Golf Glossary
The 12 terms that get misunderstood the most in golf, explained the way Coach Harvey would explain them at the range — in plain English, with no jargon left unexplained.
Swing Path
The horizontal direction the clubhead is travelling at impact, measured relative to the target line.
Swing Plane
The angled circle the club shaft traces around the body during the swing — established by the shaft angle at address.
Lag
The angle retained between the lead arm and the club shaft during the downswing — the source of compression and clubhead speed.
Golf Swing Tempo
The overall rhythm of the swing — typically a 3-to-1 ratio of backswing time to downswing time across all skill levels.
The Release
The moment in the downswing when the wrists unhinge and the clubhead delivers stored energy to the ball.
Weight Transfer
The shift of pressure from the trail foot at the top of the backswing to the lead foot through impact.
Kinematic Sequence
The order in which the body's segments accelerate and decelerate in the downswing — hips, torso, lead arm, club, in that order.
Low Point
The lowest point in the arc of the golf swing — must occur in front of the ball for crisp iron contact.
Angle of Attack
The vertical angle of the clubhead at impact — negative (descending) for irons, positive (ascending) for the driver.
Spine Angle
The forward tilt of the upper body at address, measured from vertical — must be maintained from address through impact.
Clubface Control
The orientation of the clubface relative to the swing path at impact — the dominant factor in starting line and curve.
Hip Rotation
The turning of the pelvis around the spine — the engine of the modern golf swing.
See the swing faults these terms describe
Every glossary entry links to the swing faults Coach Harvey detects that share its root cause — so you can move from understanding the term to fixing the flaw in two clicks.
Browse all faults →