subject: More power for female golfers [print this page] More power for female golfers More power for female golfers
As soon as the ball is in the air, your ego kicks in. Power with a capital P becomes your concern. Power intoxicates your mind. Power makes legends out of mere mortals. Power makes you want to get a tattoo. Power also sends the ball to the far corners of your little green world if you don't harness it.
Some professional golfers can create as much as 4.5 horsepower in their swings. That's some kind of giddy-up. The ball leaves their drivers at speeds of more than 150 mph. This power comes from a blending of the body twisting around a slightly moving pivot point with a swinging of the arms and hands up and around on the backswing, and then down and around in the forward swing. All of which occurs in the space of about a second! The key to optimum power is to try to turn your back to the target on your backswing, which involves another Golf For Dummies mustdo: On the backswing, turn your left shoulder under your chin until your shoulder is over your right foot. Make sure that you turn your shoulders far enough. Don't just raise your arms. Turning your shoulders ensures that you have power for the forward move. Turn for power. The unwinding of the hips and the shoulders on the downswing creates the power surge.
The same swing principles apply for women. However, to build momentum and swing speed, ladies generally rely less on muscle and more on a longer backswing. A long backswing allows complete rotation in the left shoulder, which enables the left arm to extend fully and cocks the wrist to help release power.
I've seen plenty of female golfers with tremendous power women from Mickey Wright to Laura Davies to Michelle Wie. But for the most part, female golfers struggle to generate power. The average woman simply doesn't have the same upper-body, forearm, and wrist strength as a man. Much to her dismay, she finds it physically impossible to drive the ball 300 yards.
By doing a few simple strengthening and conditioning exercises, female golfers or golfers at any level can strengthen their upper bodies, wrists, and forearms enough to boost the power in their swings.
Here's one simple exercise that improves wrist strength and you can do it almost anywhere. Take a tennis ball in your hand and squeeze until it hurts. Then switch hands and do the same thing. You don't have to give yourself carpal tunnel syndrome just repeat this exercise for at least five minutes with each hand. You'll notice gradual improvement in your wrist and forearm strength, which will help you avoid wrist injury and arm fatigue and will add yards to your drives.
