When you start researching the golf swing, you quickly learn how many different alternatives there are.
Some people will swear by a one-plane swing or a two-plane swing.
Other golfers will tell you that a more upright or flat swing is the way to go.
Regardless of the type of swing that fits you the best, it certainly pays to understand the differences between the flat golf swing and other options out there.
A flat golf swing is something that many players are striving for.
If this describes you, let’s take a look at some benefits of the flat golf swing.
In addition, we will give you a few of the negatives so that you can decide if this is the right swing for you.
Flat Golf Swing Benefits (Pros And Cons)
Pros Of A Flat Golf Swing
There are quite a few benefits to a flat swing.
If you want something that is consistent, is repeatable, and produces more distance, getting into a flatter position in your swing is a great idea.
Here are the top benefits of having a flat golf swing.
1. The Flat Swing Is More Natural
When you set up to hit a golf ball, you should think of the plane you are naturally on.
Think about taking a sheet of plywood and laying it on the shaft of the club so that it extends to the left and right of you.
This is essentially the plane of your swing.
Maybe you have seen some swing plane apparatuses at local golf courses where you can stand in the middle and essentially be put into a hula hoop.
A flat swing is on a more natural plane which you will see as soon as you set up to hit.
The more a golfer learns to use the natural tendencies in their swing, the easier the game will become.
Flatter golf swings are natural, and they are there for us to work with as long as we can understand how to swing on the proper plane.
For players who are great visual learners, imagining the shaft and the plane that goes around the shaft is going to help you understand what you need to do to succeed.
Overall, if you want to choose a golf swing that will almost never feel foreign or uncomfortable to you, go with the flat golf swing.
2. No Need To Reroute Swing
Have you ever seen Jim Furyk swing?
Furyk takes the club on a very upright plane, and then on the way back down, he reroutes the club to approach the ball from a shallower angle.
There is no question that Furyk has this move down.
He knows how to repeat it, and he has perfected what it takes to hit a golf ball on the right path and plane.
The problem is that for most amateur players, this process of rerouting a golf swing is extremely difficult to do.
Most players will not have the athletic ability to time this properly and to hit the shots that they need to hit.
Rerouting the swing is possible, but it is difficult.
If you don’t want to make things more complicated for yourself, then you need to work on a flat golf swing that does not require any rerouting.
If you are a new player just setting out to learn the game, you will find that this concept and this method are well worth your time and effort.
3. Easier To Stay On Plane
Since the flat golf swing is a bit more simplistic and doesn’t require rerouting, it is much easier to stay on the plane as well.
When you stay on plane, you will be able to hit golf shots that are straight, high launching, and long distance as well.
Staying on the plane is something that all golfers strive for, but most won’t be able to do it consistently.
If you want to stay on plane consistently, you need to ensure that you are swinging a bit flatter and making the plane more approachable.
4. Easier To Incorporate Your Body
When a golf swing gets more upright, it almost always incorporates the arms and hands more.
This is because you will need to use the arms and hands to get the club into the proper position.
When it comes time to incorporate the body, many of those with the upright golf swings are going to have a hard time doing it.
However, when you keep your golf swing more flat or shallow, your body almost has to turn.
You won’t be able to get the club around you in the back if you are not making a great shoulder and core turn.
For those who feel as though turning is hard to do or something that they forget to do, try swinging on a flatter plane.
Chances are you will have no issues getting the club to swing back while using your body and your arms and hands.
When golfers learn to swing their entire body and work with their larger muscles, they can generate quite a bit more power.
5. Can Promote A Draw
One of our favorite benefits of the flatter golf swing is that it can promote a draw.
A draw is a shot that many golfers prefer to hit.
The draw tends to be a bit longer than a fade, it is pretty to watch, and it can help you get around a lot of golf courses with a lot fewer strokes.
Overall, the golf draw is not the easiest shot to hit unless, of course, you have a flat and shallow swing.
With a flat swing, you will almost always approach the ball from the inside.
When you approach from the inside with a square clubface, you will be able to get the distance that you want and a beautiful draw on the shot.
It is quite difficult to hit a draw when you have an upright golf swing.
You will not be able to get the club on the proper plane, and you will find that the draw usually just turns out to be a straight shot or a bit of a fade.
If you like the idea of hitting a draw on most of your shots, switch to a slightly flatter golf swing.
In addition, you will find that for most golfers who master the flat swing, the slice is a very rare shot.
It would take a significant reroute from the normal swing plane for a golfer to hit a slice with a flat golf swing.
