Let’s discuss the concept of Leverage, Levers & how to produce optimal leverage in a golf swing.

Below, you see the picture of a swing model using the 3 Levers, a static “At Address” pose:

1. Lever One – The Shoulders, C7 & Leading Arm,
2. Lever Two – The Power or Trailing Arm & Elbow
3. Lever Three – The Wrists, Hands & Club Shaft

If you synchronize the action of the 3 Levers properly, you will maximize your efficiency and power production (with the little added bonus of also maximizing your accuracy and consistency in ball-striking), allowing you to get the most out of your swing with the least effort:

Using The 3 Levers Properly

I would likely acquire a hernia trying to generate the club speed and power with a Modern Golf Swing action that I get from my MCS Golf Swing model (or perhaps a back surgery or two), so I prefer to do it in this manner, using the hips & legs rather than raw muscle power.

In the swing gif. above, that drive would have produced over 300 yards in distance with a range ball, and you don’t see any jumping, snapping or twisting of the font leg or foot, nor a “harpoon drop” trying to generate down swing speed, because it’s a naturally leveraged action.

The Secret Connection Between Hip Action & Leverage

It seems to be a well-kept secret in the industry that proper and effective leverage, especially in the 1st Lever, is in the free motion the hips & legs.

If you doubt this, here is a swing of mine below using a Taylor-Made Rocketballz driver, partnered with a swing of mine swinging a Momentus Heavy Hitter weighted driver:

Note: The swings of course weren’t perfectly coordinated speed-wise – I adjusted them until they matched for comparison’s sake.

If you can’t tell which is which, the Momentus driver swing is the one on the left.

I was able to generate ball speed in the 160s mph with the Momentus driver in the spring of 2017 (at the age of 47), meaning roughly equal to the average ball speed on the PGA Tour not too long ago, by using my body to leverage the club.

I wouldn’t advise trying this with a Modern Golf Swing model, as you would seriously injure your lower back trying to swing a weighted club vigorously.

The shoulder turn around the C7 vertebra is the driver of the 1st Lever together with the leading arm, but here’s the catch – without free hip action, you interfere with the shoulder turn and therefore the natural action of that 1st Lever.

The 2nd & 3rd Lever actions are not affected by this, but there are also not the primary levers in the golf swing, so once again, we run into the principle that one shouldn’t use a golf swing model that isn’t mechanically-sound.