Stop Early Release in Your Golf Swing in 3 Steps (Proven Tips & Drills That Work)

Early release in the golf swing happens when the wrists unhinge too soon on the downswing. This motion causes the clubhead to hit the ball without much power and at an angle that is typically not square.

If you struggle with the timing of your release, you’re in the right place.

Fixing the early release will help you hit longer shots and improve consistency in your strikes. We’ll show you why the early release happens and the best steps to get rid of it today!

Key Takeaways

Don’t have time to go through the entire article until you get to the range? Here are the key points to take with you right now:

• Early release happens because the clubface is too open as it approaches the golf ball.
• Maintaining your wrist angles at the top of the swing and through impact is key to preventing early release.
• If you’re unsure about your wrist angles, wear the HackMotion to help determine the angle at setup, the top of the backswing, and through impact.
• Sometimes, too much wrist hinge early in the golf swing can make early release worse. Pay close attention to when and how much you hinge your wrists.

Prefer learning through video? This video on how to stop casting the club addresses the same issues you’ll face with early release.

3 Steps to Fix Early Release in Your Golf Swing

An open clubface at the top of the golf swing is the main cause of early release.

As you swing the club through impact, it has to move towards square, but if it’s too open at the top, you’ll have no choice but to release it early in an attempt to square it.

1. Fix the Clubface at the Top of the Backswing

If your clubface at the top of your golf swing is open, you’ll greatly increase the chance of an early release, when you try to square the clubface.

There are a few ways to fix this position at the top of the backswing, but the easiest and most obvious is that you have too much extension in your lead wrist.

After studying more than 1,000,000 golf swings, we know that the players who do not release or unhinge too early are those with a flat or slightly flexed lead wrist at the top.

To work on this, try drills like the motorcycle drill to get your lead wrist into a more flexed position.

Players like Dustin Johnson and Collin Morikawa get to this position and never have to worry about their clubface being open through the impact position.

For some players, too much extension is added to the lead wrist in the first part of the backswing.

2. Tame the Upper Body

For some golfers the early release is a result of an overactive upper body.

These players tend to initiate the downswing with their arms and shoulders instead of the legs and hips. The best players start their downswing and the transition by a rotation of the lower body.

This helps to start moving weight to the lead foot and making it easier to generate power through the golf ball. The overactive upper body sometimes causes the clubface to open even more and players release early and end up with a weak impact position.

One of the best drills to work on to tame the upper body is something golfers refer to as the Bump and Pump Drill.

This isn’t done with a ball; it is just a practice motion you can work on both on and off the range. 

It helps to gain some awareness of what the golf club and your body do in transition can help you eliminate the early release.

3. Don’t Hinge the Wrists Too Much

Golfers who hinge their wrists as the first move in their golf swing tend to struggle with this early release.

This is often done to generate power, but when the wrists hinge, they also have to unhinge again.

Another thing about wrist hinge that is important to remember is that it tends to add extension. As soon as you hinge your wrists the lead lead wrist moves to a cupped position.

Practice delaying the wrist hinge and then holding the lag longer in the downswing.

Additional Drills to Fix Early Release

In addition to the motorcycle drill and the bump and pump drill, there are other ways you can work on the early release in the golf swing. Try these to see what you can find that works for your game.

Remember to wear HackMotion (your coach on your wrist) while you practice to ensure your wrists are always in the proper position.

Put Energy Into the Ball

Making sure that you have energy moving down and through the golf ball will help you fix the early release issue. Golfers who hang back and forget to work on compression struggle with this.

In this video, Clay Ballard shows you how to tee it up, learn to compress it, and strike it a little lower to eliminate the early release.

Hit Hard Stop, Quick Drill

The Hit Hard, Stop Quick Drill is another great drill for fixing the early release. With this drill, you’ll focus more on getting the club to stop just after impact.

If you release the club too early, you won’t be able to stop the club in this position. Sometimes, just focusing on hitting the ball hard and then stopping the club makes it easier to gain clubface awareness.

• Video Timestamp – 4:47 – 9:33

Final Thoughts

Now that you have some actionable steps to work on the early release in your golf swing, head out to the driving range and get it done. Remember that early release and casting are essentially the same, so any drills or resources you see for not casting the club can also be helpful.

Remember that your wrist position controls the clubface, and wearing your HackMotion will ensure that your clubface doesn’t get too open at the top, causing this early release.