Top Speed Golf

The Only 5 Golf Swing Pieces That Really Matter

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Welcome to Clay Ballard's Top Speed Golf Instruction

I founded Top Speed Golf in 2015.

Here's what it's all about...

When you analyze the swings of any top player in the world -- whether it's Jim Furyk, Adam Scott, or anyone else -- there are 5 aspects they all have roughly in common:

1. Stable & Fluid Spine

2. Power Turn

3. Top Speed Lag

4. Compression Line

5. Straight-Line Release

I've found that these 5 pieces will give you 95% of your results.

My Top Speed Golf system teaches you those 5 aspects in a step-by-step, course-based fashion.

"Does it work?" you may be wondering...

Click here to get started with the 5 components of the Top Speed Golf System!

Or check out all my latest content below...

clay 11111 smallerSome of My Highlights...
Handicap: -4
Top Swing Speed: 126.8
Lowest Round: 61
Given Over 6000 Golf Lessons
Instructed Many Professional Golfers
Played Division 1 College Golf and Mini Tours
Most Consecutive Birdies: 6
Certified FlightScope Professional
Swing Catalyst Certified
T.P.I. Certified
Named by Golf Digest as a top instructor in Florida
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G023. Stop Rushing the Downswing Trick

In this video, you’ll learn a trick to stop rushing the downswing.

Rushing the downswing is, after all, one of them most common pitfalls in all of golf.

At the top of the swing, it’s tempting to swing out of your shoes and try to crush the ball.

But will that help you smoke your drives?

Well, what often happens when you try to swing at light speed is that your fundamentals break down causing worse contact and a loss of distance.

In this video, you’ll discover how to smooth out your transition… yet still get tons of distance.

You’ll get tips for a smooth and powerful swing.

Tip #1: Load up

This is referred to as a “Power Turn” in the Top Speed Golf System.

In the backswing, your hips need to turn about 45 degrees…

And get your shoulders to turn at least 90 degrees.

This position allows plenty of space for you to make a smooth downswing through impact.

Tip #2: Shallow out your club in the downswing

A common problem with golfers is rushing into the downswing.

This makes it difficult to get your club on the correct path, causing you to come over the top.

To shallow out your club in the downswing, allow your left wrist to bow.

This will put your club on plane so you can whip your club through impact.

Summary…

Avoid falling into the distance trap of hurrying up your downswing.

Instead, focus on getting a full turn in the backswing…

And shallow out your club at the start of the downswing to get on a more powerful swing plane.

Watch this video now to stop rushing the downswing and still produce plenty of distance!

SA009. Stop Casting and Start Crushing the Ball! | Student Review

In this video, you’ll discover how to stop casting and start crushing the ball.

The video takes a close look at Top Speed Golf student Cliff’s swing…

…to demonstrate what’s happening when you cast.

You’ll also get some great tips to get rid of casting once and for all…

And to get more lag and hit with more distance.

First, you’ll notice how Cliff is coming out of his posture a bit.

To combat this, feel like your left shoulder is going down while your right shoulder is going up.

Also, in the backswing, make sure you get the weight on the inside of your right foot.

This will help you load up for more power in the downswing.

In the video, you’ll see a great clip of Rory McIlroy’s swing to demonstrate the shoulder steepness…

And how I want you to properly shift your weight.

Next, make sure you don’t push out your right hand at the start of the downswing.

In Rory’s swing, you’ll see how his club flattens out a bit which allows him to whip his club through impact with tons of speed.

In summary,

  1. Backswing: make sure you maintain your posture, keeping your shoulders at a steep angle and transfer your weight to the inside of your right foot.
  2. Downswing: let your club flatten out a bit and get your right elbow closer to your side.

For All Access Members, make sure you check out the following videos…

1.2 Easy Golf Lag Drill: Stick Behind the Ball

2.2 How to Increase Club Head Speed | Whip the Club Like a Clothes Hanger!

Watch this video now to stop casting and start crushing the ball!

C007. How to Shape Golf Shots Trick

In this video, you’ll discover a trick for how to shape golf shots.

Shaping your shots is incredibly important…

But what happens when your nice fade fails you and turns into a huge banana slice?

Well, the best way to combat an out-of-control slice is to understand exactly what to do to hit a draw.

This will allow you to quickly adjust your swing and avoid having one bad shot snowball into a disastrous round.

Knowing how to draw and fade your shots will put you in a much better position to adjust your swing during a round.

If you’re anything like me, you probably want a solid swing that behaves perfectly every time.

But here’s the rub…

In reality, that never happens.

Even top pros don’t hit it perfectly every shot.

The key is that they can quickly adjust and straighten out their shots on command.

In this video, you’ll get 2 key tricks to help you hit draw and fade shots…

So the next time your swing goes wayward, you can quickly make the necessary adjustments to fix the issues.

The first trick is for a draw…

Close the face of your club about 45 degrees.

