Last Thursday, I watched a student practice on the range with textbook form. Beautiful setup, smooth takeaway, perfect position at the top — everything looked flawless through the first three-quarters of his swing.
Then came the predictable breakdown: twenty consecutive shots where he’d stand up through impact and blade the ball across the range.
After another thin shot skipped toward the 150-yard marker, he looked at me with genuine confusion. “I feel like I’m doing everything right,” he said.
This is the curse of early extension — one of the most common swing flaws I see, and one of the most destructive to ball compression. After twenty-plus years of teaching, I’ve learned that golfers who stand up in their swing aren’t making a conscious choice to ruin their shots. They’re responding to setup and swing issues that force this compensation.
Here’s what drives me crazy: most golfers think standing up is a downswing problem. It’s not. The real culprit usually starts at address or in the backswing, creating a chain reaction that makes early extension inevitable.
