In golf a flat wrist at the top of the backswing is a very important concept to master. This online golf lesson is dedicated to explaining the backswing and particularly the concept of a flat wrist. For a right-handed golfer this will be a flat left wrist at the top of the backswing.
A solid, flat left wrist in the backswing of the golf swing assists with keeping the golf club on plane, keeps the transition from getting loose, helps stop over swinging and most importantly helps the golfer hit straight golf shots with consistent, controlled trajectory. Read on for a full explanation and don’t forget to watch the video at the end and leave your comments.
Golf Backswing: Flat Wrist at the Top
There are so many possible angles and wrist positions in a golf swing, we first need to clarify what these are and what the desired backswing position looks like. By definition the flat wrist position at the top of the backswing for a right handed player involves having the left forearm, left wrist and back of left hand all in alignment as if a ruler were strapped to the arm like a splint while the wrist is hinged or cocked approximately 90 degrees. Assuming the golfer has a neutral golf grip, the leading edge of the clubface will also be in the same plane as the back of the left hand. See “Top of Backswing” photo upper left.
The difficulty of getting into this flat wrist position in the backswing for most golfers is due to the hinging of the wrists and rotation of the forearms during the takeaway and backswing. The wrists can hinge in four directions and the forearms can rotate back and forth in two directions. In layman’s terms the wrists hinge or cock up and down and hinge back and forth while the forearms can also roll back and forth. These movements can get pretty mixed up if not trained correctly or if simply left to whatever the player deems comfortable. In fact to further complicate things, we want a flat left wrist at the top of the backswing and impact, while at the start of the golf swing the left wrist is actually slightly cupped.
Don’t get confused yet. Let’s get the layman’s terms, medical terms, and golf terms all defined so the language doesn’t sidetrack us. I’m using a yardstick in the photos instead of a golf club since the flat sided yardstick will reveal more detail about the positions. Try it; it’s good for working on the grip also.
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Cupped left wrist - dorsiflexion
Cupped left wrist. Medical term is dorsiflexion with knuckles bent back toward watch face. Notice flat face of yardstick faces up “adding loft.”
Cupped wrist at top of backswing with Open Clubface
Generally causes an open clubface at top of backswing with toe pointed down, followed by casting and scooping at impact with high weak slices unless the player is able to manipulate the wrist back into a flat position on the downswing. Note Ben Hogan went from cupped wrist at the top to flat or bowed at impact, but it is a very difficult, advanced move for most and he was trying not to hook.
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Bowed left wrist - Palmar flexion
Bowed wrist at top of backswing with Closed Clubface
Bowed left wrist. Medical term is palmar flexion with palm bent in toward inner forearm.
Generally creates a closed clubface facing the sky at top of backswing. Club tends to get laid off and too flat on downswing. Shots are usually low and/or hooked unless the player manipulates the wrist and clubface back open on the downswing in which case blocked shots become prevalent.
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Flat Left Wrist
Flat left wrist with slight palmar flexion considered good for top of backswing & impact position.
Back of hand, forearm, watch face and leading edge of yardstick are all “flat” in the same plane. With a neutral grip, this would yield a perfectly “square” clubface with the leading edge of the face in alignment with the back of the hand at top of backswing and impact.
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Dorsiflexion of right wrist
Bent right wrist. Medical term is dorsiflexion.
Good position at mid backswing, top of backswing and pre-impact area.
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Wrist Cock - Radial Deviation
Left wrist cocked or hinged. The medical term is radial deviation of the wrist with the thumb being hinged toward the radius bone along top edge of forearm.
Good wrist position for mid backswing to top of backswing as full wrist hinge is desirable while keeping a flat wrist.
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Wrist uncocked - Ulnar deviation
Left wrist cocked down or unhinged. Medical term is ulnar deviation of the wrist.
Position is similar to wrist position at impact.
This impact wrist position is not a conscious act. Centrifugal force and the weight of the swinging club will unhinge the wrist and bring it down into impact.
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Neutral Grip
Player’s view of neutral grip in setup position centered in front of body.
