Coaches’ Perceptions of Posture

Fourteen of the sixteen coaches identified ‘Posture’ as a key technical parameter of a successful elite golf swing. For many of these coaches, posture was one of the first parameters referred to when asked, ‘what technical parameters are vital for a successful elite golf swing?’

Through clarification of the term posture, two sub categories were revealed; ‘Spine

Angle’ and ‘Postural Balance’. The coaches referred to ‘posture’ at various stages

throughout the swing and therefore regarded ‘posture’ as both a static and dynamic parameter.

The sub-category ‘spine angle’ referred to the degree of ‘forward bend’ or flexion of the trunk/spine to the pelvis during set-up.

30 [Posture]...is having the correct amount of forward bend to the pelvis and torso, keeping the lumbar and thoracic as neutral as possible so bending forward from the hips, not so much from the knees, or rounded back.

Most coaches regarded the ‘spine angle’ as one rigid segment and only a few coaches would separate the spine angle into different sections including the lumbar and thoracic region of the trunk. Typically, the coaches would analyse a golfer’s spine angle at set- up from a ‘down the line’ position (i.e. right side of right handed golfer facing target). Achieving the correct ‘spine angle’ at set-up was linked to other technical parameters such as ‘swing plane’ and if ‘posture’ was not correct at set-up then this could have detrimental effects on the remainder of the swing.

If they are set incorrectly in posture they can't work the body correctly... they're moving the wrong plane of movement and then part of the reason why their club is moving in a funny fashion is because the body is actually moving incorrectly. Another important aspect of ‘spine angle’ was for golfers to maintain this angle throughout the swing. Maintaining the spine angle was reported to prevent any compensatory movements during the golf swing. The idea of ‘matching’ certain golfer movements throughout the swing was also linked to the notion of maintaining the spine angle.

[Posture is] the forward bend...if someone has got a particular forward bend at set-up, let us say 40 degrees of forward bend, then we’re looking at them to have that at the top of the backswing... they’re matching themselves...we’ve not got any funky movements.

Therefore, posture during the swing was about maintaining this spine angle in order to create a rotatory axis which the golfer would rotate around during the golf swing.

[Stable axis] I mean the centre of the golf swing...or the rotatory axis is the spine [and it] should work in a stable fashion...I would advocate a rotation around the top of the spine and that is stability.

Nevertheless, the coach above also stated that the stable axis should move slightly laterally. This statement could be due to this coach’s definition of what constitutes the spine angle or rotatory axis. For example, this coach refers to rotation at ‘the top of the

31 spine’ (i.e. thoracic) where as other coaches refer to the whole trunk when discussing spine angle.

Furthermore, some coaches referred to the position of the head when creating a stable axis. When a golfer was viewed to have minimal head movement, they were said to be increasingly stable and able to rotate during the swing.

Head position must stay central...if the head position is moving then that’s the whole base of the swing gone.

We’ve done a bit of work...on stabilisers, so his head hardly shifts now, he can work his body far better.

Maintaining a stable rotatory axis was viewed as important to creating a powerful and efficient swing above other technical parameters such as ‘body rotation’ and ‘club motion’.

The guys that are more efficient [and] powerful are the guys that maintain a good centre and rotate around it...not necessarily making massive rotations. We’ve seen some guys have shorter rotations [hips and shoulders] but they are staying stable...it’s about maintaining those postures...to reduce injury and to allow the club to get back to the golf ball more consistently.

The coaches stressed that by maintaining the rotatory axis the golfer was able to create certain positions with the club in order to create consistent ‘club motion’, such as a centred strike.

If you were to draw a line through somebody’s back and one on the front of the head and top of the head and they maintained those points in rotation you’ll probably centre the strike pretty well.

Similarly, having poor posture during set-up and subsequently throughout the swing was suggested to have a detrimental effect on a golfers ‘body rotations’.

When [the elite golfer] first came [he] stood in terrible posture...so he’s out of balance...the shoulders [were] really rounded forward in set-up, so he’s almost putting a neck brace on...locking his spine up. So then you’ll [see] somebody shift back away from the ball or tip into the ball, so they can’t rotate around an axis.

32 The comment above also introduced another element of posture which could affect other technical parameters. The notion of creating a stable axis was also linked to the sub category ‘postural balance’.

Posture is being in good balance, creating the correct spinal angle. If you’ve spinal angle is not right and if your balance is not right, then there are a lot of counterbalances with the golf swing to try and adjust it.

Therefore, some coaches argued that the degree of spine angle was as important as creating a balanced position. ‘Postural balance’ was defined statically at set-up as positioning the ‘centre of gravity’ correctly and repeating the position.

The reason for posture...is to develop two key balance points...the sternum and the belt buckle...and then be able to move around them.

From this balanced set-up position, the golfer was deemed to have improved rotational movement which led to improved ‘postural balance’. One coach believed that a combination of poor posture (which was defined as the degree of forward bend of torso to pelvis) and poor ‘sequential movement of body segments’ would lead to poor ‘postural balance’, which ultimately lead to a loss of power and accuracy in the golf shot. Any compensatory movement or counterbalances in the golf swing were as a result of poor postural balance and, for golf coaches, one of the main aims was to simplify the movements during the golf swing.

Another sub-category of ‘postural balance’ was ‘weight transfer’. Some coaches spoke of tracing the golfer’s weight transfer from set-up and through the golf swing. The coaches assessed a golfer’s weight transfer by observing the lower body, in particular the golfer’s feet and poor weight transfer could lead to issues with a golfer’s ball flight.

[Posture is when the] body is in a balanced position that enables the club to get moving efficiently and effectively around the body... if somebody’s weight gets too much on the heels it’s going to be very difficult for us to get the correct pitch of the shoulders in the backswing.

If someone is shanking the ball…they’re coming into impact and leaning onto their toes and not clearing the hip, then you can see straight away that their weight is on their toes, so you can just get them kicking their weight back as they hit it.

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