Iron Play: Crunch Your Right Side

Groove this important side tilt to hit your iron play shots better than ever.

There are two main tilts in the golf swing. There is a forward tilt from the hip joints at address, and a side tilt of the upper body away from the target in the downswing. If you’re unable to compress the ball and hit your irons solid, there’s a good chance that you’re struggling with the latter, so let’s work on it. 

From the top, the feeling you want is that you’re crunching your rib cage on your right side, forming a backward-K look to your body [above]. For this to happen, your right shoulder must move towards the ground while your left shoulder moves up. The average golfer tends to lose this side tilt by thrusting their trail shoulder out towards the target line, setting up a swing path that causes a slice or pull and generally poor contact. 

Read on for a couple of drills to help you improve your downswing.  

Squeeze the ball

The first step is to put yourself in position to side tilt. That means making a good backswing where the arms have structure. At the top, your elbows should point towards the ground like mine are here [above].

A great way to rehearse this is to grab a softball and wedge it between your forearms at address. Now swing to the top, gently applying pressure to the ball to prevent it from falling. You’ll need to keep your right elbow relatively tight to your body to do it. If it flares and the ball drops, you are no longer in position to transition properly and maintain side tilt. Keep practising your backswing with the softball until this elbows-down position at the top becomes a habit. Then you’re ready for my second drill.

Toss a frisbee

Take note of my halfway-down position here [above left]. See how my right elbow is tucked in close to my body? 

That can only happen if my right shoulder is moving towards the ground, not out towards the ball. 

A great way to groove this elbow-in position is to take a Frisbee in your trail hand and toss it sidearm, like you’re skipping stones across a pond. To do this, you must keep your right elbow tight to your body while shifting your lower body forward [above right]. If you can recreate this action in the downswing, you’ll be in better position to hit your iron shots flush. And there’s nothing like the feeling of pure contact! 

Cheryl Anderson, one of Golf Digest’s 50 Best Teachers in America, is director of instruction
at the Mike Bender Golf Academy in Lake Mary, Florida.