Constant Elbows Pressure & The Fixed Triangle

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Constant Elbow Pressure

If you’ve been following me for a while, you know that I mention constant grip pressure and passive hands a lot. If we want the large muscles to dominate, it is crucial that grip pressure remain constant so the hands do not take over. It is equally important to maintain constant pressure between the elbows, keeping them directed toward each other.

As I work with my students and address different issues with their golf swings, I find that many of these problems can be eliminated if their elbows start close together—pointing back toward the hips—and remain directed toward each other during the swing.

The front arm stays straight on the backswing while the back arm bends a little, and the opposite happens on the downswing. A little bending is not what I’m talking about; I’m talking about keeping the elbows close together.

It is almost too simple. By maintaining constant elbow pressure throughout the entire swing, the shoulders can control the backswing, and body rotation can control the downswing through to the finish.

The Fixed Triangle

Okay, let’s tie it all together. Ideally, we want to maintain both constant elbow pressure and constant grip pressure throughout the entire swing. I’ve thought of a way to do both with one thought: combine them into a single “triangle.”

Imagine your elbows staying directed toward each other as two fixed points on a triangle, with your hands maintaining constant grip pressure as the third point that completes it. Now, all we have to do is maintain this “Fixed Triangle” during the swing, and we’ll get both jobs done.

There is something about keeping this triangle intact during the swing that keeps the hands and elbows connected and busy, letting the shoulders control the backswing and the body turn control the downswing. All we have to do is maintain the Fixed Triangle back and through.

This concept is fresh and new, but I’ve seen great results so far. I would love feedback, good or bad.

You must have the shaft in line with your front arm at setup, which is how we want it to return as we turn through impact.

Please start with short shots, then lengthen the backswing a little—but only with more shoulder turn, not by lifting. You can turn through impact as fast or as slowly as you’d like for great results.

I’ll make a video soon.


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