The Missing Element: How to improve Tempo in your Golf Swing

When you hear the words “swing tempo”, it’s hard not to think of great players like Freddy Couples, Sam Snead, or Ernie Els. They just make the golf swing look easy!

Other players like Rory McIlroy, Tiger Woods (in his prime), and Bryson DeChambeau seem to lash at the ball in a much more aggressive move. But clearly, it’s worked well for them and inspired a lot of golfers to increase swing speed.

So, what’s the right move for the average player?

While these guys seem much more aggressive than Fred Couples, they’re actually quite similar in terms of timing and having the right fundamentals. Each player has the proper tempo that is timed just right.

Today, I’ll teach you the exact tempo you need for a full swing. Plus, I’ll help you discover the easiest training aid to help with your full swing tempo to hit it longer, have a better transition, and improve your game fast.

What is Golf Swing Tempo?

So what is swing tempo anyway?

Tempo is defined as the elapsed time of your golf swing from backswing to follow-through. Yet, it’s one of the most misunderstood parts of the game.

Until now…

Key Takeaways

• To hit each golf club further and better, swing mechanics are important but so is tempo.
• The perfect golf swing tempo is 3:1. However, the average tempo of most golfers is too slow and might be holding you back from playing your best.
• A slower rhythm gives you more time to think about your swing, which makes it harder to strike the ball consistently (and will likely lose out on distance). This is why most golfers need to speed up their backswing and instantly improve their full swing.
• Short game tempo is a different timing (2:1) than long game tempo and something we’ll cover separately.

It’s always good to learn from the pros. While you can’t overhaul your swing mechanics overnight, you can adopt one thing they all have in common – tempo.

What is the Perfect Golf Swing Tempo?

So what is the right tempo? Is it Freddy, Tiger, Rory or someone else?

The answer might surprise you.

It’s actually not any one player. The right swing tempo is actually all about getting the perfect tempo of 3:1. Here’s a quick video from the Golf Channel discussing the 3:1 swing tempo in full.

To sum it up, your backswing should take 3X as long as you’re downswing.

So if your backswing takes .9 seconds, your downswing should take .3 seconds.

Studies have found that this is one of things every great player has in common. This timing creates the perfect rhythm to ensure you’re always accelerating at impact and compressing the ball with power.

The Truth About Perfect Golf Swing Tempo

Now that you know the ideal golf swing tempo, let’s debunk one of the oldest myths in golf:

“Low and slow on the backswing.”

This is terrible advice that is holding you back from hitting the golf ball to your potential.

John Garrity clarified this concept in the book, Tour Tempo:

“The great golfers have always swung more quickly and aggressively than middle and high handicappers. If you don’t believe me, take a stopwatch and time a typical tour player’s swing from takeaway to impact. The elapsed time will be between .93 seconds and 1.20 seconds, or about as long as it takes to flip a pancake.” 

If you had a side by side video analysis of the golf swing of an average PGA Tour player and average amateur, the timing will shock you. Pros do not take the club “low and slow” on the way back. If you blink, you’ll nearly miss their swing entirely.

John went on to say this a few paragraphs later.

“Now take that same stopwatch and time the swings of your average weekend golfer — your 5 handicapper, your 15-handicapper, your can’t-get-it-airborne 30-handicapper. You’ll find that these nonprofessionals take anywhere from 1.3 seconds to a full 3.0 seconds to send the ball on its way.”

That’s right, pros swing faster and so should you! This change made a massive change in my own game and I’ll share the transformation down below.

How to Get Better Golf Swing Tempo

So how do you improve your swing tempo?

Here are some of the most useful tips and drills to help you swing it like Freddy and nail the 3:1 ratio in no time.

Relax at Address

First off, relax when you address the ball and take a deep breath. Undo the death grip and tension that comes with it.

Tension is a major cause of a hurried swing tempo, especially with amateur golfers. You should be deliberate with all the actions you take prior to taking your stance and setting the club behind the ball.

Also, relaxing and staying loose throughout the round is key. Especially when you’re playing well or competing in an event.

Find the Right Grip Pressure

Next up is checking your grip for signs of tension.

Both Tiger and Jack have discussed this in their golf instruction books. They recommend holding the club lightly at address, then firming the grip slightly before you start your backswing.

The goal is to find the amount of grip pressure you need to maintain control of the club without tensing your hands and forearms. And it’s important to note this is different for each club and type of shot.

For example, you want to grip it more with a nasty lie in the rough and lighter in the bunkers. For full shots, you want to have a 5/10 on the grip pressure scales. Otherwise, too much grip pressure can cause you to jerk the club back rather than starting smoothly.

This instantly throws you off and makes it nearly impossible to hit the 3:1 tempo.

Go Smooth on the Way Back

You want a smooth takeaway to set up the proper tempo for the entire swing. But the problem is that most golfers are way too slow.

Speeding up your backswing from address position will make a bigger change than you can imagine. And there are countless stories of this inside the book mentioned above.

A super slow backswing makes it easy to rush the downswing and come over the top, producing the nasty pull cut.

Rarely, do amateurs take the club too fast on the backswing. However, it can happen, but the app we’ll share below will fix that issue too.

Short Game Tempo

It’s important to note this article is all about making a full golf swing – not relating to your short game. The authors of Tour Tempo later released a second book titled Tour Tempo 2 which breaks down the best player’s tempo for short game and found it was different from a full golf swing.

While the full tempo is 3:1, the short game is 2:1. When you have the right tempo for short shots, you can beat the chipping yips and save a ton of shots around the greens.

You can read all about short game tempo here and learn about putting tempo here.

