Your golf backswing sets the stage for everything that follows. You’ll hear lots of advice about plane, path, length and more when working on the backswing. Yet there’s one key element many golfers overlook: the role of the knees, specifically the flex in your right knee. Ignoring this crucial detail can severely limit your swing’s effectiveness and consistency.
The Problem: Keeping your right knee too flexed
A common misconception is that your knees should stay in the same position during your backswing. While stability is essential, completely restricting knee movement does more harm than good.
Proper knee flex increases your upper body rotation, allows your hips to tilt and even decreases the risk of injury.
Benefits of allowing your right knee to change flex
When you set up to hit a golf ball, you’ll have some flex in the right knee (for right-handed players). However, as you swing back, you should lose a little of that flex and straighten the right knee slightly. Here’s why:
Increases your shoulder turn
Try turning your shoulders without using your knees or hips. You’ll quickly find your rotation is severely limited (around 20-30 degrees).