s giving again us time to get ourselves organized and then be able to swing through. And we’ve all had that feeling where we push up out of the ground, you know, maybe rise up early, extend, back away from the ball, stand up out of posture.

This settle move is basically the opposite of that. and it’s going to help you combat those faults in your golf swing.”

The “Settle” Move in Other Sports (Baseball Golf Swing)

“So, one way I like to think about this move is tying in other sports because we see this across the board. If you think of baseball, for example, pitch is coming, the hitter strides and again kind of drops in that little settling as they’re awaiting that pitch before they unload it.

If you think of like a snowboarder going into a halfpipe, ready to launch out and do some crazy trick, they’re going to be kind of dropping in there, that little settling in before they eventually push out and launch themselves up.

Same thing can be said with a figure skater, for example, as they’re ready to go complete, you know, maybe they’re triple axle or whatever, they kind of dig in before they push out. So the golf swing, I like to think of the same way. As we’re winding up, we’re getting in, dropping in, digging in. So then then only then can you start to kind of push out, post up, and finish your circle.

Most amateurs are pushing out of the ground too early. So their thought is, ‘Oh, I’m using the ground. I need to use the ground.’ Well, you’re not using the ground at the right time, and it’s not the most powerful way to do it. the big hitters and the guys who have the most speed actually are kind of still going down and there’s a a nice sort of transition there before they can really spring things out.”

Box Jump Demonstration: Why You Have to Get Into the Ground First

“Here’s one last way to look at it from a dynamic standpoint. So, I have a 30-in box jump here. Okay, if I go ahead and stand right here and I attempt to jump on top of this box with my legs fairly locked out, already pushed out, I’m probably not going to have much success.

I don’t even sure I can really try this cuz it’s like there’s just no force, right? I have to get into the ground to get out of the ground. So, I’m going to do it normal now where I actually allow myself to drop in. And now I hopefully will be able to get up on top of this box.

There we go. Pretty good. Okay. So, and it’s funny because a lot of the data shows that the highest speed, longest hitting players have the ability to really jump high and have a lot of vertical, say, in their workouts and even in the golf swing.

Pretty cool. So, again, the reason to bring up those other sports is chances are you’ve probably played some of them. You can even think about other sports like basketball, tennis, surfing, and how we’re going to use our legs not only to just use the ground, but also to kind of sequence things.”

Golf Swing Drill #1: The Delivery Drill

“So, let’s get on to a couple drills here that you can use to better train this pattern and improve your golf swing transition. The first one I like here is sort of a delivery drill, I call it. So, you’re going to go ahead and set up as normal.

You’re going to take your back swing and make a nice wind up and you’re kind of landing in. I want you to flex in a little bit and settle into these legs just a little bit. Now, let me just show you this from face on real quick. When you’re doing this, especially with an iron, you’re going to feel a little bit down in left as well.

So, you can see how I’m, if anything, I’m a little bit more into this left quad than I am my right. And I’m getting a little pressure into the ball and sort of over the shoelaces of this left foot. But you can see how both legs really are flexed. I’m not straightening out of either of them really. I’m still flexing into both of them.

Now, as I’m doing this, as I’m kind of lowering in, you’re seeing the club is staying up back and to my right. It’s not pushing down in front of me. So, I’m kind of leaving it up as I make this little move. So, this is sort of bringing the club down for me while also keeping me my angles, my bends, and it’s providing that nice little and piece between the one and two for a smoother transition.

Okay. So, go ahead and set up lined up. Get into about delivery position here where your hands are kind of over your right thigh. Club is still up into my right. get in delivery and then you can sort of swing through and make a nice little low driving shot. So that was just like a little punchy nine iron and you saw the sequence of that.

So it’s going to take you a few attempts here to kind of nail it down. But club is still going up. You’re lowering in. Club is still going up. You’re settling in. And I like to once I get to about this delivery position here where the club is just slightly behind my hands, maybe on my hands somewhere in there.

I’m feeling like that club is staying over there. And I add this little flow back into the system. So it’s not just hit. I got to feel like I’m still working through. So back to delivery flow and go.

