The Reverse Weight Shift

Hanging back on your hind-leg through impact side is a common swing fault for amateur golfers. This position is indicative of a classic reverse weight shift. This position is also called the “reverse C” finish. If you’re falling backwards after a shot, or notice your body weight on your hind leg after a shot (which …

Hanging back on your hind-leg through impact side is a common swing fault for amateur golfers. This position is indicative of a classic reverse weight shift. This position is also called the “reverse C” finish. If you’re falling backwards after a shot, or notice your body weight on your hind leg after a shot (which is much more common than you may think), you suffer from this swing fault. A common ball flight and trajectory with this fault is a slice that lacks power and distance. How does it happen?

Jack nickalus reverse c swingWell… before I go into more detail about this, there is something you have to understand about the backswing. Technically there are two parts to the backswing, in the first part of the backswing, the hips slide laterally away from the target and body weight should move onto your hind leg. In the second part, your hips turn back towards the target, and coil, as your weight begins to shift forward to complete the backswing.

I also want to be clear about one thing, a reverse C position isn’t necessarily a bad thing if you shift your weight properly. Some of the best players in the world played with a reverse C – for example, Jack Nicklaus. But a reverse c is a good sign of potential weight shift problems. The most common causes being either poor ball position or too much lateral motion with the hips on the backswing.

The problem is; if you incorrectly shift your weight on the backswing, you cannot recover in time to make solid contact with the ball. You’re only recourse to try and make decent contact is to release your wrists early in the downswing (obviously resulting in a lack of power). Basically, a poor weight shift brings nothing but a poor swing, and poor contact.

The next time you’re looking for a good laugh, find a player who has this swing fault on the range; get them to perform a swing on only their lead leg (just tell them this drill will help fix it – because it will). There’s only two outcomes, one, they don’t perform a reverse c, two, they fall down. Try not to laugh too hard guys…