Notice cupping in left wrist, right wrist is more cupped than this on an actual golf club.
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Flat left wrist / Bent right wrist
Flat left wrist / Bent right wrist
Mid backswing view just above waist high of wrists – flat left wrist starting to hinge with slight palmar flexion, bent right wrist hinging with dorsiflexion.
These wrist positions will be maintained through the top of backswing and downswing to impact.
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How to get the flat wrist position.
As the takeaway starts, the club and hands move back the way a quarterback hands off a football … this is the classic one-piece takeaway, nothing has happened at the wrists yet. As the hands get beyond the right thigh, the right wrist begins to bend backward or to the right known as dorsiflexion and the left wrist begins to flatten known as palmar flexion. The left wrist is virtually flat already at the half way point in the backswing.
The final motion to the top of the backswing involves a slight increase in left wrist hinge (upward wrist cock or radial deviation) while also rotating the forearms to the right. This wrist cock or radial deviation must happen without losing the previously attained flat wrist position.
This is where most golfers fail. As they add more wrist cock, or radial hinge, they tend to cup the left wrist which alters swing plane and clubface position. When done correctly, the right wrist is bent back so it feels like a tray of dishes could rest in the palm of the right hand at top of backswing. This is maximum dorsiflexion for the right wrist while keeping left wrist flat and fully cocked. Now the wrists are loaded for a powerful onplane delivery to impact with a square clubface and proper effective loft at impact.
Try this and you should see improved accuracy, a better divot and more consistent trajectory. If you are looking for private golf lessons in Raleigh, NC click here to book a golf lesson.
Written by +Herman Williams
{ 58 comments… read them below or add one }
Hey Herman,
I have always struggled with a bowed left wrist and have done everything I can to fix it. My shots are sometimes off the heel and the divots face right. I am a 1 handicap due to my decent short game and feel like if I could hit the ball a little more consistent from tee to green, I could take my game to the next level. If you have any comments or suggestions I would greatly appreciate it. Thanks
With a 1 hdcp, I’m reluctant to say much without being able to see what you do … too easy to do more harm than good. Generally your shot pattern would benefit from a steeper downswing plane with a more leftward exit after impact. This would eliminate heel shits and rightward divots but might cause you to pull the ball if bowed wrist is closing the face.
First time I have seen your site. Way to much confusion on golf swing on the web. I have actually have hurt the ribs and elbows. I have recovered however I have developed topping the ball with the driver. Can you help ?
I’m sure we can but probably need to see your swing to give best advice. See the online lessons page for the links. In the meantime train for extension in the arms thru impact and evaluate your ability to remain in your original setup posture thru impact. One or both of those problems must be getting you in trouble. – Herman
I have been playing golf for about 25 years now and always seem to hit toed shots. I recently discovered that by choking down an inch on the grip I have a flat left wrist at the top, and hit the sweet spot. However, when I don’t choke down the club gets too upright and my wrist is bowed at the top. I’ve tried different size grips with no success. I have a 10 hcp.
Thanks in advance
Joe
Joe, I might suggest choking down for a while if you make a better swing and then slowly move up 1/4″ per week to see if you can regain proper form at full length in a month. Let us know how you do. – Herman
Herman, I added 10 strokes to my handicap following a left(right handed) knee replacement. I began swinging like Charles Barkley flipping my wrists unconsciously at the top of the back swing,putting club face almost square at the top and having the front of the club facing the ball at impact. It has become so bad I have stopped playing. It began as only a problem with the longer clubs but now effects the whole bag.I can take a good practice swing and even clip the heads off weeds in practice. Put a ball in front of me and the flipping takes over. HELP!!!!
Craig, I’m not sure how much i can help without seeing what you are doing. At any rate the knee replacement often leaves guys flat-footed protecting the knee in downswing while the arms just swat at the ball with a lot of casting. If the face is that closed, you’ve got to address your grip and wrist hinge to get it prepped for the downswing. Then it’s all about shift, lag and release. Good luck. – Herman
Love this, so simple and written well
I am working on this, I find 8,9 wedge easier than 4,5
Great tips and insight. You really explain the swing in very simple but effective ways. Just found your site and wil keep coming back
Thanks … glad to have you following my work.
