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You might wonder how a “great” swing can have a weak impact but in Mike’s case he does everything technically correctly except deliver the club to the ball with the hands forward and the shaft forward leaning. His wide release (hands well away from the vertical line up from the ball at P6) leads to a sweeping type strike with a throw release that does not compress the ball that a drive/hold type release would. My go to when I see good players with throwaway is to have them learn to hit a proper punch shot, played with the ball forward in a narrower than normal stance, a backswing that only gets to P3, and a finish that ends with the shaft parallel to the ground in the follow-through. The idea is to hit the ball as low as possible with a 6,7 or 8 iron from that set up. I demonstrate the shot and then show Mike a drill that pre-sets the wrists and lower body before the backswing starts. Much of the ability to get the hands forward at impact when the ball is hit off the ground is having a clear picture of where you want to be at P6 and P7. I find that those who tend to release the club early don’t understand how the club manages to square up when the hands are already moving past the ball when the clubhead is still well up in the air. The attempt to hit a low shot with the ball left of center in the stance encourages a more descending blow, and the lower finish suggests the feeling of the low point of the swing being in front of the ball.
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