Updated: 10-09-2019

Are you struggling with keeping your head behind the ball in the golf swing?

It's frustrating, right? I mean, no matter how hard you try, you keep making the same mistake over and over again and can't seem to fix it.

It's enough to make you want to throw a club sometimes!

But, take heart, not only will I fix this problem for you in short order, I'm going to show you how to fix much more than that in your swing!

How'd you like to not only stop moving your head in front of the ball at impact, but also stop swinging over the top and slicing at the same time?

Even better, how'd you like to learn the "pro secrets" to consistency and effortless power AND start shooting in the 70's like John did:

If you'd like to learn the ONE SIMPLE DRILL that will truly transform your swing, keep your head behind the ball and start shooting your lowest scores, enter your info above to watch my FREE video on the new DEAD Drill!

STEP 1: MAKE SURE YOU'RE SETUP CORRECTLY BEHIND THE GOLF BALL

What is the correct head position in the golf swing? Most golfers setup to the golf ball incorrectly to start with. That is that their head is both too far in front of the ball at setup and ends up even further ahead at impact. It is critical that your head position in the golf swing stay behind the ball throughout the entire swing and especially at impact. This is because we need our head behind the ball for maximum release at impact. If your head is in front of the golf ball at impact, you'll always be robbing yourself of power.

In the swing sequence below, you can see just how this golfer demonstrates keeping his head behind the ball at impact. Hitting a 6 iron here, this golfer exhibits a perfect ball position at address with the left side of his head setup directly on the back of the ball.

At impact, his head stays well behind the ball and he is in a great impact position.

Now, contrast that with an amateur's golf swing who exhibits the "flip" discussed in the video. Can you spot the differences?

The amateur golfer sets up with the golf ball too far back in his stance in relation to his head. This incorrect head position in the golf swing leads to other common golf swing flaws as well. In his effort to "stay centered" over the ball, he never gets behind the ball at the top of his backswing. This is a common "phobia" for most golfers as they fear "swaying" off the ball. By trying to incorrectly prevent the sway, they end up with a reverse pivot and a weak golf swing.

During the golf swing transition, his head naturally moves forward with the weight shift to the left side and his head gets further out in front of the ball by the time he arrives at impact. This forces him to release the club early just to make contact.

It's critical that you setup with your left ear on the back of the golf ball at address and that you have a proper amount of axis tilt. Axis tilt actually is one of the main setup traits that determines swing plane. Without axis tilt, you're almost certain to reverse pivot and swing over the top.

STEP 2: DON'T PUSH FROM THE RIGHT SIDE

This is where most golfers go severely off path with their golf swings and end up with their heads well out in front of the ball at impact, and even end up with hip pain in the golf swing. The feeling of pushing off the right leg aggressively or "pushing" from the right side of the torso are very powerful feelings that take work to overcome, but it is critical that you learn to not be overly dominant with the right side of the body. The challenge of the game of golf is that is a predominantly left side dominanted movement and most golfers are very right handed. I spend much of my time with my students teaching them to move their body and left arm correctly in the swing.

Learning how to rotate correctly and stay centered in the golf swing starts right from the takeaway. If you want to keep your head behind the ball at impact and have the correct head position in the golf swing, you need to learn how to use the correct muscles that keep you centered during the takeaway. Take a look at the picture of Tiger Woods backswing below and note how his head stays behind the ball throughout the backswing. You can also see the axis tilt he has at address and how he maintains that axis tilt to the top of his golf backswing - this is critical for learning how to keep your head behind the ball in the golf swing.

Note how Tiger's head stays centered due to the pulling motion created by the right side of torso and the rotary motion of the obliques during the backswing. If Tiger were to push his left shoulder under his chin, it would lead to his head moving off the ball. Note how Tiger's head stays centered due to the pulling motion created by the right side of torso and the rotary motion of the obliques during the backswing. If Tiger were to push his left shoulder under his chin, it would lead to his head moving off the ball.

Tiger's head doesn't move an inch in the above swing sequence. Why do most golfers' heads move off the ball during the backswing? Because they push from the left side. If you don't understand this concept, check out the push vs. pull video here. The concept of pushing vs. pulling is one of the most important golf swing fundamentals that you'll ever learn and it will change your golf swing for the better, I promise! It's truly ground-breaking!

Now, as the golf downswing begins, you have to reverse the process to unwind while keeping your head behind the ball. The main reason golfers move their heads in front of the ball at impact is pushing from the right side. They do this in an effort to try and get too much power from the body because they don't have enough lag or don't know how to use lag properly for club head speed.

The trick of the golf swing is, when it's done correctly, it will feel like there is virtually zero effort involved. However, if you're like the 99% of amateur golfers out there that push from the right side, every shot feels like a herculean effort and it will take time for your mind to adjust to the fact that you simply don't have to work that hard in a proper golf swing.

STEP 3: USE THE RIGHT ARM TO KEEP THE HEAD BEHIND THE BALL

It may seem strange to focus on the right arm while discussing keeping your head behind the ball, but it is part of the formula to help get the arms back in front of the chest at impact. Take a look at Tiger keeping his head behind the golf ball at impact in the swing sequence below.

At impact, Tiger Woods' head is still behind the golf ball. At impact, Tiger Woods' head is still behind the golf ball.

Note how Tiger stays very centered and demonstrates the correct head position in golf. If you're pushing from the right leg or right side of the body, it will be nearly impossible for you to keep your head positioned behind the golf ball. However, you can use the extension of the right arm to help deliver the golf club back to the ball. When combined with the proper movements of the left arm in the golf swing, you'll have a picture perfect impact position just like you see above.

DOES THE HEAD EVER MOVE IN FRONT OF THE BALL?

One tiny detail that shouldn't be overlooked is the position of Tiger Woods' head in the frame on the left. You should note that his head has in fact moved slightly in front of the line it was on at address. This is actually an important fundamental of the golf swing - your head DOES move in front of the ball, but then it moves back as you being to release the golf club.

The head position should change and move forward during the weight shift phase of the golf swing. If it doesn't and you just move your hips forward, your head will fall away from that line and create a lot of secondary axis tilt. This tends to shift the horizontal swing plane to the right, and leads to big blocks and hooks; not to mention a very sore back and left hip.

You will note, however, that as Tiger begins to fire the right arm after he has shifted his weight the head moves back to the exact same position it was at address. I discuss this further in the golf instruction video at the top of this article.

WHERE CLUB HEAD SPEED COMES FROM

You may not realize that over 60% of the club head speed in the golf swing actually comes from the release of the wrists. In fact, the golf club accelerates from around 25 mph to over 90 mph with a mid-iron in better golfers' swings in only the last three feet of the golf swing. Clearly, your body is not speeding the golf club up that much in such a short span of time and so late in the downswing. In fact, most professional golfers' bodies are actually slowing down during this phase in the swing.

This isn't always the case with amateurs because they lack lag in the downswing. So, they must try and make up for the speed somewhere with the body and pushing from the dominant right side is usually the place they seek power. The professional knows he only needs to focus on releasing the wrists correctly and he won't have the need to overuse the body for power. He will be able to use his right arm and wrist which will allow him to stay behind the ball at impact. This is the key differentiator between professional and amateur golfers and why pros look so effortless when they swing the club.

As you use lag in your golf swing to build club head speed, you can easily keep your head behind the ball like you see here. As you use lag in your golf swing to build club head speed, you can easily keep your head behind the ball like you see here.

If you want to know how to use lag in the golf swing to help you stay behind the golf ball, check out this article. Otherwise, click the link below to watch this video on how to keep your head behind the ball.