If you notice that your leading arm is sharply bent and your elbow is pointing upwards at the end of your golf swing, this may indicate the so-called 'chicken wing'—a common mistake among amateur golfers that significantly harms the game.
When the leading arm curls inward instead of extending toward the target, the player loses power, the clubface becomes unstable, leading to misses, slices, and poor shots.
Correcting this issue requires feeling, not brute strength. One effective way to retrain the body is through a towel exercise. You need to take a small towel and place it under both armpits while performing slow half-swings. The goal is to keep the towel in place from the start to the finish of the swing.
If the towel falls too early, it signals that the arms have separated from the torso, and the 'chicken wing' error has returned. Performing this exercise slowly helps understand how the connected swing should feel.
Another helpful method is practicing extending the leading arm toward the target after contact with the ball. This is achieved by performing slow swings with an emphasis on the direction of the leading arm. At the moment of impact, the chest should rotate, and immediately afterward, the leading arm should point along the line to the target, rather than folding back toward the body.
You can imagine this as shaking hands with the target. This image helps prevent the elbow from curling and initiates rotation through the impact.
The most useful mental setups for golfers are simple. You should think about the movement of 'chest to target.' The chest must continue to rotate past the ball, not stop at the moment of impact. It is also important to think about complete release, allowing both arms to extend together, rather than letting one bend early.
Furthermore, you should focus on covering the ball with your chest during the shot, and then allowing the rotation to bring the swing to a full completion. Using a neutral or slightly strong grip also helps the clubface align due to rotation, rather than due to the arms.
