The perfect golf swing is a well oiled power chain, all the way from the feet to the hands. Any weak link, leaks or blocks power from the whole swing.

Contrary to the belief of many, it is NOT muscle strength that gets those long shots humming, it's muscle power. And power comes from harnessing every inch of energy from every part of the body and building it into an explosive coil to be released at the appropriate time.

Postural alignment and body fluidity need to work together to effect the perfect biomechanical movements needs to transfer power at this maximum force.

This transfer of power is easily blocked by points of tension or leakage in the coil. Stress and tension are common to new players. Whether there is tension in the spine through lack of flexibility, tension in the shoulders from incorrect posture, or too much pressure in the grip. All of these weaknesses block and leak power.

Common areas of power loss are:

Collapsing Knees
Spinal tension
Left Shoulder Stress
Grip Stress

Collapsing Knees

At address knees should be slightly bent and facing forward. During the swing, knees should remain bent and braced to allow correct power transfer up the body and to stop the hips over rotating; losing valuable torque in the upper body.

Common knee faults during the backswing that leak power are:

Left knee collapses inward - instead keep it facing forward and braced.

Right knee stiffens and straightens - keep weight on the inside of the right foot, maintain a slight bend in the knee, and keep it equally braced with the left knee.

Keeping both knees braced helps the upper body coil up like a spring, storing essential energy to release to the ball during the forward swing.

Spinal Tension

If the spine is stiff, it cannot rotate freely around the swing axis; resulting in off-plane swings and tension in the arms as they seek to compensate. It also results in a lot of back injuries common to golfers. The best thing a beginner golfer can do for themselves is undertake a golf specific strength and flexibility training program before they ever pick up a golf club.

Left Shoulder Stress

Your left shoulder area must be relaxed throughout the swing. Any tension in your shoulder muscles [trapezoids and deltoids] will block the flow of energy coming from the feet up through the body.

Grip Stress

This is a hard one to get right but well worth persevering with. Your grip needs to be lose enough to almost feel like the club is going to fly out of your hands. The most common grip pressure fault is with the thumbs, so check that these are not too tense and pressing too hard on the club. Too much grip pressure prevents your wrists from cocking and uncocking naturally; thereby restricting the swing and leaking power before the optimal moment.

Next: More on Power Leakage In Your Drive