And that’s giving me a nice position to work through. And then I understand it’s a point in time, but I’m trying to flow through that as best I can so I can still bring this into a real golf swing. So here, here, here, and then go. And you’re going to see how my legs work a little differently than most golfers, I would say. And you can see I’m not really hitting those very far.”

Golf Swing Drill #2: Alignment Stick Under Feet for Balance and Pressure

“So, the second drill I like is to grab an alignment stick, put it on the ground. And for this one, you know, take a second and line this up. You’re going to get it right under the middle of your feet, basically.

That looks pretty good. And this is good for kind of balance points, too, setup. So, you can kind of rock on this until you feel like you’ve got nice balance, sort of middleish with your pressure, little break in the knees, good golf posture. And now I’m ready to go. I’m pretty neutral.

And the point of this exercise isn’t to necessarily like keep the stick on the ground. It’s to feel like as you wind up and settle in that you have a little push into that stick. That’s not necessarily done actively. It’s done a little bit more by me just kind of lowering and getting into it. I’m not like pushing my foot down.

That’s taking a little too much effort to do that. It’s more of me just settling in, as we say. Okay. So, I’m gonna just feel that and transition that one and two and see if I can feel like I lower into that stick and swing through. And you probably saw how nice and smooth that was. Really felt good. And again, I’m doing these at lower speeds.

I’m training movement. I’m not as worried about the result. I might even hit some really funny ones. I don’t care. I’m just worried about am I making good movement? And if I was serious about making this change, I would also be filming it to see how I’m how I’m doing.

So, kind of settle in and unwind. Not bad. Okay. So, then we could kind of blend these together. That might be good to just feel a little delivery with that stick under my feet here. Deliver. And go. Not bad.

All right. So, stick under my feet. Nice balanced here. And then wind up. As that club is still going up, settle in. Very important sequence there. As the club is still going up, you’re feeling this. That’s creating the opposition that we’re kind of after.

Now, delivery. Delivery. Go.”

Combining the Golf Drills Into a Full Swing

“Okay. So now what we could do is do a little delivery rehearsal and then make more of a fuller motion. So me do a little rehearsal. Okay, that’s where I want to kind of get to. See my hands kind of over my thigh. I’m in my legs here. Ready to go here. Okay, I got that feeling. That’s where I want to move through.

Okay, not bad. A little bit of a pull, but you kind of see how that works where we’re feeling that settling move. That’s totally different from what most golfers would do where they’re pushing out of the ground right out of the top. So, it’s going to feel a little different.

It’ll probably feel more athletic to you, just like some of those other sports I mentioned. And for once, you might feel that sequence and transition that we see from a lot of the greats. All right. So, let’s do one more without the stick, without the delivery.

If I were to take this onto the golf course and just have a feeling, I really like that sort of one and two. So, let me see if I can flow that out a little more. One and two. One and two. So, that’s that nice sequence we see. See if I can bring that into this shot here.

Okay, wasn’t my best, but it felt like that nice sequence at least that I can take to the golf course.”

Final Thoughts: Dig Into the Ground Before You Push Out

“So, hopefully this has given you a different perspective on using the ground in the golf swing and also the transition. I used to really struggle big time with pushing so hard off my right side in the down swing. So that gave me a lot of slide and then I would need to use more right arm to hit the golf ball. So let’s hit one more good nine iron for you guys here. Feeling that settle move and transition. One and two. Letting the club just kind of sling along with that that move.

All right. Felt pretty good. That was nice. So that just feels so much better than some of that stuff I used to do. I still get it from time to time. So this pattern and some of these exercises I still do for myself, but it’s also helped a lot of students of mine be able to get out of that pushing state. Both pushing with our arms and pushing with their lower body.

Yes, we want to use the ground, but we got to get into the ground first if you’re actually going to be able to then push out up into your finish. So add this settle move into your golf swing. I think it’s really going to help. It’s going to allow you to feel like you can compress that ball, kind of cover that ball, and then swing on through.

So, thanks again for watching. Don’t forget to hit that subscribe button if you are new here. Really helps me out. I appreciate it. And come on over to my website, henryfallgolf.com, for one-on-one lessons, our online academy, and golf schools here in Phoenix. We’ll see you guys next”

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