One of the most common ailments in golf is the “over the top.” It plagues golfers of all ages and ability levels. I would be rich if I had a nickel for every time someone said they swung the club over the top!
So what exactly is it? And, how can you make changes in your swing to prevent yourself from doing it?
Over the top happens when your club crosses the swing plane to the outside at the beginning of the downswing. It causes a swing path that travels from outside to inside. At this point your angle of attack with the club is too steep and you have no chance of striking the ball from the inside. If you close the clubface too much you will pull hook. If you open the face too much you will create a banana slice. Bottom line is over the top creates too much sidespin!
A lot of beginners and weekend golfers play this way because they do not understand the cause and effect laws on sidespin. How many times have you seen “how to fix your slice” in Golf Digest? Probably a couple hundred in the last year because Golf Digest knows about the over the top plague.
Why do baseball and hockey players suffer from this move more than anyone else? Because they want crush the ball with their upper body, similar to their respective sport. Using the upper body from the top is a tell tale sign of an impending over the top. Let me give you an example. At the completion of the backswing, there is very little weight shift to the front foot. The shoulders and hips rotate back to the ball at the same time and the club travels back to the ball too steep. The club crosses to the outside of the swing plane and cuts across the ball, producing tons of sidespin. This all happens mainly because the hands and arms maneuvered the club back down to the ball with too much force.
Keep this in mind as a summary of the over the top. Your downswing begins without enough lower body movement and the club crosses to the outside of your swing plane as it begins a steep path back to the ball.
Now that you know about the over the top move. What is the best way to prevent this from happening in your swing. The first thing to keep in mind is that the backswing starts with your upper body and the downswing starts with your lower body. Within this framework, at the completion of the backswing, your lower body shifts your weight to your front foot and begins the unwinding process. Your arms and hands do not consciously maneuver the club back down to the ball.
Another concept to think about is the backswing sets up the downswing. If you set up a backswing that’s too upright, the beginning of the downswing will have a tendency to return on the same path. The best way to safeguard against this is to maintain width between your head and your hands. So at the top of your backswing your hands are not next to your head. There is enough space between your head and your hands to create some width and leverage in your swing. This will help to flatten out your swing plane and help you return to the ball from the inside.
Long and Straight!
Adam
