Bronte Law's Hip Decel Drill (Video)

Yes, you read that correctly. This is a hip DECELERATION drill that Bronte was using as she prepared for the pro tours -- I don't know if she still uses it or not. But since she's tied for the lead at the halfway point of the Pure Silk Championship, I thought you all might be interested in it.



After hearing so much instruction about how you have to drive your trailing hip toward the target, this idea of slowing your hip turn in order to create more clubhead speed probably sounds like heresy. But let's think about this for a moment.

The traditional idea is that, because your swing is a rotary motion and so many players are trying to hit the ball as hard as they can while leaving the clubface slightly open (to get that slight fade the big boys swear by), you need to turn as fast as you can so your hands won't pass your hips. If your hands pass your hips, so the logic goes, you'll flip the clubface closed and hit a doublecross.

But all the technology we have now is telling us that your clubhead reaches its peak speed just before impact. And if you've paid attention to all those swing analyses of players like Rory, you'll know that his hips stop during his downswing and actually move backward a bit before they finish their turn through the ball.

That's basically what Bronte's drill does. Throwing that medicine ball straight down at the ground stops her hip turn -- in the drill, that is -- so she can speed up her hands and arms to create more speed.

During your real swing, your hips won't actually stop; they'll just slow down a bit. That's why this is called a decel drill and not a stopping drill. It also stabilizes your swing, so you don't slide too far forward during your downswing, which would cause you to just "wipe" the ball and hit a weak push or slice.

And -- this is very important -- it also teaches you to hit down on the ball instead of lifting up and hitting it thin. You can't slam that ball into the ground if you don't move down!

So this is a simple drill that can help the mechanics of your swing in a lot of ways while giving you a simple swing thought ("slam that ball!") that makes those mechanics happen almost automatically. The less you have to think about mechanics, the more consistent you'll be.