Overall, the flat golf swing can eliminate a slice and promote a draw, and we look at this as a major positive.
6. Should Help To Promote Distance
The flat golf swing should help a golfer get some extra distance.
When you have a flat golf swing, you can learn to keep the club on the inside-out path and get things pointed towards your target.
Overall, you will notice that to get extra distance, you should have a flat golf swing.
Cons Of A Flat Golf Swing
As you can see, there are a great number of benefits to swinging the club a bit flatter.
Most golfers are going to prefer the flat golf swing to the upright swing.
The trouble is that sometimes this line between flat and upright and on plane can be a bit blurred.
What may look flat for one golfer could be a bit upright because of their height and their abilities.
You will need to learn what is flat for you and whether or not it will work.
In addition, you will need to ensure that the flat swing is not, in fact, too flat.
This is where you will run into some trouble.
1. Difficult Out Of The Rough At Times
One of the first areas that you may run into some trouble with the flat golf swing is out of the rough.
When you are hitting out of the rough, you must make sure that you are hitting the ball with a strong and powerful descending blow.
For golfers who have a shallower swing, sometimes the descending blow is not quite as powerful, and the players end up getting the club stuck in the rough a bit.
It is a much better idea to put together a swing that is a bit more upright and sends the ball flying quite high out of the rough.
The problem with hitting out of the rough is that you have to ensure the club does not twist around when it gets caught in the thick grass.
If it is caught in the thick grass, your shot could end up going anywhere.
Overall, difficulty hitting out of the rough is a real problem for golfers who have a flat swing.
You can learn to manage it by using the proper club selection and being aware of your swing plane when you are hitting from the rough.
2. Not Ideal For Bunker Shots
Sticking with the shots that are more difficult to hit with the shallow swing, the bunker shot is next on the list.
Unfortunately, to hit a bunker shot well, you will need a more upright swing.
Golfers who try to take a flat swing in a bunker could end up having a difficult time getting the ball to leave the bunker.
Sometimes you will see a bad shot take off the face of the sand wedge and skirt its way through the side of the bunker.
This is typically what it looks like when a player hits a shot that had too flat of a swing plane for a bunker shot.
There are ways to manage this if you are a golfer who has a natural tendency to swing flatter.
If this is your tendency, it is important to just think of a bunker shot as a completely different shot in the bag.
When you step into the bunker, start planning for the shot to be more upright.
Think about taking the club back a little more straight back and not quite as much around you.
You will have to spend some time practicing this type of stroke so that you are able to feel what it takes to get your shots out of the bunker.
3. Can Get the Club Too Far Inside
Sometimes a golfer can confuse swinging the club more shallowly with taking the club a bit too far inside.
If you take the club too far inside, you can end up hitting shots that go well to the right or potentially even shanking the ball.
When you first learn how to hit shots with a shallower swing, make sure that you fully understand the difference between a club that went inside and a club that went back on a shallow plane.
In other words, you can learn to swing the club on a shallow plane that goes back on a path that makes it possible to square the clubface up.
Ensure that when you take on the task of learning how to swing the club shallower, you also focus on the swing path.
One of the best ways to work on both swing path and swing plane at the same time is to use golf alignment sticks.
The alignment sticks can be configured in a variety of ways to ensure that they are going to help you swing more on plane and on the proper path.
4. May Not Offer As Much Extension
Lastly, it is essential to consider that a shallow golf swing can also end up being more compact.
If the swing is so compact that you are not able to extend your arms throughout the impact position, you may feel as though you get a bit stuck.
This is a bad feeling for players and one that will make the impact position more difficult.
Overall, you have to ensure that even with a shallow swing, you still have the room to extend your arms through the shot.
Don’t allow the space to get so tight on the way down that there is no room for you to get the extension you need in your swing.
Extension in a golf swing will help lead to more distance, and this is undoubtedly a factor that all players want to ensure that they have in place.
Keep your extension long but your swing flat.
It is certainly possible to do this with a bit of practice and a little help from alignment aids.
When working on the swing plane and getting it flatter, a mirror, video, and golf alignment sticks seem to be the best tools you can find.
Conclusion
Hopefully, you now feel a bit more equipped to hit proper golf shots with a flat swing.
The benefits of a flat golf swing seem to outweigh the negatives.
This list of benefits makes it easier to decide to take this project on and change up your golf swing.
If you have been thinking of making some changes to flatten out your golf swing, it is likely an excellent idea.
If you look at many of the golf professionals, you will see that their swing plane is relatively flat because of the power and consistency the flatter swing provides.
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