The Hip Slide Stopper Drill

Set the pathpal to a 45-degree angle and position it just in front of your lead hip — roughly hip high or slightly below. David recommends leaving just enough space between your hip and the rod that a proper rotation clears it, but a slide catches it. The exact distance will vary slightly by golfer, but a few inches of clearance in front of the lead hip is a good starting point. Hit shots focused on posting up on the lead foot — if you're doing it correctly, the rod stays untouched.

A good pressure shift moves weight from the trail side to the lead side during the downswing — but the key is that it transitions into rotation and vertical push, not continued lateral movement. David specifically says he loves pressure shifting back and through, but emphasizes that "there has to be some braking." The slide becomes a fault when the hips keep moving laterally past the lead foot rather than rotating around a braced lead leg. The pathpal rod reveals that distinction instantly — a proper shift and rotation clears it; a slide contacts it.

Posting up refers to the lead leg straightening and bracing through impact — creating a stable pillar that the body rotates around rather than sliding past. When you post up correctly, the lead hip stops its lateral movement, the pelvis rotates, and the upper body fires through the ball with maximum speed. It's closely related to the vertical push concept in Cody Carter's drill: both describe the lead leg becoming a firm anchor that converts lateral energy into rotational power. When you feel your hip contact the pathpal rod, you know you haven't posted up — you've slid.

Directly, yes. A lateral slide through impact is one of the biggest power leaks in the amateur swing. When the hips slide rather than rotate and push, the body stalls, the arms have to compensate, and clubhead speed drops. More importantly, a sliding lower body makes it nearly impossible to deliver the club consistently — contact, path, and face angle all become harder to control. By bracing the lead hip and pushing out of the ground, you channel the energy of the downswing into rotation and speed rather than dissipating it laterally.