Golf fitness is really in the news and getting lots of buzz these days, but most players are really confused about this subject. In my “other life” . . . besides running EIDOLON Golf . . . I am a partner in the development of a very exciting new golf swing training product called the CORE Golf Trainer. While this is not yet fully on the market in its new iteration, being involved has caused me to study golf swing fitness to a great degree . . . and then The Wedge Guy gets this question from one of our younger readers, Clint R., in Meridianville, AL:

“I have never lifted weights in my life. I'm 15, 6'1", and about 135. What are the best workouts to build a strong golf swing?”

Well, Clint, there is no question that building stronger, faster muscles can help you become a better player, but there is definitely a right and wrong way to do that. In golf, we don’t really care about conventional muscle strength, such as that required to lift heavy weights. After all, a golf club weights much less than a pound. What we are after in golf conditioning is S-P-E-E-D and endurance. We want our muscles to be of a quick-fire capability and we must do that within a framework of flexibility and range of motion. A strong and powerful golf swing requires a full range of motion and very precise and coordinated movements of the body core, arms and hands/wrists. The faster you can do this, the more clubhead speed you develop – it’s really THAT simple.

The principle of the CORE Golf Trainer® is to apply hydraulic resistance in exact right angles to the swing itself, throughout the entire swing motion. But more on that sometime later. Right now, we’re talking about what you can do to build a stronger, more powerful golf swing, using tools that are at your disposal. This applies, of course, to any golfer wanting more distance.

Let me begin by stating my opinion on distance. More distance is not for sale in the driver rack . . . . unless you haven’t bought a new one in 15 years or so . . . nor on the iron rack. The secret to more distance is in better quality contact and strength training. Better fundamentals come through instruction and practice. And here are my top five workouts to help you build more clubhead speed:

1. Stretching. This probably doesn’t apply to young flat-bellied Clint, but us older guys and girls would benefit greatly by daily stretching to improve our golf power. Of particular importance are the torso muscles and the large muscles in the legs and shoulders. Read up on this and you’ll find a wealth of information on stretching exercises specifically designed for the golf swing. A few minutes a day can make a world of difference pretty quickly.

2. CORE Training. Strengthening the big muscles of the body core is hugely beneficial to golf swing power. But, as I mentioned, what you are after is S-P-E-E-D, not brute strength. And again, there are a number of published exercise routines and techniques for achieving a stronger body core. Any Google or other online search will keep you reading and learning for hours.

3. “Off Side” Strength. The golf swing has to be led by a strong “front side” pull, and that means we have to rely on our “off” hand for power. For right handed people, that means you should bias your strength training to your “off” side so that it can achieve more of a balance. I like to do this with a weighted club of the Momentus® type (but there are other good ones), and swing it left side only to build that pull-through power.

4. Release Strength. The “secret” power move in the golf swing is a strong rotation of the hands and forearms through the impact zone. The wrists do not create power in the swing by unhinging – they do it by rotating the club through impact in sync with the rotation of the body core. It does no good to develop core rotational speed if your hand rotation cannot keep up. Conversely, of course, fast hands with a slow body core will be limited in power as well. You can keep a light dumbbell in your office and/or living room to do simple rotation exercises while you are on the phone or watching TV. It WILL pay off.

5. Golf Swing Speed. Back to the Momentus® or other weighted club, there is no better golf swing strengthening exercise than to swing a weighted club. But go with the lighter ones and make your workout one of more reps with less weight. Heavier weights and less reps build big muscles and lead to more fatigue and post-workout soreness and recovery. You don’t want that. Fifty to a hundred swings every afternoon/morning with a weighted club will work wonders. And while you’re doing those, focus on your fundamentals – posture, grip, extension back and through, rotation through impact – the things that will build power and distance.

So, there you have my top five. I’m certain many of you have your own exercises that you believe in . . . so share them with us, OK?


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Terry Koehler is "The Wedge Guy" and President of EIDOLON Golf- The Short Game Company.

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