Why the Abduct and Shift Drill Is So Helpful for Golfers
Golf demands coordinated rotation from multiple joints, ideally without compensation. Where things often break down—both in performance and injury risk—is when we lose true mobility at key joints and unknowingly substitute with compensatory movements. A common example among amateur golfers is the loss of internal rotation and adduction at the hips. Equally important is the ability to control pelvic rotation through the glute max—often referred to as the “king” of the golf swing. That’s what makes the Abduct and Shift Drill so valuable: it targets both of these movement patterns simultaneously, just like they’re required in the swing itself.
What is required for the backswing (righty golfer)
Golfers need to be able to rotate at the pelvis, thoracic spine, rib cage, femurs, and tibias (lower leg bones). We need to be able to do this without the feet flaring out or rotating with us. This means we are in a closed kinetic chain and the rotation needs to be pure from each of these joints. In the backswing, we rotate the pelvis on the femur, the femur on the tibia, and the tibia on the foot. The foot contact with the ground creates a closed chain that means we cannot compensate at the foot and instead need each joint to actually move. This is relative motion, the pelvis rotating relative to the femur creating internal rotation at the right hip, the femur moving relative to the tibia creating internal rotation at the knee, and the tibia infernally rotating relative to the foot creating internal rotation at the ankle.
We also have a weight shift towards the back side leg in the backswing. This weight shift has a slight adduction moment in the right hip or movement of the right hip towards the midline. What is happening here is the pelvis slightly stacking closer to overtop the femur, or what would look like the foot and lower extremity moving closer to the other lower extremity if in an open chain.
What is the abduct and shift drill?
This is a movement and biomechanics-based drill that will help open mobility at the individual joints. First, we need to spend a little time creating true mobility at the individual joints. Then, we can integrate this joint mobility by combining both the adducted/ abducted hip positions, weight shift, and internally/ externally rotated joints at the same time. Check out the drill below…
For righty golfers and the backswing, do the drill with the right hip down.
For righty golfer, we can specifically work this drill in with the right side down to help create internal rotation adduction, and a weight shift into the right hip. We also learn to use the left glute to create external rotation of the left hip and push the pelvis to rotate over to the right side. In this position, we are pulling ourselves onto our right side with our adductors and hip internal rotators and pushing ourselves onto our right side with our left glute and external rotators. We can use this drill to improve our capacity for this important joint range of motion while also making sure it can all be used together to create that coil in the backswing.
Translating to the golf swing
This is essentially a static backswing position at the pelvis and hip from a joint relative motion perspective. The abduct and shift helps integrate these motions together, but what else can we do to help emphasize this?
Banded knees to center
This is a great drill to start creating and getting comfortable with our joint range of motion while at end range. We also get to incorporate our qualities of separation between the trunk and pelvis.
Single leg swings
This is a great drill because it over-emphasizes the need to rotate and shift into the back side leg. Here we can take the components we worked on with the abduct and shift drill and take it to the range.
Try this drill on both the back side leg and lead side leg.
Conclusion
The Abduct and Shift Drill is a powerful addition to any golfer’s rehab and performance plan. While improving joint-specific range of motion remains essential, integrating that mobility into functional movement patterns is equally important. This drill helps bridge that gap by enhancing the golfer’s ability to feel and control weight shift and coil during the swing. Incorporating it into your prep, warm-up, or practice routine can elevate both movement quality and on-course performance.
-Dr. Nick Curtis DC, MS, TPI, CSCS
If you would like to learn more about your body, pain, and performance, send Dr. Nick an email at contact@integratedrpc.com or call at (585)478-4379, or schedule a FREE discovery visit at Contact.
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