Uncommon Swing Fixes: Casting

This post is part of a series of discussions where I tackle a lot of common swing issues.  However, instead of providing common fixes that you've probably seen elsewhere, I will be providing a different way to think about how to obtain the correct feels of the swing.  This series is catered to help more of an intermediate to advanced player who has somewhat of a functioning swing.  These articles will assume you know some swing vocabulary.  Please also check out my earlier posts.

Today we will be discussing a plaguing issue called "Casting." What is a cast? A cast is when a player has too much extension in the wrists at the top of the swing. Instead of creating lag tension between the wrist angles at the top of the swing through impact, the player throws or casts the club and shaft immediately away from their bod on the downswing creating inconsistent and very weak shots.

How this tip is different:  Most coaches or online instruction will give you drills or feeling to increase lag tension with a combination of wrist flexion drills, holding the wrist angle drills and laying down the club drills.  However, when most of this instruction fail to realize is that there's a certain way that the club has to be leveraged into the hands and wrists to overcome the tendency to extend the wrists at the top. The key here is to activate the correct muscles in the lead wrist and forearm to feel the correct flexion and ulnar deviation as the club reaches the top of the swing. 

In order to get the correct feel of the wrists take your normal stance but hold the club slightly split handed at waist high position otherwise known as first parallel. In this position take your lead thumb and index finger off the grip and only hold the club with the back three fingers of your lead hand. Now using your trail hand, start pulling back your lead wrist. As you're pulling back your lead wrist you should be starting to let the club get into ulnar deviation (thumb pointing toward you) along with lead wrist flexion (Arm wresting feeling in lead wrist) If you're doing it right you should notice a tremendous amount of tension begin to build up into the back part of your lead wrist and the club will fel solod in your hands.

Things to note, if you are a caster, you'll definitely feel like the club is getting substantially closed toward the top of the swing. You will also feel like you're swinging a lot shorter.  Your ball will go farther and feel more compressed. You will come less over the top. 

Here's the result of what came about when after some really good grinding from a lesson of mine: