What are ground reaction forces in golf?

Over the last few years, one of the hot topics in the world of golf fitness and golf instruction is “ground reaction forces.”

A quick Google search on what the hell that means gets this reply from AI… “Ground reaction forces (GRFs) are the invisible forces the ground exerts back on a golfer in response to the golfer pushing into the turf. Based on Newton’s Third Law of Motion, every action has an equal and opposite reaction; as a golfer applies pressure into the ground, that energy is transferred back up through the body’s kinetic chain to the clubhead, generating speed and power.”

When I trained in kung fu years ago, we were taught this concept as well, but not with the specific term “ground reaction forces.”

We simply learned that we could generate more striking power by using the ground.

First, we focused on becoming properly rooted to the ground with a solid, balanced stance.

We then focused on corkscrewing our legs to draw the power from the ground up through our hips and then out through our arms as we made our strike.

Bruce Lee used this concept with his famous one inch punch.

Golf instructors now have tools to measure how well a golfer uses the ground, and then they provide drills for the golfer to develop better technique.

You can see in the photo below how a golfer is hooked up to a bunch of wires and is hitting a ball while standing on a pad to measure his use of the ground.

Here is the issue…

Most golfers I’ve ever worked with have weak legs to begin with… especially if they are over 60.

They aren’t going to generate much power from the ground with weak legs.

As such, they will be better off if they focused on training the legs with basic strength training exercises such as squats and Bulgarian split squats.

They need to learn how to use the ground to push weight up.

Then, with their golf swing training, they should learn proper sequencing and foot work.

Some golfers get up on their toes early in the down swing and this prevents them from using the ground properly.

This is mainly due to a lack of strength in the legs, glutes and core.  That lack of strength results in an inability to maintain posture in the swing.

Now go back to the photo above.

That golfer clearly has strong legs and has learned good sequencing, as he is fully loaded into his back foot in his back swing.

This puts him into an excellent position to generate power from the ground.  You see Kyle Berkshire in the same basic position as he moves into the top of his back swing.

Most golfers are physically incapable of getting into such a position due to weak legs, glutes and core.

If you want more power in your golf swing, train your body and work on your golf swing sequence.

I show you how to do both with The Longer Tee Shots training program.