3 ways to get more mileage … without extra effort, according to a top trainer

The question asks for help, and it speaks to efficiency. Eric Cogorno says he hears it all the time.

A senior teacher says his students ask:

“How can you hit the ball forward without feeling like you have to swing too much?”

Cogorno speaking in a video recently posted on his Instagram account – which you can watch in full here – and says that he can answer the question well, if you don’t do three simple steps already. One happens at address, one happens on the backswing, and one happens at contact.

Below are three as described by Cogorno, along with some thoughts.

1. ‘Tick to setup’

“This goes from your right shoulder to your right hip,” Cogomo wrote. “Put your hands on your quads in the setup, get the hand of the track down just above the kneecap — that’s about the right amount.”

Editor’s note: The idea is to improve your angle of attack.

2. ‘Put down on the trail foot and feel like you’re throwing the club away from your target to start the swing’

“This helps to change your pressure early and get a good range,” Cogomo wrote. “The key here is that the trail arm stays very wide and there’s not a ton of initial hinge.

“All of this helps create a responsive transition and descent that will give you more speed ‘for free.’

Editor’s note: The idea is to create momentum.

‘3. Come back with impact’

“This will help you with your attack style – hitting a higher or higher ball will help increase your distance compared to your speed,” Cogomo wrote.

“Many of the best drivers of the ball will have their head thrown back a few inches as a result. It can let go up and forward in the follow-through but from about the time the left arm is parallel in the swing until the arms are parallel in the follow-through (half way down to the middle), your head should stay where it is or go back a little.”

Editor’s note: Imagination is another way to improve the angle of attack.

At the end of his career, Cogomo also admitted that measures cannot hide the changing spots. For example, if your grip is wrong, fix it.

“If you have other swing issues that cause a lot of contact or lane control issues,” Cogomo wrote, “of course you’ll need to address those as well.

“But these pieces will help with more distance without extra effort or forcing you too much wherever you are.”

Nick Piastowski

Golf.com Editor

Nick Piastowski is a Senior Editor at Golf.com and Golf Magazine. In his role, he is responsible for planning, writing and promoting news on the golf course. And when he’s not writing about how to hit the golf ball forward and straight, the Milwaukee native is probably playing the game, hitting the ball left, right and short, and drinking a cold beer to wash down his scores. You can contact him about any of these topics – his news, his game or his beer – at nick.piastowski@golf.com.