Divot Details
By Paul Wilson
Are you one of those golfers that's struggling to solve the mystery of
how the pros take those perfect divots with each iron shot they hit? If
you said yes, you may want to keep reading because the mystery is
finally going to be solved.
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Understanding the Divot
A proper divot is actually taken after the ball has been hit. This means
that the club is descending as it approaches the ball. It makes contact
with the ball, then it enters the ground to take the divot. The depth of
the divot is relative to the amount the club is descending as it
approaches the ball. The more descending the club, the deeper the divot.
If the club is not descending, it won't take a divot (unless you were to
severely dip your upper body or spine angle during the downswing). There
are 2 fundamentals you need in order to take a proper divot. They are:
1. Arm Extension
Most average players try to hit the ball solely with their hands and
arms instead of the their body. Hitting with the hands and arms causes
the arm muscles to contract or buckle as the club swings through impact.
The harder the person hits, the more their arms will contract. If the
person's arms contract, it narrows the arc that the club is swinging on
(this buckling of the arms is referred to as a "chicken wing"). If the
arc narrows, it's not able to impact the ground and take the divot.
Instead, it skims the surface or comes up so high on the ball it will
start to approach the equator of the ball. This narrowing arc produces
thin or topped shots.
Are you one of those golfers that's struggling to solve the mystery of
how the pros take those perfect divots with each iron shot they hit? If
you said yes, you may want to keep reading because the mystery is
finally going to be solved.
In looking to solve the mystery of not taking a divot, people feel they
have to hit down on the ball to get the club to enter the ground. As I
just explained, this will never work because you are hitting. The harder
you hit, the more the arms will buckle, the less divot you will take.
What you should be doing is relaxing your arms as you swing the club and
not trying to hit anything. The feeling should be that the weight of the
club is pulling your arms out to their widest point. This pulling
sensation can only occur if your arms are relaxed. A great way to
understand it would be to imagine a weight swinging on a piece of
string. Your club is the weight and your arms are the string. As it
swings, the string is pulled to its widest point. This means it is
maximizing the width of the arc its swinging on. If your arms are
relaxed, the weight of the swinging club will pull your arms out as well
thus maximizing you arc. Keeping the arms extended is the first part to
taking a divot. Now, let's take a look at how the body rotation makes
the club to descend.
2. Body Rotation
The proper body rotation throughout the golf swing is what creates the
divot because it causes the club to descend at impact. Think of it this
way, if you were to hit the ball standing on one leg you would have one
axis between your head, body and leg. This means that the club would be
swinging around a single axis because your head would not be moving.
This also means that the club would only swing at ground level and pick
the ball off of the surface without taking a divot.
Because you're going to hit the ball with both legs on the ground, it
means that you have 1 top (head) and 2 bottoms (legs) to an axis. When
you rotate into the backswing, you create your first axis between your
head. body and right leg. As you start the lower body rotation on the
way down, it forces your head to stay behind the ball at impact.
As you make the move to create your second axis between your head, body
and left leg. Because your head stays behind the ball you are actually
lower at impact than you were at address. If you keep your arms extended
throughout the downswing your club will descend as it hits the ball thus
taking a divot.
Hitting With Arms
If you are someone who hits at the ball solely with your arms it means
you are not using your legs so you don't get the head staying behind the
ball through impact. The hitting also contracts your arms instead of
allowing them to extend. This contraction pulls the arms off of the
ground.
Sliding Laterally
Likewise, if your body slides laterally through the shot instead of
turning, your upper body will tilt too much to the right through impact
forcing the club to hit behind the ball too much.
What you should be doing in order to take proper divots is to work on
your body rotation. In your backswing, you should move your head overtop
of your right instep. This will create your first axis between your
head, body and right leg. Then, keep your head back as you approach
impact. Once the ball is hit, your head then moves overtop of your left
leg to create your second axis between your head, body an left leg. So
really you have a floating top (your head) to an axis.
Although it's difficult to describe without pictures I think you get the
point. In order to take proper divots you have to relax your arms to
maximize the width of your arc. Then, you have to connect that arc to a
rotating body. Because you are going between 2 pivot points it tilts
your body to the right through impact. This tilting puts you lower than
you were at address thus making the club descend as it approaches the
ball.
Paul Wilson
Creator - Swing Machine Golf