3 ways to improve your golf without leaving home

Increase your flexibility It’s lockdown here in Sydney so you’re likely to be leaving home less. With that being said, your activity levels are probably down and you may be noticing more stiffness in your muscles and joints compared to normal. Try a couple of quick tests now: 1. Firstly try and touch your toes, how does this feel? Could you get to your toes? Did you feel stiffness in your lower back or hamstrings? 2. Next, hold a golf club horizontally above your head and perform a deep squat. Can you get past parallel? Did your hands stay above your head, or did they drop? If you are struggling with these two tests, it’s likely you struggle with flexibility. When assessing golf clients, I run them through a Titleist Performance Institute screen, which is a combination of 16 different tests. From this testing you can discover where in your body you lack strength, flexibility and balance. 26/30 of the worlds best golfers have had a TPI screen and so should you. To find some effective stretches go to my instagram golf_physio_aus.

(Image: Golf.com)

Increase your strength Do you struggle performing 20 push-ups? Can you perform 10 single leg squats easily? If you can’t, you may lack strength. In the TPI screen a basic test involves doing a single leg bridge lying flat on your back. You are then required to hold this for 30 seconds. If you begin to cramp in your legs or feel stress in your back, you certainly have something to work on. If you want to compare yourself to tour professionals try to perform lunges with 150% of your bodyweight for eight repetitions on each leg (including your bodyweight). For example I weigh 90kg and 150% of my weight is 135kg. For me to pass this test, I would need to hold 45kg and perform 8 lunges on each leg. We know with great reliability that increased strength correlates with increased power and increased power correlates with increased swing speed..

Increase your swing speed

Swing speed and driving distance has a direct link to scoring on the PGA tour. Those who swing the club the fastest typically make the most money. As you would know, greens are easier to approach with a wedge compared to a longer iron.

At home you can easily work on your speed without hitting a golf ball. My recommendation would be performing speed training 2-3 times per week using your driver or purchasing a set of SuperSpeed golf sticks.

My favourite protocol to follow on the SuperSpeed golf site involves:

3 swings in each direction:

1. With feet together

2. Performing step through swings

3. Performing normal swings

You are likely to get a better result using speed sticks and a speed monitor, though the action of swinging your driver alone will give you some great benefits. The key to swing speed training is consistency and intensity. Make frequent and high efforts for the best results.

Bonus tip: book an online TPI screening with me If you want to get your body moving in the right direction and limit any nasty niggles this summer, book in a TPI screen. To book send me an email me at golfphysioaustralia@gmail.com or text me 0414 217 723.

Billy