If you were to take your normal swing, the ball would shoot way left with a hook.

However, the goal of this drill is to get you to swing your club on a more in-to-out path…

So to hit it with draw, you’ll need to open up your hips and get a lot of forward shaft lean.

Practice hitting these shots and focus on hitting with an in-to-out path.

Next, practice hitting some shots with your club face in its normal position, but remember to swing with the in-to-out path that you hit with earlier.

This trick will help you develop the feel for hitting a draw.

My second trick will help you hit a fade.

This time, you’ll do the opposite of what you did for hitting a draw.

Open your club face and hit with an out-to-in club path.

This extreme practice drill will help you get the feeling of hitting a fade.

Once you nail this out-to-in club path, adjust your club face back to neutral and practice hitting shots with the out-to-in path.

Watch this video now to discover how to shape golf shots…

So you can fine tune your swing and get the ball flight you want on the course!

C006. Golf Tip for Forward Shaft Lean

In this video, you’ll learn a great golf tip for forward shaft lean.

Why is that important?

You need to get more forward shaft lean in order to hit the ball solidly like the pros.

PGA Tour players are delofting their clubs.

For a pitching wedge with about 45 degrees of loft, at impact they’re taking off around 15% of the loft.

This delofting of the club allows for more solid ball striking.

However, many amateur golfers are flipping the club and not hitting with any shaft lean.

You can make contact with the ball, but you’re not going to get much compression on the ball.

Here’s my tip that’ll help you get more shaft lean at impact…

First, make sure your hips and shoulders are open at impact.

Your hips should be open by around 45 degrees…

And your shoulders by around 20 to 30 degrees.

Being open at impact makes it easier to hit with forward shaft lean.

If your hips and shoulders are closed, it’s really difficult to get any forward shaft lean.

Practice this feeling by pausing your swing near impact and checking your hips and shoulders.

Also, make sure your left wrist is protracted out for forward shaft lean.

Do about 30 reps to ingrain this feeling.

Now you’ll be in a good position to compress your shots.

Next, practice full swings.

Watch this video now for a brilliant golf tip for forward shaft lean…

And compress the heck out of your shots!

NSA05. Golf Draw Tip | Bowling Ball Release

In this video, you’ll discover a fantastic golf draw tip.

This tip is great if you’re sick and tired of slicing the ball…

And you’ve tried everything to get the ball to turn over from right to left.

In the video, you’ll learn how to fix your slice…

…with a bowling ball drill!

That’s right…

The bowling ball drill will help you release the club with the help of a bowling visual.

First, imagine you’re in a bowling alley getting ready to roll.

As you lay down the ball, you release your right wrist twisting to the left.

This creates the right to left spin on the ball.

See where I’m going with this?

Yep.

This motion with your right hand is similar to your right hand in the golf release.

As you swing a golf club, let your right hand roll over similar to when you’re bowling.

Throw your hands toward the right of the fairway to correct your out-to-in club path…

And roll your right wrist over as if you were releasing a bowling ball.

Watch this video and practice the bowling ball drill.

You’ll fix your slice…

And you’ll draw the ball every time!

D010. Increase Swing Speed | Left Hand Drill

In this video, you’ll get a great drill to increase swing speed.

First, you’ll see what you absolutely don’t want to do…

Gripping the club way too tight with your right hand destroys your swing speed…

And it causes you to cast the club and push it through contact.

To increase your swing speed, relax the right hand grip a bit…

And let the club accelerate so fast that your right hand will have trouble hanging on.

Grabbing on tight with the right hand is common for most of us…

So it’s going to take some work to train yourself not grip the club too hard.

I have a great drill to help you get the correct feeling and increase swing speed.

I want you to practice with your left arm only.

This may seem extreme, but it’s a great way to break the habit of squeezing too hard with your right hand.

Start the drill by gripping up on the club about five inches with your left hand…

And feel like you’re holding on with your bottom three fingers.

Get a little bend in your legs during the downswing and rise up as your club releases.

Here’s an extra tip…

As you begin the downswing, bow your left wrist a bit.

This will help square up your clubface for more consistent ball striking.

Now, start hitting some balls with the one arm drill, letting the club accelerate through contact.

Put in a hundred reps…

Then add your right hand on the club.

As you make a normal swing, you should start to rely less on your right hand.

Watch this video now to discover a great drill for increasing your swing speed!

S003. Golf Ball Position Tips for Fade and Draw

In this video, you’ll learn golf ball position tips for fade and draw shots.

This will help you out whenever you need to work your ball right or left.

And if you’re having a rough time straightening out your shots, the ball position tips you get in the video can help you make some quick, on-the-fly fixes on the course.

You’ll discover some interesting data in the video…

I break out my FlightScope to show you how the ball flight changes with your ball position.

First, you’ll get a quick recap of your ball position for a standard shot.

For a standard shot, you’ll want the ball positioned around the logo of your shirt.