Herman,
Big fan and loyal youtube subscriber here.
I’m having trouble keeping a flat left wrist at the top of the swing mostly due to the position of the left thumb. In my setup position, the thumb is flat on the grip at twelve o’clock position. But as my wrist hinges, I have to either let the tip of my thumb slide slightly forward or the joint of my thumb bend a little in order to keep the wrist flat. One way to describe the feeling on the left thumb is, it feels like it’s “bunching” up while cocking my wrist.
I’m wondering what I’m doing wrong because I haven’t seen or heard anyone talking about this problem. Thanks in advance, coach Hermanator!
–Eric
Eric, thanks for following my work. I actually think you’re ok. That bunching up sensation is probably fine. You are just feeling the pressure at the top before changing direction – the thumb is definitely arched/curved. My only warning would be that you may be swinging really fast going up in the backswing and the club hits the thumb with too much sudden force and almost bounces off. Just be sure that backswing is a gradual buildup as the wrists set – no sudden flashy hinge that will cause your hands to “bounce” or loosen up. Good luck. – Herman
Thanks a lot? Excellent tip.
Herman, towards the end of every round I close the face of my driver and 3-wood resulting in an ugly top spin hook. I get tired and for some reason I over-grip resulting in a closed face. I am going to try and focus on my wrist but do you have any other suggestions? Thanks
Wish I had a magic answer but hard to know for sure without seeing your swing. You could be regripping or just dead shut at top of swing. But you are likely casting and dropping the clubhead too far inside on downswing which leads to violent overeaction near impact where club flips over. This motion usually looks just like a big topspin forehand looping swing in tennis where the racquet drops behind the player then swings outward from the inside and rolls over. Hope you get it straightened out. – Herman
Herman,
I have been working diligently on incorporating this into my swing. When I get to the of my backswing my wrist is cupped slightly, not to the degree you show in your picture, however it is still cupped. The strange thing is that my clubface actually looks like it’s in the right position (not point up at the sky and not pointing directly at the back of my head, but somewhere in between the two. So it’s as if my wrist and clubface are at two different angles. If I get up to the top and then weaken my grip while im still in my backswing position I can get the club and wrist to be parallel with one another. The only thing is that I have to weaken my grip to a large degree and the heel pad of my palm is no longer on top of the club. I know it’s alot to take in, but I would greatly appreciate any advice.
Hey Ben, thanks for following my blog and videos and leaving your comments. It may shock you to hear me say this following a “flat wrist” article, but you may be better off slightly cupped. Here’s why. The whole idea here is to try and get the leading edge of the clubface to match up inline with your forearm at the top of the swing. It does not have to be perfectly inline with the back of your hand. It just turns out for most people if the grip is perfectly neutral, and the wrist is flat, it provides a firmer position at the top with no bouncy shaft wobble and a good square face. In your case, it already sounds like the face was square and there is no reason to make so many changes just to fit this particular swing model. Focus on a square face at the top, a sound swing plane with a good angle of descent (lag) and a good release, and you should hit great shots. Good luck. – Herman
Hello,
I got the dusty clubs out this past weekend. Went to the driving range, and I am hitting the ball with a lot of loft and most of the time slicing. Are there any drills or tips that would help me fix that problem?
Thanks,
Bill
The flat wrist should help, but assuming you are right-handed, you might prefer a little stronger left hand grip at first by moving the hand more to the right on the handle. Then I would practice swing one-handed with left hand only very slowly using waist-high swings to ‘wake up” your left forearm. The idea is to train the left forearm to rotate rapidly so the face closes and literally points the toe of the club to the target just past impact. If you can do this one-handed and imagine turning the toe of the club into the ball, then step up with two hands and try a shot. You may be surprised you can hook it. Good luck. – Herman
Whether one thinks a flat wrist at the top is good or not, what cannot be argued is the importance of knowing and controlling where the wrist is at the top (and at impact, of course). Since no one taught me anything about the position of the wrist at the top, I’m sure mine was all over the place – sometimes flat, sometimes bowed, sometimes cupped. This is one of the reasons I’m so inconsistent in my ball striking, I’m convinced. So, thank you, Herman, for showing us the importance of knowing and controlling the position of the wrist at the top. It is one more step toward a consistent golf swing and consistency is what I lack the most. I do believe I’ve been Hermanized, once again!
