Golf And Your Hips

Many local golfers are itching to get back on the course as the weather starts to warm up, and we need to make sure our bodies are prepared for the demands required of us to swing the club efficiently.

Hip pain is very common among golfers. A recent study showed that close to 20% of professional golfers exhibit hip pain, and increasing age is a significant predictor of hip pain in the golfer.

The hip joint needs to be very mobile, having to withstand both direct loading stresses and large rotational forces with weight-bearing activities, and in golf the hip is especially exposed to high-velocity internal rotation on the downswing, requiring a great deal of strength in the hip and gluteal muscles. The mobility demands of the golf swing also require a significant amount of rotation through the hips – with about 40 degrees of hip internal rotation required to adequately perform a golf swing. (For reference, the average hip internal rotation for a PGA tour player is 45 degrees.)

But what happens when you do not have the time, resources, or genetics of a professional athlete (i.e. all of us)?  The tightness and weakness of your hip can cause many swing faults (i.e. sway or slide) resulting in distance loss and increased injury risk not only at the hips, but the knees, ankles, and most notably the lower back. The results can be painful and potentially debilitating to your golf game.

Simply put, the hips go through and contribute a lot to the golf swing, and we need to make sure that you are strong, stable, and mobile throughout the range of motion you have available to you. There are exercises that can help get the muscles in the hips and glutes stronger, and the joints of the surrounding areas more mobile to better prepare your body for the golf swing and reduce the chance and/or progression of injury.

As a certified medical professional through the Titleist Performance Institute, I have outlined four of my personal favorite exercises to get the hips ready for golf and keep them strong, mobile, and resilient for the duration of your season.

Bridges with band at knees

Purpose: strengthen the glutes, core, and lumbar muscles. The glutes and core are extremely important muscle groups for staying in posture and developing power during the golf swing.

Instructions: Perform 3 sets of 10-15 reps. Hold for 3 seconds at the top, squeezing the glutes and abdominal muscles.

Hip Circles

Purpose: Improve mobility and muscle activation of the deep hip muscles.

Instructions: On hands and knees, trace a big circle with one of your knees. Motion is coming from the hip. Try and keep your low back stable and level. Perform 2 sets of 10 reps on each side.  

Hip Openers

Purpose: This is one of my favorite drills to help loosen up the and help prepare them for the rotation required from the golf swing.

Instructions: slowly rotate the legs from side to side for 2 sets of 10 reps

Supine Piriformis Stretch

Purpose: improve muscular flexibility at the glutes to improve rotational mobility. 

Instructions: 3 reps holding for 30 seconds – each leg.

If you have pain with your golf game and are looking to begin an individualized physical therapy specifically for golfers, reach out to me for a consultation so I can hep you recover from your injury and reach your goals of playing pain free golf!

1. Dickenson E, Ahmed I, Fernandez M, O'Connor P, Robinson P, Campbell R, Murray A, Warner M, Hutchinson C, Hawkes R, Griffin D. Professional golfers' hips: prevalence and predictors of hip pain with clinical and MR examinations. Br J Sports Med. 2016 Sep;50(17):1087-91. doi: 10.1136/bjsports-2016-096008. Epub 2016 Apr 22. PMID: 27105901.

2. https://www.mytpi.com/articles/swing/your-hips-and-your-swing

3. Exercise pictures via medbridge.com