If I tightened my hip muscles and made my hips move then my whole body swayed back and forth like a tree. You do not want this change of positioning of your upper body during your swing movements. It becomes very difficult to re-align yourself to ball as club is hitting golf ball.

Somewhere, an area of my body was collapsing to permit this unwanted hip movement.

The answer came from observing my movements in floor-length mirror while keeping my hip muscles firm. My body was swaying like a tree but my feet were not moving.

The only part of me which could allow this 'tree-like' sway was my ankle joints. I yanked up my pant legs (what a ghastly sight!) I swayed some more.

Sure enough there was a lot of movement in my ankle joints.

In 2 clips on my website I use exaggerated hip and leg movements to show how much bending of ankles there can be. You will see how far away my legs and hips move from their start position.

Can you imagine how hard it would be to push a car out of a snow bank or mud puddle if your hips were wandering or swaying?

CORRECTING THE FAULTY MOVEMENT

Prior to producing any swing movements I would firm my lower leg muscles to prevent joint movement in my ankles. No wandering hips and a much stronger connection to ground while I swung golf club was result.

You will have much better control in your lower body by firming your lower leg muscles.

Two clips on my website show that my hips rotate around my tailbone. There is no wandering or swaying of my hips or legs. My lower legs stay in proper alignment with my feet. There is NO bending at my ankles.

My turning movements are balanced. They are controlled and have power from a solid connection to ground. Sloppy movements at my ankles which would rob some of power of my turn are prevented.

Firming your lower leg muscles locks your ankles in place. This will help you to have a more precise golf swing for power hitting and for delicate chips around green.

Practice at home in front of a mirror to train your ankles to remain at a desired level of firmness to better control your leg and hip movements.

A good thought is to picture yourself running through rough terrain or uneven ground. The way to do this without twisting or breaking an ankle is to tighten your ankle joints.

Oh yes! This better control of your hips will help to protect your lower back from injury.

Hopefully, in near future, I will show you how to protect a tender or injured back while you continue golfing.

Copyright © by Glen Osborne July 2005. All Rights Reserved

I entered many tournaments with mixed success, I probably won twelve minor local tournaments. I also joined a league team and played on most Wednesday evenings during snooker season.

At age of twenty seven after playing snooker on full size snooker tables for fifteen years I finally managed to score my first one hundred break. A week later I managed to get another one hundred break, a bit like buses hey!

I must admit my determination has now started to wane and even though I still love to play snooker, I have not managed another one hundred break since.