Appropriate footwork in golf is the signature of a professional golfer. You can get a very good idea of a golfers skillset looking at the golfers’ footwork in golf swing while playing several shots. Footwork helps you balance and master your backswing and forward swing by developing the most efficient power sources. Footwork is as important as holding the club properly and having a perfect golf swing. And this skill will develop by practicing more and more.
If you are passionate about golf and wish to play like professional golfers and develop your footwork for this instance, this article can help you most. In this article, we will be sharing why proper footwork is crucial in golf and how to do footwork like a pro in golf.
Table of Content
Importance of Footwork
Most golfers ignore the footwork or don’t give enough importance to develop proper footwork at the beginning of their careers. You may not need to master this skill if you take golf as a recreational sport. But you must need this skill for professional golf. Having a firm balance while having a golf swing is a big plus in executing any swing properly. Benefits of having good footwork can be listed like the followings:
- Allows you to accelerate your swing
- Release the club powerfully through impact
- Finish the swing in a posed position
- Balanced weight on both feet
How To Develop Footwork in Golf Practice?
Earlier in an article, we discussed how to improve your swing, there I explained a little about footwork in a golf swing. If you haven’t read that you can have a look at that now or later for better understanding. Footwork, gripping the club and good hand-eye coordination is all you need to succeed in golf. Footwork can’t be developed over the night, it requires practice. I have classified the whole process in a few drills so that you can recall them easily while practicing.
Shadow-practice weight transferring drill
Do the following drills in front of a mirror or like a shadow. This will help your muscle-memory to develop footwork.
- Make a backswing in slow-motion putting your both feet together. You will feel a slight weight shifting to your back foot.
- Now from a backswing position, do a downswing slowly. Have a club in our hands for better practice. Feel the weight transfer from the back foot to your front foot.
- Repeat this slow swing 5 times and increase the swing speed slightly faster.
The slowness of your movement is suggested because it will help you feel the weight transfer better.
Practice your swing with clubs and golf balls
By now, you know how to transfer weight from the back foot to front foot and generate some extra power, now practice your swing with a 6-iron and hit 20-30 balls around. No need to hit long, consider it like a short game. Hitting the ball for just about 50 yards will be fine. Again go slow to feel the swing and weight transfer. Try to improve your balance on swinging each time. Increase the speed of swing and power gradually.
If you feel your swing is good enough to hit the balls with balance then try the next drill. Else repeat the first one till you have a good balance on your foot while swinging.
The next drill is the same as the first one, but do the swing with one hand this time. First with your left hand and then with your right hand separately. Feel the swing and there should not be a difference in weight transfer and swing action.
Focus on your feet
You have your swing mastered by now with a balanced stance and weight transferring movement. Its time to focus on your feet. When you have the foot movement correct, you are more likely to have a proper swing with accuracy and power. Follow the following steps first as written. Take the help of the video later if needed.
- Put your legs closer, but maintain enough space to have a good balance.
- Plant your left heel firmly to initiate the forward rotation of your hips. (for a right-handed golfer)
- Turn your right foot with the rotation of your hips while completing the swing. Your right foot along with your hip should point the direction towards your aim.
Don’t turn so much that you lose your balance. You can put your left foot 20-30 degrees more open prior to going for a swing to ensure a better balance. Repeat this move for 30 times at least or more to get perfection on it. Once you get perfect footwork on a regular basis, then you may work on it and modify a little to ensure more power and strength to your swing.
Professional Golfer’s Footwork Examples
Footwork in golf is the dark horse of world-class golfers. You see golfers like Tiger Woods, Rory McIlroy, Jon Rahm, and many more, they have the perfect footwork in each swing. Have a look at their footwork in these videos.
✅ Jon Rahm’s Footwork in Slow-mo
✅ Scottie Scheffler’s INSANE Footwork
✅ Tilt, Rotate, and Extend like Sam Snead
Conclusion
Take the game of golf as friendly and recreational or competitive, you will surely enjoy the game with appropriate footwork. Because the improvement on each swing is very much visible if you do the swing and footwork properly. It is not a very difficult skill to master. You can achieve it with dedication and practice.
Follow the methods described in this article and I am sure you will master the golf footwork within some days. Write back to us after trying it. Let us know what difficulties you are facing or how helpful this is to your improvement.
