Use the Towel Drill to eliminate a “lift” in your backswing that could be causing your slice
If you’ve ever been told you “lift” your arms in the backswing and you slice the ball, we’ve got just the drill – er, towel drill – for you.
As GolfTEC’s Brad Skupaka explains in the video below, using a bath/golf-sized towel under your arms as you practice can encourage the arms to swing more across your chest, or “deeper” behind you, in the backswing.
Along with creating a more desirable position with the arms, this motion helps encourage a bigger turn and in-to-out path that produces a draw, instead of an out-to-in path that’s prone to a slice.
Which is of course music to the ears of many!
Check out this simple exercise and start practicing with the Towel Drill to eliminate excessive lift in your backswing and improve your ball striking with a better arm position in the backswing.
VIDEO: The Towel Drill for your backswing
The Towel Drill: How to do it
The idea behind the Towel Drill is about as simple as it gets:
- Place a towel securely under your arms and take your setup.
- Take a few slow, smooth practice swings, making sure the towel stays in place during both the backswing and through-swing.
- Once you can accomplish this consistently, start hitting shots in the same easy and controlled manner, then continue to add speed as you become more proficient.
Note: If you are a textbook “lifter” of the club in the backswing, you may feel as if your arms are swinging WAY behind you when you do this drill. This is a good thing!
By keeping the towel under your arms, it encourages your arms to stay lower on your chest as you swing back and turn more with your hips and shoulders. An excess lifting will cause the towel to drop.
Of course there are many variables in the swing that can cause a slice and this drill is by no means meant as a cure-all. But some consistent practice can help get your body and arms in a better backswing position, which is key to developing a more in-to-out swing path and that coveted push-draw many of the world’s best demonstrate with ease!
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Not sure if this exercise is right for you? Find a GolfTEC near you and talk to a Coach today!
