Golf Biomechanics: Understand Shoulder Elevation

There has been some confusion when we use the term "shoulder elevation" in relation to the golf swing.

One student in particular explained that he suffered from getting the club very deep, very early in his swing. He said he was trying to keep his arms very passive, but the club still kept getting stuck way behind him at the start of the backswing.

This is a common issue. Just like anything in life, too much of a good thing is not very productive.

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The issue here is that keeping the arms pinned to the body is not what we mean by "passive arms." If you keep your arms pinned to your body and rotate your chest by pulling the trail shoulder blade behind you as we teach in the Takeaway lesson, the club will end up way inside — which causes several problems.

If you continue to pull the club around in this manner, it ends up very flat and laid off, with your arms trapped deep behind your body. That is Scenario Number 1.

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