Let’s face it—golfers have a bit of a distance obsession. There’s something about the satisfying whack of a well-hit drive soaring down the fairway that keeps replaying like a highlight reel in our minds. And especially when you outdrive your friends or fellow competitors. But the sad truth is, for many of us, distance comes at a cost. Hitting longer doesn’t always mean better, especially when your ball is 20 yards off the fairway and buried in the rough.
And if you can’t keep the ball in play, all that power becomes futile. The harder you swing, the more things can go wrong—your timing at impact, your balance, your accuracy. So, how do you combine power and precision like Happy Gilmore does? How do you hit the ball farther without sacrificing accuracy? Can you really have both?
Let’s dive into three essential tips to help you get more power and better accuracy in your golf swing, because hitting it long and straight is a lot more fun than just hitting it long.
1. Using your lower body – It’s all in the hips!
One common mistake most golfers make while trying to swing as hard as they can is swinging the arms wildly while the lower body barely makes an effort. “The body barely moves, especially the lower body, and the result almost always is a weak, crooked tee shot,” says Adam Long, a PGA Tour professional. It’s a common misconception that using your hips is only going to help you drive the ball longer. But a lack of proper hip rotation can lead to an inconsistent golf swing, and that’s when you see more of those off-centre strikes from the face of your clubs.
While you have to think of your entire body as one unit, at the start of the downswing, things are a little different. You have to make a conscious effort to generate proper internal hip rotation. Think of your arms as a whip, where the end of the whip will be released at the very end at impact, if you rotate correctly.
The power starts from the ground, and when your swing begins from the ground up, you can generate explosive power without flailing your arms or losing your balance. Proper hip rotation also gives you better control and accuracy.
Here’s how to tap into it:
Start the downswing with your hips. As you reach the top of your backswing, your first move should be a rotation of your lead hip (left) toward the target. This opens up your body and helps generate lag, one of the key sources of clubhead speed and accuracy. The trail hip (right) follows the lead, and the arms follow in sequence.
Stay grounded. Your feet should be pushing into the turf, creating resistance and energy transfer through your legs and core. This is where using Ground Reaction Force (GRF) comes into play. And sometimes training specifically for it in the gym, like box jumps or step-ups, other explosive lower-body movements, can make it much easier to tap into that power when you’re swinging on the course.
Don’t slide, rotate. Sliding your hips laterally instead of rotating them leads to inconsistency. Focus on turning in place, like you’re corkscrewing into the ground.
A few drills, as suggested by famous golf instructor Danny Maude, can help you fire your hips well.
2. Get Your Sequence Right
While training your body to rotate your hips will stabilize your swing, doing it without proper timing is just chaos in motion. The best swings in golf don’t just look smooth—they are smooth, thanks to a perfectly sequenced motion where each part of the body fires in the correct order. When your swing is out of sync, even a fast clubhead won’t deliver solid, accurate contact. “And sequence matters. I want my hips rotating before I start down with the club. The arms don’t lead. They follow,” Long added.
So what’s the correct sequence? It will almost feel like a separation between your upper and lower half, as the lower body leads and the arms follow.
Lower body leads – hips initiate the downswing.
Torso follows – the chest begins rotating open.
Arms follow – the arms follow the lower body.
Hands and club release – the arms deliver at impact, giving you the sweet spot contact on your clubface.
Getting this sequence right is how tour pros like Rory McIlroy generate effortless power, without compromising accuracy. Think of your arms as a whip, where the end of the whip will be released at the very end at impact, if you rotate correctly. The club lags behind and then whips through the ball like a slingshot. When your hands lead the way or your shoulders spin out early, it disrupts that flow, and accuracy disappears along with it. Once the sequence clicks, you’ll swing more efficiently, hit it farther, and keep the ball on target.
3. Focus on your swing path
“Finally, if the club is not on the correct path, it’s hard to strike the ball in the center of the face and get proper distance and accuracy,” says Britt Olizarowicz, who is a Class A PGA professional. A proper swing path is crucial for delivering both power and accuracy in your golf game. When your club travels on the correct path, ideally slightly from the inside on the downswing, it allows you to strike the ball with a square clubface and maximize energy transfer at impact. This not only results in solid, center-face contact (a major key to distance) but also helps prevent common directional misses like slices and pulls.
An efficient swing path keeps the club on plane, reduces unnecessary side spin, and promotes a more predictable ball flight. In short, the better your path, the more consistently you can hit the ball hard and on target.
Here are some checkpoints to help you follow an ideal swing path:
Takeaway: Clubhead just outside hands, face square, one-piece takeaway.
Halfway Back: Shaft on plane, clubface matching spine angle.
Top of Backswing: Club points at or just inside the target line, lead arm across shoulder.
Transition: Hips start first, club shallows slightly.
Downswing: Club approaches slightly from the inside, shaft on or just below the plane.
Impact: Square face, slight in-to-out path, weight forward, balanced.
Follow-Through: Club exits left (for right-handers), full rotation, balanced finish.
Bringing it all together, proper hip rotation, sequenced movement, and a clean swing path form the foundation of a powerful, accurate golf swing. When your hips initiate the downswing, your body stays in sync, and the club travels on the right path, you’re not just swinging harder but also more precisely. These elements work together to generate effortless speed while keeping your shots on target, even off the tee. Mastering them might take some practice, but once they click, you’ll start hitting the ball longer and straighter, turning distance into a real scoring advantage.
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