How Important is Lag in your Swing?
Is lag really that important, or is it just hype?
Is it really as crucial as the pros say it is?
Here’s the truth…
Speed can be created in multiple ways, and most amatuer golfers don’t think they need lag. So are they right?
They create speed with their arms, or body, or some combination of both.
Are those good enough ways to play high level golf? Are those ways going to protect your body from injury, forcing you to miss next week’s tee time?
All golf professionals worth their salt have a simple answer to that. No.
Creating lag is the most efficient way to create speed and distance during your golf swing. And every other method isn’t close.
Lag also has a huge added benefit, as it is a way to protect your body from injury. Lag is, in simple terms, the storing of power in your swing represented by the angle between your lead arm and club shaft. The release of this stored energy at the bottom of your swing/impact is how PGA TOUR players hit the ball so far seemingly effortlessly.
Throughout this article, we are going to cover several different benefits that lag possesses, and why you need to learn how to create it in your own golf swing.
- Lag creates speed. When an amatuer golfer is able to store their lag during their downswing, they are then able to release this energy at the bottom, creating serious speed. When a player has no lag, they need to create this speed another way, whether it’s pulling the arms down or rotating your body at an unhealthy speed. Lag, and the release of it, allows a player to create effortless speed.
- Lag creates a better swing plane. Lag is created by having loose wrist pressure throughout the swing, but most importantly, at the top and during transition. When done correctly, the clubhead and shaft will naturally shallow out, making it easier for the player to attack the ball from the inside. This is the obvious sign of a great swing plane.
- Lag represents the complete opposite of one of the most common swing faults in amatuer golf. Casting. Casting is when the player loses the angle between their lead arm and golf club early in the downswing, making it very hard to create speed. If a player is able to maintain that angle early, and create lag, their casting swing fault will go away immediately.
- Lag creates better tempo. Most amateur golfers create speed by pulling their arms down as hard as possible as soon as they reach the top of their swing. This action creates terrible tempo, and makes it very difficult to time up the arms with the rest of the body which is needed to hit quality golf shots. Because the speed created by efficient lag is effortless, the player won’t need to pull their arms anymore. This creates a better tempo in the swing.
- Lag needs to better ball striking. Lag allows the player to hit down on the golf ball more consistently, meaning better shots. If a player is able to do this more often, their overall ball-striking will improve dramatically. Without lag, hitting down on the ball is very hard to do, without getting your entire body sliding to the lead side. Lag allows the player to stay centered over the ball, with better balance, and still hit down on the golf ball.
Lag is incredibly important in order to produce consistently good golf shots. It has countless benefits, including the minimization of injury. Luckily for you, this LAGSHOT training aid will teach you how to create lag in your swing, without having to think about it.
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#1 Exaggerate the Feel
We need to get you feeling what it is like to have lag stored at the bottom of the swing. In this drill, all you need is an alignment stick, or another club. What you are going to do is lay the alignment stick on the ground to your left, as you’re addressed to the golf ball.
The alignment stick needs to be pointed down the range, and aligned on your heel line of your stance. You will not be taking full swings while doing this drill, but only taking your arms to about waist height. Make sure your wrist is hinged, and a decent angle is being created between your lead wrist and the club.
Now, while holding that angle, drag the handle through the hitting area, and keep the angle until it's aligned over the alignment stick on the ground.
What this is doing, is forcing you to maintain lag through the hitting area, as well as getting you used to the feeling of it. This is an exaggerated move, but it will translate over to your swing in a less exaggerated way.
While you are hitting balls during this drill, expect them to be very low shots, with a tendency to be pulled. This is because you have extreme forward press at impact, as well as a strong clubface.
#2 Stop Casting
Most players lose the angles they create during their backswing as soon as they start their downswing. They unhinge the wrists, and try to “help” the ball get in the air instead of hitting down on the golf ball.
For this drill, I want you to hold the club out directly in front of you, with your arms completely extended. Now, move your hands back, then pull them forward.
What you are going to see, if you keep your wrists loose, is the angle between your hands and the club is going to become very small.
So the club head is going to get behind your hands, then whip forward as you finish pulling through. What this drill is showing you is what it feels like to create lag at the start of the downswing.
The wrists need to be loose while performing this drill, as that's the only way to witness the lag being created.
If this is done right during your swing, it should feel as though your club shaft is getting closer to your body during the downswing, compared to being “casted” away from you.
#3 Stop Helping the Ball in the Air
Many players have the wrong idea when it comes to contacting the golf ball. They will try to help the ball in the air, when in reality that’s the last thing you want to do.
Swinging like this will result in weak ball flights, loss of distance, and very inconsistent contact. We need to start hitting down on the golf ball, as a result from shifting our weight to the lead side, which in return will create lag for us.
In this drill, all you are going to need is a golf towel. Fold the towel a few times so it’s a bit thicker, and lay it on the ground about a club head away from the golf ball.
Having the towel behind the ball does two things: One, it will give you immediate feedback to whether or not you are hitting shots fat/helping the ball in the air, and 2, it will force you to get your hands in front of the ball at impact as a result from lag.
This drill will give you the feeling of proper contact and hitting down on the ball.
Another variation of this drill, if you don’t have a golf towel, is to place a tee a few inches in front of the golf ball. Instead of focusing on hitting the ball, focus on hitting the tee. This will have the same benefits for your swing as the towel drill has.
Lag creates SPEED. Lag creates POWER. Take these drills to the range, and in no time, you will be producing SERIOUS lag.
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Lag Shot is being used by thousands of golfers to generate more lag, improve their ball-striking, hit more greens in regulation, and ultimately shoot lower scores.
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