Dr. Yessis Sports Training Blog

One of the most common recommendations given to golfers is to rotate the arms on the backswing. There are even many devices now available that teach you to rotate the arms as you take the backswing. These are correct recommendations that also fail to bring out that you cannot take a full backswing without rotating the arms.

If you did not rotate the arms on the backswing you’d only be able to raise the arms to about chest level. And, it would feel very uncomfortable and put you in a more or less cramped position. You can easily verify this by trying to take a full backswing holding your arms in exactly the same position as they are in the stance.

You’ll find out very quickly that you must rotate the arms in order to execute a full backswing. Instead of rotating the arms you may find it said that you should rotate the forearms on the backswing. However, in order to have full forearm rotation you’ll need to have strongly bent elbows. This is not desirable.

If you’re arms are straight as in the stance and at the beginning of the backswing, arm rotation always occurs in the shoulder joint. You will however, get forearm rotation in the right arm as you go into the full backswing when you bend the right arm in order to get to the top position.

Without rotating the arms you’ll find that it is also impossible to cock the wrists in the lateral plane. Thus the arm rotation plays a very important role and is one of the first things that most golfers learn and do automatically when they take their backswings.

Just. as arm rotation is important on the backswing, it is equally important on the downswing. Not only is it necessary to bring the club face back to the square position but in so doing it also creates additional force to propel the ball even further. Without full arm rotation you would be unable to have an accurate hit and there would be little power in your swing.

To not only develop a better feel for the arm rotation in both the backswing and downswing you should do specialized exercises such as medial and lateral rotation of the arm with the Strength Bar.

For more information on the role of the arms and arm rotation in particular, see Explosive Golf. Also contained in the book are many strength exercises that can make the arm action even more effective. To see these exercises being demonstrated, see the Explosive Golf DVD.