Golf Downswing: Move Front & Back Knee Towards the TargetOn the downswing, the rotation and turning of the front and back knees in the direction of the target are keys for achieving a good impact position and follow through. Whereas, failure to move the knees properly results looks like a “stick in the mud” swing that lacks power, accuracy and consistency. A popular phrase used in describing the impact position is the term “cleared hips.” This simply means that the hips have rotated to an open position. Stated differently, the hips are pointed to the left of the target for right handed golfers and vice versa for left handed golfers at impact. Well, it is anatomically impossible to clear your hips without turning your knees toward the target. The hips just can’t turn independent of the knees. You can test this yourself by bending over and holding your knees still and then trying to turn your hips. Thus, poor knee movement leads to a failure to clear the hips at your impact position. And by extension, you obviously can’t make the full turn into your follow through. If you have this problem, it means that you have introduced a restriction into your swing that effectively puts on the breaks to your club head speed long before impact. The root of the locked knee problem is two fold. First, people have problems turning their knees because they lost the bend in the back leg they establish at address at some point during their backswing. Unbent knees don’t turn. Second, golfers fail to allow their feet to roll towards the target. I spoke about this concerning the back foot in the article entitled back foot thrust. The same type of rolling ankle/foot effect applies to the front foot as well. Feet that don’t roll lock the knees ability to turn toward the target. The answer then is clear. Maintain your back knee bend on the backswing and roll the feet towards toward the target on the down swing to allow for proper knee turn. Because, while the amount of knee turn varies with swing styles and flexibility, knee turn is crucial for everyone’s swing move down to and through the ball. Incorporate this tip into your game to lower your scores.
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