That position allows you to strike the ball just before the low point of your swing, compressing the ball and taking a small divot.

And your ball flight for a standard shot should be straight or maybe you’ll hit with a slight draw.

But what if you’re looking to fade the ball?

Try this…

Put the ball up in your stance to take advantage of your club path, which naturally curves out-to-in past the standard ball position.

Also, open up your stance to increase the out-to-in path you need for a fade.

What about hitting a draw?

Just do the opposite of what you did for a fade…

Put the ball back in your stance and let your wrists turn over.

Check out the video to see the FlightScope stats.

The spin axis stats are especially interesting.

Watch now for golf ball position tips for fade and draw and to work your shots like a pro!

D009. Golf Drill for Speed | Bend & Extend

In this video, you’ll discover a great golf drill for speed.

We all want more swing speed.

Wouldn’t it be great to…

Whip your driver through contact with 120 mph club head speed…

And crush your 6-iron 190 yards?

But what does it take to do that?

First, you have to get your left hand working up through impact which helps accelerate your club.

Part of that move includes getting your hips and shoulders to rise up.

However, most golfers struggle to get the speed they want…

…because their hips are sabotaging their swings.

The problem is caused by sliding (or bumping) your hips too far towards the target.

This makes it difficult to rotate your hips properly and maintain your lag.

Here’s a drill to help you avoid bumping your hips…

Drop your club and open your shoulders to the target, letting your back foot come off the ground.

In this position, drop down then extend upwards.

This drill will help you get the feeling of rising up in the downswing and follow through.

Practice this drill, then practice swing in slow motion with hip rotation.

Once you get a good feeling for these movements, you’ll improve your contact zone.

A bigger contact zone means you’ll be able to make more consistent contact with the ball.

Watch this video now to learn these great loading and extending drills…

And an awesome golf drill for speed!

G022. Golf Swing Left Knee Movement Is Key

In this video, you’ll discover the proper golf swing left knee movement.

Your left knee is crucial, not only for rotating your hips, but also for consistent contact.

Move your left knee correctly and you’ll get a great golf swing that’s nice and effortless.

First, you’ll learn how your hips need to rotate throughout the golf swing.

What you don’t want to do is bump your hips toward the target in the downswing.

This makes it difficult to rotate your hips and bumping may lead to unnecessary hip pain.

To avoid bumping your hips, I want you to start by rotating your hips back by about 45 degrees in your backswing.

As you start down, turn your left leg out a bit towards the target.

(Rory McIlroy is a great example for how your left knee should move in the downswing.)

You’ll find that this left leg movement will allow you to easily rotate your hips.

Quick tip…

To avoid bumping your hips, focus on your belt buckle and make sure it’s not sliding towards the target.

Your belt buckle should be rotating, not sliding much.

Next, you’ll discover how to improve your “impact glide.”

The “impact glide” refers to shallowing out your club head near impact which gives you a longer, more consistent, impact zone.

There are a few drills I want you to work on…

First, in the downswing, get your left leg to move out and bend your legs.

Then rotate your hips and straighten out your left leg through impact.

Do a hundred reps while pausing to check your movements, then do a hundred reps with a nice, fluid swing.

Watch this video now to discover how the correct golf swing left knee movement can help you get much more consistent ball striking!

G021. Eliminate Early Extension!

In this video, “Eliminate Early Extension!,” you’ll discover how to keep more of your lag and compress the ball.

Extending your club early kills your golf swing…

And is caused by standing up out of your posture too early.

As you come out of your posture, it’s natural to cast your club just to make contact with the ball.

The problem is that you’re destroying your lag and giving up tons of distance!

In the video, you’ll learn about the two swing moves you need to focus on to eliminate your early extension…

  • prevent sliding your hips too far towards the target, and
  • start allowing your hips to rotate more

And you’ll get a few super easy drills to help get rid of your early extension once and for all.

First, you’ll see me demonstrate what your swing should look like.

During your backswing, you should start to slightly squat down (very slightly — make sure you don’t overdo it).

And as you near contact with the ball, you should start to come up.

This will help you “cover” the golf ball and hit with plenty of forward shaft lean.

Even through contact, your shoulders will stay in posture.

You’ll eventually stand up out of your posture, but you should do this after you make contact with the ball.

Remember, standing up out of your posture before you make contact is what’s causing you to extend the club early.

Next, you’ll see how your hips can cause you to extend the club early.

If your hips slide forward towards the target too much, it’s extremely difficult to rotate your hips properly.

Here’s how to stop your hips from sliding too far forward…

As you start your downswing, make sure your lead leg is angled out and allow your hip to turn behind your body.

Once you’ve stopped sliding your hips too far forward, focus on rotating your hips more.

Getting more hip rotation will allow you to eliminate your early extension and hit the ball with more forward shaft lean.

Work through these moves in slow motion before you practice hitting balls.

Watch this video now to eliminate early extension…

And learn how to rotate your hips for more ball compression!