Bryan Austin
"Santa" Bryan Has Multiple Wins on the US Am Tour
Student Profile
The Way to Way Better
- Working on keeping a good hand path on take away for straighter shots
- Decreasing lateral head movement in backswing
- Maintaining shoulder tilt through swing to help increase shoulder turn
- Focusing on club handle location at impact for more consistent strikes
- Dropped 50 shots from his scores since starting with GOLFTEC!
“Some of the fondest memories I have are when I’m playing golf with a parent and child. At first they don’t want to accept that Santa is real, but when they hear me, ‘Ho Ho Ho’ on the course they become a believer again. They also sit up straighter and behave better. I think they want to be on the nice list!”
“Santa” Bryan Austin
Brian Before Swing
Brian After Swing
Inside The Lesson
In this lesson, Coach Tim is working with Bryan on his scoring clubs – wedges and short irons on approaches from 100 to 150 yards. These are shots that should be hitting greens many times and sometimes giving chances at birdies. However, in this case Bryan is hitting these shots a little of the toe and a little behind the ball. To remedy this, Coach Tim has Bryan get his hand path more inside and on plane on the takeaway. Another issue is Bryan’s hip sway, which is moving away from the target causing those chunky shots. Instead, Coach Tim wants to get Bryan moving toward the target, with his weight on his lead leg especially through impact. This will lead to more consistent strikes with these scoring clubs.
Brian's Favorite Drill
One of Bryan’s favorite drills is the hip sway in the downswing drill. GOLFTEC’s Nick Clearwater takes us through this drill, which describes how many amateurs come through the ball and explains why many of them hit slices. Often, golfers sway their hips back on the backswing, then rotate around that point leaving them behind the ball with their weight back, which leads to an out-to-in club path and a club face that’s open at impact. Instead, everyone should focus on moving their hips toward the target especially as they reach the top of the backswing. Continue pushing your hips toward the target through impact to hit more consistent, solid shots, especially with your scoring clubs.
