Written by Michael VanDerLaan
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What would you say if I told you that there is a training aid that requires no assembly, no set up or break down, is affordable, and is guaranteed to help you to become a better ball striker? In this Impact Ball Training Aid review, I am going to tell you about one of the most underrated training aids in the game.
If you are ready to hit more fairways, give yourself more birdie putts, and lower your scores, then you are in the right place. At Golf Gear Advisor, we do rigorous testing and research to ensure that all of the information and equipment we bring to you is legit. The Impact Ball is one of the all time greats, and now I will share with you why that is.
What Is The Impact Ball Golf Training Aid?
The Impact Ball is really simple in design. It is a foam ball with indentations on either side where you will rest your forearms as you set up to hit a golf ball. In keeping with the golf theme, the Impact Ball features a dimpled surface that resembles a golf ball.
It comes in 3 different sizes to accommodate people with different body proportions. The smallest one is orange and blue, and is designed for junior golfer and people of smaller stature. Women who are smaller than average tend to work well with this size. If you are pretty average in size and stature (I fall into this category at 5 foot 11 and 185 pounds), the green and blue medium size is for you. Anyone who is on the bigger side, whether you’re tall or you had a couple extra hot dogs at the turn, should try the large sized yellow and blue ball.
Regardless of which size you need, the way you use the Impact Ball doesn’t change. Let’s take a look at how to use it and what it does for your swing.
How Do You Use The Golf Impact Ball Training Aid?
To use the impact ball, set your forearms - about halfway between your wrists and elbows - in the indentations of the training aid. It is important to remember that the logo has to be facing towards the ground when you are setting up. If you can read the logo when the ball is between your arms, the ball is upside down and will not work properly.
Once you have fit the ball in between your forearms, all you have to do is make swings without dropping the ball. Sounds easy, right? Don’t be surprised if it’s a pretty big challenge at first!
What Does The Impact Ball Help Me With?
There is a term that hardly ever gets thrown around in golf called swing radius. Essentially, the golf swing is a circle, and every circle has a radius (the distance from the middle of the circle to the edge). In the golf swing, the radius refers to the distance between your body and the club head.
When you use the impact ball, you are forced to use your arms as one unit rather than two independent pieces. This creates the ability for your swing radius to remain consistent.
It also allows you to instantly feel proper forearm rotation with only a few swings. We see this with all good ball strikers.
Simply put, you will build a more consistent, efficient golf swing that allows you to hit the ball solid way more often.
There are some common swing flaws that the impact ball will force you to correct. You cannot maintain a hold on the Impact Ball if you have a chicken wing golf swing. It will go rolling down the driving range and you’ll have to go chasing after it!
You will also see a lot straighter ball flights. Whether your miss is a hook or a slice, you can expect those to appear less often and be less severe. All in all, the Impact Ball will turn you into a superior version of your golf self!
The Impact Ball can also help you with your putting stroke. My favorite way to use the ball for putting work is to put it between my knees while putting. This results in reducing body movement and an improved putting stroke.
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Getting Started With The Golf Impact Ball
Getting started with the Impact Ball requires a little bit of patience, but it’s worth the time and energy.
Go ahead and get set up with the training aid as if you are going to hit a ball. Using the proper golf grip will help you fit the ball between your forearms comfortably. Rather than making a full swing I want you to make a swing that is only hip high in both the backswing and downswing. Maintain a tight hold on the impact ball throughout the whole motion. If that felt easy, go ahead and make a bigger swing, but if you lost control of the ball, try again a little slower.
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As you make these smaller swings, feel what it’s like for the ball to help your forearms rotate, and how much more compact the motion feels than your normal swing. This is what a proper golf swing should feel like. When you have successfully made a few small swings without dropping the ball, go ahead and hit a ball using the same swing. Even if you don’t hit it solid at first, this is how you will start training your body to perform well when there is a consequence.
The more you practice, the longer you will be able to make your swing without dropping the ball. A full backswing is not much longer than your lead forearm being parallel to the ground. When you are able to make full swings with the ball between your forearms, it’s time to remove the ball and hit some shots. You should notice that you are hitting the ball straighter, more solid, and farther within a couple of training sessions!
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My Experience With The Impact Ball
I first worked with the Impact Ball when I was in high school. I didn’t understand how it worked the way that I do now, but I knew I hit the ball better when I practiced with it. When I went off to college, I didn’t bring the Impact Ball with me. I was still a very good ball striker, but my game definitely took a step backwards.
Fast forward to the fall of 2022, and now I’m a professional golfer with my living hinging on how well I get the ball in the hole. I was struggling with my consistency tee to green, and decided to begin working with a new swing coach. In our very first session, he pulled out the Impact Ball and asked if I had ever used it before.
“Sure have,” I told him, “but it’s been a minute.”
We started the same way I recommended to you above. Small swings, hitting a pitching wedge about 60 yards. We were just trying to achieve the feeling of my arms working together throughout the takeaway, transition, and release of the golf club.
In that first session, I gained so much confidence in my swing and made visible changes on video. Ever since, I try to hit 20-30 balls at the beginning of every range session using the Impact Ball, and my ball striking has come leaps and bounds.
What I love about the Impact Ball is that it identifies and corrects practically any flaw in your swing, without forcing you to swing like a robot. I can still “swing my swing” as the great Arnold Palmer said, but a tighter, more consistent version of my swing that I can rely on day after day.
Impact Ball Golf Pros And Cons
What We Like
What We Don't Like
Frequently Asked Questions About The Impact Ball Golf Training Aid
What is impact position in golf?
Impact position in golf refers to the position of the body, arms, hands, and golf club at the point of impact with the ball. A perfect impact position is when your lead ankle, knee, and hip are all stacked vertically with your hips and shoulders rotated open. This puts your hands and the handle of the club ahead of the ball, created shaft lean and compression.
The Impact Ball golf training aid creates the conditions for you to develop this position more efficiently than if you were to try to practice it on your own.
Is the Impact Ball worth it?
The Impact Ball is absolutely worth the money. It is not expensive to begin with, and if your goal is to play better golf - whether that means breaking 90 or breaking par - the training aid will speed up your progress.
Keep in mind that ball striking is only one component of playing better golf. Developing a good short game, becoming a better putter, and understanding how to manage the game are all factors that will also contribute to lowering your score.
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Can anyone use the Golf Impact Ball?
Yes, anyone can use the Impact Ball. While it is not an easy training aid to use when you first start, there are no limitations on skill level, physical fitness, or any other type of restriction.
The Impact Ball is truly one of the best training aids for anyone learning to play golf!
One of my favorite things about the Impact Ball is that anyone can use it without taking a lessons to understand how! It is truly the simplest concept in golf training aids.
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Wrapping Up The Review
The Impact Ball golf training aid is a piece of equipment that I, along with countless other professional golfers, trust to build good habits in my swing.
I also use it to teach students the correct swing and eliminate flying elbows. My students achieve tremendous improvement and consistent results in their whole game after using the Impact Ball consistently.
No matter what your bad swing tendencies are, the Impact Ball will help you fix them. Every golfer who is interested in hitting the ball more solid can benefit from this simple but incredibly effective training aid. Whether you want to win the club championship or the US Open, training with the Impact Ball is a step towards achieving that goal.
The only question left to answer is; what are you waiting for? Add the Impact Ball to your practice routine and start hitting the ball more consistently!
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