David Lingmerth - Left Leg Impact Position

mpact, the most important part of the golf swing! The big pay off for all of the hard work you have done in earlier parts of the swing. The big question...is your current impact position safe on your body?

In this video, I discuss the impact position of PGA Tour player David Lingmerth and how he puts he left leg into a pretty dangerous position through the hitting area. Why is it dangerous? The left knee is pushed well beyond neutral joint alignment (NJA).

Your knee is designed as a hinge joint, that allows for forward and backward movement. There is very little room for rotation of the knee and when you are out beyond NJA, you are forcing the knee to become the primary balancing/pivoting joint which can cause extreme wear and deterioration over time.

Your hip, if positioned in NJA and in true balance in the golf swing, should be able to rotate very safely without causing any sort of harm on the body at all.

With that said, in order to protect the critical joints, that often times sustain injury by professional golfers, you must make sure that your impact alignments of the lead side of your body are in NJA at impact. For a close look at a proper and safe impact position, check out the "impact alignments - face on" video.

How do you work to build a safe and efficient impact position?

Well, we must make sure that as you are starting your downswing, your lower body is dynamically moving into the your lead side, with your glutes activated for stability. You also must have a clear understanding of what true balance in the golf swing means, because this is where you weight MUST start the golf swing at, and remain for duration of the swing in order to move the body as it is designed to do.

Shifting the weight all the way into the lead side, in true balance, with your glutes activate is the key to your success. It is always best to train your body to move without the club at first. You can slowly add the club back into the mix once you have mastered the movements that I have mentioned throughout this article.

Golf instruction has always lacked a clear understanding of how to move the body in the swing without causing injury. We have more or less been subjected to the idea that we have to swing a certain way because that is what the greatest player in the world is currently doing. This sort of mentality needs to stop and golf instructors need to start having a much more clear picture of anatomy and kinesiology so that you golfers can avoid injuries while playing the game you love so much.  

A quick recap…

• Learn what true balance really means and determine a proper stance width.

• Check out the impact alignments face on video and compare your own impact position.

• Learn how to properly shift into your lead side.

• Use your glutes for stability and safety.