Hey Tom, thanks for the feedback. Hopefully others will read your comment, because you are exactly right about that wrist position. You can play successfully flat, cupped or bowed if you understand which one you have and can consistently do it. Most golfers will benefit from a flat position, but it’s not mandatory as long as they can manage to deliver a square clubface at impact. Stay in touch. – Herman
It’s funny how a lot of golf instruction leaves this magic part of the golf swing out. If you’re not already doing this in your swing give it a try you will most likely see more improvement in your ball striking just from this tip than any other tip you’ve ever came upon. You can also do this move in the transition to the down swing if you have a hard time trying to get a flat left wrist on the back swing but it takes more timing just bow your left wrist just a little as you make your transition not the best way to get the wrist flat but you will see a how getting that wrist flat makes things so much easier . Great write up Herman best I’ve seen on how to get that left wrist flat.
hi
hope you can help me. i’m left handed. At the top of my backswing my hands start to roll over. i try to fight them on the way down but this often causes low pulls and hooks. my aim and grip is pretty ok( neutral grip). ant thoughts or advice would be appreciated
I’m not sure exactly what you mean about rolling over at top of backswing. Is your right wrist flat, cupped or bowed at the top? Assuming the wrist is flat or even slightly cupped you should be in a good position to start down. Keep your chest facing away from target momentarily and drive both hands down toward left thigh as though you wanted to stab the handle into your left leg. This should create enough “lag” “in the slot” to avoid pull hooking the ball. Hope this helps. If you can get some good video, you might consider one of my online lessons. – Herman
thanks very much for your prompt reply. The feeling I get is that I cant stop my hands flipping over in my downswing and even a good shot by me starts slightly right of target. With every swing I fight my hands and struggle to stop them flipping over. My right hand wrist position is cupped at the top of my backswing (only checked it now). Would this contribue to my overactive hands in my downswing. I will get some video of my swing shortly and I will do an online lesson with you. Thanks for everything.
OK. Sounds like a tough case. Make sure the “V” of your left hand grip is straight up the center of the handle at setup. Maybe pinch a golf tee in there to check.
Generally a neutral grip with a cupped wrist will create a slightly open clubface at the top. Low pulls or hooks would be unusual from that condition at top of backswing. Low pulls & hooks are normally a sign of over-the-top from the outside with a closed face at impact.
Without being able to see your swing, try to keep that right wrist cupped all the way to waist high on the downswing. You should be able to see all the knuckles on the back of your right hand when your hand reaches your left thigh. See if this reduces the pull and/or hook.
Good stuff here. I like the way you explain things and am happy to have found this site. I hope you can help me improve.
I am going to try this the next time I am at the range ( I am there almost every day) I think one of my problems is that i try to hold the lag as much as humanly possible and I go from hitting beautiful right to left draws to haveing the ball start to the right and then come to the left way too much. I start playing and adjusting then start blocking and hooking. It is very frustrating . I beleieve I may be trying to hold the lag so much that I wind up bowing my left wrist too much. Every one in a while my right hand comes completly off the clucb and I have to hang on dearly with my left hand so my club doesnt go down range.
Thanks for comment. Your blocking and hooking sounds like you may have the clubhead too far behind you on the downswing literally swinging too much from “in to out.” Swinging to the right (inside out) with a
closed
face will give you that push to the right followed by big hooking curvature to the left. Almost too hard to diagnose in email but check your grip for “neutral” position then check to be sure face is not closed in backswing, then check downswing path. If you never hit any pull fades, it’s likely you have the problem I’m describing and you should find a way to open the face in the backswing and swing left thru the ball until things are neutralized and shots stop push-hooking. Good luck and keep us posted on your results. – Herman
Excellent explanation. As a physician (and golfer), I admire your clarity and brevity.
