Don’t quote me on this, but I think it was Sam Snead (or someone) who once said, “If you want to hit the ball 250 yards, swing like you’re trying to hit it 200. If you want to hit it 200 yards, then swing like you’re trying to hit it 250.”

Most golfers have experienced when we take a little effort, intensity or speed off the downswing and we’re pleasantly surprised how far the ball goes. If we’ve experienced that, then why can’t we swing that effortlessly and powerfully every time?

A good place to work on improving is the transition from backswing to downswing. When the transition is too quick and jerky, by the time you get the club to the ball, the energy is lost and the club is too far off-line to hit the ball solidly. Even when your transition is too slow, it can decelerate the club and you will lose track of the club path for a different kind of mishit.

The proper transition allows for the club to change direction and your center of mass to begin moving toward the target, setting up a downswing where momentum can be turned into speed at the bottom of the swing arc.

Bill Johnson, the Dartmouth College men’s golf coach for more 30 years, used to describe the feel of the transition as though you were laying the club on a pillow before changing directions from backswing to downswing. There’s a Golf Digest instructional article on a plaque commemorating this thought. It’s something to keep in mind in your efforts to make the transition go smoothly.

A good drill to use when trying to find your tempo and a smoother transition is to begin practice swings from the through-impact position. The through-impact position is when you’ve already hit the ball and, if you could freeze the motion, you’re at the moment when your center of mass has moved toward the target, your weight is on the lead foot, your hips are open, your head is behind the ball and your arms are extended through impact.

When starting your backswing with your arms extended in a through-impact position, your arms and club head have to travel a much greater distance to get to the top of your backswing, making it extremely difficult to rush the transition because it feels like an eternity to get to it. This is a great way to train patience during the motion, allowing you finish your backswing, lay the club on a pillow and begin the downswing, where momentum is built up through impact with the ball and beyond.

While our mornings have been much colder lately and this is our last Amen Corner of the season, most of us are not in a rush for summer to be over before we transition into fall. So take your time at the transition and have a great rest of the season.

Peter Harris is the director of Golf at the Fore-U Golf Center in West Lebanon. His column appears weekly in the Recreation page during the golf season.

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