Mobility in golf may be one of the most underrated factors that leads to playing better golf.
You wouldn't go run a race or play a soccer game without stretching properly beforehand, and golf should be no different! While amateur golfers don't need the same mobility as a soccer player, it's very important to warm up properly to play your best. In fact, studies have shown that .golfers are more prone to injury than rugby players or hockey players!
Mobility workouts decrease your risk of injury while playing golf, and also allow you to fully rotate your body and generate more power during your swing.
Limited mobility, especially in the hips, makes it harder to generate a full-body rotation, making it much harder to gain power during your downswing. Doing a few mobility exercises and stretches before your round will allow you to achieve a full range of motion, and produce better golf shots while you're on the course.
Here are our top four mobility exercises you should do before your round:
1. Foam Rolling: For Back and Leg Mobility If you don't have a foam roller, you need to invest in one straight away. They're cheap, yet incredibly effective in loosening up tight muscles and helping you with mobility. For golf specifically, you should use a roller on the back of your legs from your calves up through your hamstrings, and then spend a good amount of time using the roller for your back.
To use a roller effectively, lay on the ground and put the roller underneath your shoulders. Lift your knees off the ground so that your body is pressing against the roller, and push yourself back and forth on the roller. Here's a good video demonstration of how you should be using a foam roller on your body before you hit the links:
2. 90/90s For Hip Mobility: The 90/90 stretch meant to stretch out your hips, which is vital for a full golf swing. To perform this stretch, start by sitting on the floor on a yoga mat. Place one leg in front of you at a 90-degree angle, and the other leg to your side also at a 90-degree angle (hence the 90/90).
From this position, put your hands on either side of your front leg and slowly lower your chest towards your front knee. Hold this position for about 30 seconds to a minute, then switch to the other leg. Here's a video demonstration of this stretch:
3. Wall Slides For Shoulder Mobility There are several variations of wall slides depending if you'd like to work on strength or mobility. This is a basic movement that works on shoulder mobility and posture, both of which are important to your golf swing.
This move greatly improves shoulder rotation and posture, which translates to better ball striking on the course. To perform the wall slide, stand with your feet, butt, back, shoulders, and arms flat against a wall. Your arms should be out at a 90-degree angle, similar to the starting position of a shoulder press. From here, slide your arms up until they're fully extended, and slide them back down until you feel a good stretch in your shoulders and upper back. Repeat this as necessary for about 10-20 reps.
Watch this video for a great demonstration of this move:
4. Mobility on the Range: While these exercises are all excellent for your golf game, there are a couple quick things you can do once you get to the course to further loosen up, all of which can be done with a golf club in hand.
Here's what I like to do before I hit a single shot:
1. Take a golf club with one hand near the grip and one near the head, and fully extend it above my head for about 20-30 seconds.
2. From this position, pull the club behind my head as close to my shoulders as I can, and hold this position for another 20-30 seconds.
3. Next, I reach down to touch my toes to stretch my hamstrings for another 30 seconds.
4. Lastly, I hold the club out in front of me and rotate from right to left, mimicking the rotation of a golf swing.
Doing all these moves loosens up your muscles before your round, and helps you hit better shots from the get-go. Try doing these moves to improve your mobility in these key areas and you'll be sure to notice your swing improve!
Bio: Brandon runs a golf website called Fairway Approach, focused on helping golfers take a smarter approach to golf by offering game improvement guides and equipment reviews. He's been playing amateur golf for over 15 years, and is originally from Syracuse, NY. During the day he's a technical recruiter within the financial industry, helping software engineers land jobs. Instagram: @fairwayapproach Site: fairwayapproach.com