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Top.
The top of the backswing before anything comes down. Stock full-swing mid-iron.
What's going on.
The club has arrived at the top. Face-on shows both feet still down and whether the face is at the sky. Down-the-line shows whether the club is still in front of the back shoulder.
What this still is.
This is the top. Pause here. Look for this, then move on.
Look first.
Face-on
Pause at the top. Both feet are still down. The face is not looking at the sky.
Check these.
- Hands relative to body
- Hands sit about over the trail shoulder. Not over the head, and not already dropping.
- Wrist picture
- The face is off the sky.
- Shaft to wrists / lead arm
- The shaft may be short of, at, or a touch past parallel. Players vary.
- Hip rotation / belt / depth
- The belt is turned. The trail hip is back, not walked off the ball.
- Shoulder rotation
- Shoulders have turned more than the belt. The lead shoulder is closer to the ball.
- Hip-to-shoulder difference
- This is often the coil: shoulders have out-turned the hips.
- Foot pressure
- Both feet are still down.
A shorter top is still this still.
Matching the lead forearm is one valid look, not a required flat wrist. A big cup that points the face at the sky is the miss.
Do not invent a required length. Across or wrapped behind you is the other camera.
A little move outside the heel with a real turn is still a turn, not a slide. Space toward the ball is the other camera.
How much they out-turn the belt is a style, not a test.
A smaller gap is still a valid style. The miss is no turn.
Some players still own it on the back foot. Some are already more on the front. Both can still be this still. Miss: a foot already off, or a walk-off.
Down-the-line
The club is still in front of your back shoulder, not buried behind you and not already over your head.
Check these.
- Hands relative to body
- Hands stay in front of the trail shoulder.
- Wrist picture
- If you can see the face at the sky, that is the cupping card.
- Shaft to wrists / lead arm
- The shaft points roughly along the target line.
- Hip rotation / belt / depth
- Space still matches address. The belt has not walked in.
- Shoulder rotation
- The shoulder line is still a tilt from the hips.
- Hip-to-shoulder difference
- A coil is often visible.
- Foot pressure
- You see whether they turned over a trail hip or walked off it.
Behind the body is the stuck setup.
You cannot judge the face from this camera. If you cannot see it, do not guess.
A little across or a little behind is still this still. Buried behind you, or already over the head, is the miss.
Getting much taller is loss of posture starting. Lean toward the flag is face-on.
A smaller gap is still this still.
You cannot see which foot owns the ground from this camera. Lean toward the flag is a face-on picture.
When both cameras agree, the club is still in front of the trail shoulder. Both feet are still down.
How you see it here.
- Already over the head here is a steep top. Over-the-top itself is the first move down. Over the top→
- A club buried behind the trail arm here is the stuck setup. Stuck inside→
- A face that points at the sky is this slide. Cupping at the top→
- Face-on, a chest that has leaned at the flag because the body never turned is reverse spine. Reverse spine→
Watch these clips.
Official YouTube. Start times are the bit that teaches this slide, not the whole swing.
Watch the clubface at the top. A cup that points the face at the sky is this slide. That is the club, not a wrist clinic.
One valid face match at the top, not a required flat lead wrist. Watch the club, not a wrist clinic.
Watch the trail arm versus the shirt seam at the top. Pulled behind, the club is already stuck before transition.