Anatomically speaking, radial deviation can also be called “abduction” (Latin “Ab-” meaning “away from”) and ulnar deviation can be called “adduction” (Latin “Ad-” meaning “toward’).
Here’s something I’ve never figured out: at address the left hand/wrist is not flat (if you see the two knuckles most books recommend). So, when my left hand comes in flat at impact that has always resulted in a closed clubface for me. How is it possible not to close the clubface?
Great question and I commend you for the close observation. You are right … we start out cupped at address and return to flat but generally when the hands are farther forward than where they started the face will not be closed. Try this to check it out. Start at address and simply press the club handle forward without turning your left hand downward you will notice the wrist gets flat and the face should be square or even a little open.
Thanks, much. It’s quite possible that I am starting with my hands pressed too far forward. I’ll see what I can do on the range with your comment in mind.
I have a slightly strong grip and slightly cupped wrist at top of backswing however my clubface is square at top, is this ok? I usually hit high draw but recently have been hitting fades
Yes, this should be ok. Everything you described fits together correctly to match your swing style.
Very helpful video, thank you. I’ve been playing for about 7 years with a 22 handicap. I have a strong grip and a cupped wrist at the top of my swing. This seems to work fine with my irons, however, not with my driver. With my driver, I will tend to hook the ball because of my strong grip. To fix the hook, I have to weaken my strong grip & maintain a cupped wrist at top, which has caused me to hit it straighter. So now I’m stuck with two different grips for my irons and my driver. Is this ok as far as consistency? I do want to be a single digit handicap some day.
Thanks for commenting. My initial response would be to use the same grip for both clubs. But if we are going to be practical about it, you need to do what gives you consistent repeatable results. If you can keep up with the differences, it might be ok to use the two different grips.
However, if you want to keep the iron grip for the driver, consider other ways to try to stop the hook – namely shifting and clearing your hips and legs faster/sooner to “outrun” the clubface before it closes. An example would be someone like Zach Johnson on Tour – very strong grip and just turns left thru the ball and hangs on. You are probably more static with your body and a little “flippy” with your hands if the grip from your irons hooks it with the driver. Good luck. – Herman
great reading herman
i have a decent enough swing(8 hcap) and my divots are mostly allways to the target and the correct size…..but the ball goes slightly right ….does this sound like cupped wrist at the top….my grip is neutral
Thanks for commenting. Cupped wrist is possible especially if your shots seem higher than average. You could work on the flat wrist at the top or just try to “bow” your left wrist prior to impact to square up the face a little sooner and slightly deloft your shots. My article and video about Camilo Villegas have some of that info as well as the video about how to stop blocking the ball. You should be able to find them by typing the terms in the “Search Box” on top right side of website or looking in right hand sidebar at article titles. Good luck and check back in to let us all know how you did. – Herman
Just discovered you. Great stuff Herman.
Believe it or not I’m struggling with the grip. I can’t get a comfortable feel between the grip and my fingers following your instruction of resting the heel pad of the hand on top. Can you show exactly where the grip is in relation to the fingers by showing a phot of grip in the hand half opened? Do you lay the grip in the creas at the bottom of all 4 fingers where it meets the hand? When I do that the meety part of my hand just below the fingers folds uncomfortably on the club. It feels more comfortable to lay the grip right across the meat at the bottom of the fingers then wrap the fingers.
Until I get a chance for a photo or additional video, make sure the handle of club starts at the base of the pinky finger and exits the middle joint of forefinger. It does not sit straight across the first crease of all 4 fingers. Unlike the way we hold a baseball bat, you are trying to create an angle along the fingers so the club will naturally hang down toward the ground without having to artificially arch your wrists to get it down there. You will notice this keeps the palm up away from the handle somewhat. Then you can create the short thumb position with the thumb retracted up the club. Good luck and thanks for following and commenting. – Herman
I have just discovered your videos while looking for a cure to my pulled shots. The pump drill you discuss in the over the top video makes a lot of sense and just practicing that in my backyard without even hitting balls I can see the difference in the path of the club. A lot of my shots feel very solidly struck but they start out left with a nice trajectory and draw even more left. Im anxiously waiting for the next time I go hit balls to see if the bump and pump solves my problem. Do you have any other advice that could help? Thanks your videos are easy to understand and straightforward great job!