Swing Tempo Drills and Resources

To help you ingrain this habit, I recommend trying out some of these resources. Remember, the key to making changes in golf or anything is through repetition.

Try and do these consistently to produce a new swing tempo that will help your consistency.

1-2-3-1 Tempo Drill

In this golf channel video, they discuss this super simple but effective swing tempo drill. On the range, count out loud 1-2-3 on the way back and try to count 1 on the way down. You can do this with practice swings to get the feel for it and move on to hitting shots.

Sure, people next to you might think you’re crazy, but who cares. Or you can also count more quietly once you get the hang of it. This is also a great drill to use when you’re in a pressure situation.

Because when you’re under the gun, the last thing you want to think about is any mechanical thoughts. Instead, think about keeping your tempo smooth with the 1-2-3-1 drill.

Lastly, this drill is great for practicing at home by simply extending your arms and putting your hands together. Do it in the mirror to help you see and feel it on a regular basis.

Swing Tempo Drill

Another great drill is from Me and My Golf, here’s the video. This simple drill will help you keep your body and arms connected. Plus, you don’t need to go to the range to start working on it.

• Step 1: Flex your knees and take a normal address position.
• Step 2: Cross your arms, so your left arm is over your right oblique and right arm is over your left oblique.
• Step 3: Feel as though you tighten your core which keeps your body and arms connected.
• Step 4: Practice rotating your body back while holding your obliques. This will make it easy to not overswing or get too much activity with your arms.

Tour Tempo Timer App

Another way to help you train your golf swing tempo is the Tour Tempo app. This app (based on the book) is used by hundreds of thousands of golfers worldwide and helps you train all different parts of your game for consistent tempo.

It’s one of the best apps for every golfer because it makes it easy to learn the right tempo based on different speeds. It has the perfect 3:1 tone for your long swing so you can spend time on the driving range to understand the perfect tempo for you.

I regularly use this app in practice on the driving range and simulator and it’s made a massive difference. Additionally, the app also has short game tones too.

This makes it easy to develop the ideal tempo (2:1) for your short game. Use the app for good tempo on shorter shots when you’re in the bunker, chipping, and pitching.

Chances are, you’ll hit your best shots, make solid contact, and watch your short game improve dramatically.

Tour Tempo Book

If you want to learn more about the perfect swing tempo, make sure to buy the book to learn about the studies done to find the perfect 3:1 tempo.

Read our Tour Tempo review here.

Training Aids

These training aids should also help you find the perfect 3:1 swing ratio.

Orange Whip

The Orange Whip is a popular golf gadget that works great for training your tempo and much more. It’s been voted the #1 teaching and training aid on both the PGA and LPGA tour! We put it on our list of the best golf training aids.

The shaft coordinates the rhythm between your arms, upper body, and lower body. Use this device to swing over and over to develop the perfect tempo and balanced swing to produce consistent shots on the golf course.

Remember, repetition is the key and this device makes it easy.

Plus, it also provides instant feedback. Any wobble in your swing indicates a need to improve tempo and balance.

Click here to read our in-depth Orange Whip Review.

Speed Training

Improving your tempo can come in an unlikely training aid – speed training. When you use a device like Rypstick, SuperSpeed Golf, or the Stack System, chances are it’ll naturally help you take the club back faster.

When I started overspeed training alongside the TT app a few years ago, it made a huge shift in my tempo (and total distance). Don’t forget, the longer you hit it, the easier it is to become a scratch golfer.

Basic Metronome

That’s right, using a good old fashioned metronome is a great way to improve your tempo. We’ve got a full article on how to use a metronome for golf.

My Experience

As I mentioned above, “low and slow” is one of the worst pieces of advice in the game of golf. Trust me, I know from my experience.

This advice was nearly burned into my subconscious from an early age (I started playing golf in the late 90s) and thought it was the key to a better backswing and downswing. A few years ago I got a lesson from a PGA Tour coach (and top 100 teacher) to improve my ball striking consistency after missing the next stage of Q-School by three shots.

It was then that I learned my tempo and rhythm was holding me back. I always felt like I rushed my downswing and had a fast transition with full swing shots.

His fix was simple – speed up my backswing.

The first few shots felt awkward, but after 10–20 balls I was hitting each club nearly 10 yards longer than the first shot. My full distance increased drastically and I didn’t “rush” the downswing because I was swinging so much faster. This led to a smooth transition and more power than ever.

It also led to discovering the ideal ratio of tempo and downloading the Tour Tempo app. Now, my swing speed has improved, my swing timing is better than ever, and my game has improved drastically.

The point? Speed up your backswing.

After talking with John Novosel Jr. (who’s father co-wrote Tour Tempo), I’m confident that swinging with a faster tempo is the key to more consistency in your game. I use the app for speed training too by putting it on the fastest tempo to try and hit each drive as hard as possible.

Other sessions I’ll use the app to improve my full swings as I hit balls and short game practice too. Changing your tempo is only one swing away – download the app and watch your game improve quickly.

Final Thoughts on Swing Tempo

Hopefully, swing tempo makes a lot more sense after reading this article and you’re ready to start changing yours.

Remember, swing tempo is all about finding the perfect 3:1 ratio. Make sure to adapt it to your swing and don’t try to swing like Tiger, Rory or your favorite PGA player.

Use these drills and training aids to constantly repeat the perfect 1-2-3-1 tempo into your game. Even if you don’t change any other aspect of your game, I’m confident this will help you hit it more consistently and set yourself up to shoot lower scores.

Next, make sure to read:

• Golf Swing Sequence 101
• How to Make Swing Changes