Pros vs Joes: how hip turn can increase distance

One of the biggest differences that GOLFTEC’s SwingTRU motion study found after looking at hundreds of thousands of swings was how much more PGA Tour players turn their hips at impact than lower skill level players. This movement directly correlates to skill and more importantly- power. Let’s dive into what hip turn is, and how you can get the most of your swing to hit the ball farther.

Hip turn as measured by GOLFTEC is simply the rotation of the lower body towards or away from the target. GOLFTEC Coaches measure this movement in degrees either open or closed relative to a neutral body position. What SwingTRU suggests is that the more you move your hips open at impact, the higher-skilled golfer you have the potential to be.

Now that you know a little more about hip turn and how it relates to skill, you can begin to identify if you need to improve your hip turn through impact. You might want to look more like the golfer in the green shirt if your contact is good but you struggle to hit the ball far enough or your distance is good and you struggle with control- often pushing or overdrawing your shots.

If either of these golfers sounds like you or someone you know, we’re addressing how you can start to turn more at impact and watch your shots fly higher, straighter and farther.

Before you start to turn faster it’s important to know that is more difficult for your body to rotate when it flexing or bending towards the ground. Think of a figure skater making a spin in the Olympics. As the skater gets “taller” they begin to spin faster, when they move closer to the ice their spins slow down.