Glad you found us. With pull hooks your primary concerns are path and clubface. The pump drill and a good bump to target with hips should help you avoid swinging across the ball … you only need to worry about clubface after that. Shifting aggressively targetward with hips and clearing will help you “out run” the clubface so it’s not closed at impact. Check your grip and make sure it’s not too strong; make sure you aren’t doing anything unusual in backswing to bow your left wrist and shut the face. Good luck – keep us posted on your results. – Herman
I am able to get the flat left wrist down pat (after lots of practice) but I am having some trouble understanding the position of the clubhead at the top – square, open or closed. With a flat left wrist my club face is facing the sky, almost parallel to the ground. Is that a correct position? If not, is it my grip? I play a slightly strong grip – two knuckles showing on left at address. Thanks.
Face to the sky is closed & indicates grip may be too strong for the flat wrist to work perfectly with the rest of your swing. Graeme McDowell is playing well right now at Players Champ with a closed face. But to play like him you must drop the arms inside and turn your core thru the shot aggressively keeping your hands out in front of clubhead or ball will hook. This can be a simple way to play since hands are very quiet in downswing and face is squared up early – just be sure all parts of your style fit together. If not, weaken the grip to get square face with flat wrist (leading edge of face inline with left forearm at top.) Then you can make conventional downswing and release. There are many ways to make the swing work, just be sure all your style attributes work together. Good luck. – Herman
It seems in addition to the flat left wrist a proper pivot is essential to getting into a good impact. It seems tour players have great lower body sequencing that allows them to get into great impact. They move laterally quite a bit coming down (you mention this in another video) and also maintain the “tush”line quite well because thier hips are working open rather than shooting out toward the ball. Ive struggled with keeping my hips from shooting out too much toward the ball which causes me to lift up. Great videos..I’d like to see one on pivot motion/head movement(backswing and downswing) and how this sets up a good impact.
Duly noted. Those are astute observations on your part and totally accurate. I’ve got some stuff in the works along those lines, but I’m maxed out with private golf lessons this time of year. I’ll notify you guys when next videos are ready. Thanks for commenting.
herman-what type of software do you use to analyze swings?
Phil
SwingView Pro.
There are a lot of great players who do not have the flat left wrist (ernie els, geoff olgilvy, louis oohutizen etc). their wrist appear more “cupped” to me. is this a necessity in your opinion or simply ideal?
Not a necessity. You are exactly right. The stronger the grip, (e.g. Ogilvy) the more cupped you can be and play successfully. If grip is not very strong, cupped usually leads to open clubface, and most amateurs cannot square it back up effectively.
Hello everybody from Italy!
great video that help me to clear how to fix problem with my grip.
thanks
The best advice I have had, easily explains the wrist movements, most of us do not know, the best for me was set the left arm on the pec area of left chest, made all the difference in the world. Have been practicing for a few days with these new found gems and can see a difference already, waiting to see if I can take to tourmnament golf at club. Thanks Herman for the free lessons.
r.d.
Thanks for commenting. Left arm on chest fixes a lot of takeway problems. Glad I could help. – Herman
Herman,
Again thanks for the great videos. I never realized just how dirty your grips could get until you mentioned it to me. It really made the difference to clean throughout last year (I got the chance to play every week) and then get a new set this year.
Keep on helping us get better and play smarter.
Robert
Great videos. I am working on the flat wrist. Also have a nasty scoop I am trying desparately to eliminate. I will be working on the basics as identified in your 3 part video series.
Good luck. The flat wrist is a good first step toward avoiding the scoop. As you start down from the top, visualize the back of your left hand turning down toward the ground as the clubhead falls slightly behind your right hip. (The “over the top” video covers some of this) Then just be sure to “release” with extension and you should be on your way to better shots. Keep me posted on your results. – Herman
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