Let’s have a heart-to-heart with no judgment - just the facts. Most golfers spend more time deciding whether to wear a quarter-zip or a vest than they do preparing their bodies to swing a club at 100 mph. Before the first tee, it’s a few arm circles, a twist to the left and right, a pretend backswing, then it’s driver time.
It’s like starting a Ferrari in sub-zero temps, with cheap gas and immediately flooring it. What happens next? Nothing good. Sputtering. Misfires. Maybe smoke.
Golf may look graceful, but under the hood, it’s an athletic act of rotational violence, and your body deserves a better warm-up for performance than an unprepared cold start.
That’s why this edition of the President’s Corner is dedicated to one truth:
“If you want to play well, feel great and swing like a pro, warming up is non-negotiable.”
Why Warming Up Matters
We’ve all heard the cliché: “I’m just warming up. I’ll find my stride on the back nine.” In golf, most people say it on hole five, after a few double bogeys and a sudden twinge in their lower back. But here’s the kicker: science-backed research supports the benefits of warming up prior to the first tee to avoid the common pitfalls from not warming up properly.
According to the Titleist Performance Institute (TPI), golfers who follow a short, dynamic warm-up experience a:
• 24 percent increase in early round clubhead speed
• Measurable improvement in timing, tempo and sequence
• Reduction in lower back and shoulder injuries
• Boost in energy, coordination and decision-making
The National Academy of Sports Medicine (NASM) confirms these claims. Their curriculum shows that dynamic warm-ups, which correct underactive and overactive muscles, significantly reduce soft tissue strain, joint loading and compensation-based movement errors, especially in rotational athletes like golfers.
The American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) further details the research. For example, dynamic warm-ups improve muscle temperature, enhance motor unit recruitment and reduce injury risk when paired with functional movement strategies. According to ACSM’s Position Stand on Exercise and Physical Activity for Older Adults (2009), a combination of mobility, balance and muscular activation, when performed consistently, can significantly decrease the risk of acute and chronic injuries in aging populations, including recreational golfers.
Translation: if you skip your warm-up, your golf swing suffers, your body compensates and your propensity for injury increases. Conversely, if you warm up properly, then your neuromuscular system becomes a machine, and your golf game will improve with fewer limitations.
Swing Faults Aren’t Always Swing Problems
Do you believe your slice is a swing flaw? Maybe. But more often than not, it’s a movement dysfunction in disguise.
TPI’s Body-Swing Connection shows that most swing faults result from physical limitations that stem from tight hips, inactive glutes, stiff spines and/or poor sequencing. NASM and Gray Institute support these findings: compensatory movement patterns begin with structural dysfunction. Moreover, ACSM validates through studies that repetitive, high-force rotational movements without adequate preparation are a known risk factor for musculoskeletal injury.
Swing flaws are commonly linked to dysfunction:
• Early Extension = weak glutes + tight hips
• Loss of Posture = thoracic stiffness + poor core control
• Over-the-Top = lack of lower-body stability and an inability to disassociate upper and lower body movement patterns
• Slide/Sway = underactive glute medius + lateral instability
• Reverse Spine Angle = inadequate trunk control and mobility
Warming up isn’t just about “feeling loose.” It’s about strategically fixing these issues before you make them worse.
The LPGA and PGA Pros Know the Secret
Watch Nelly Korda, Lydia Ko and Lexi Thompson warm up before a round of golf and you’ll see band-resisted side steps, mobility flows and tempo swings. They perform a warm-up, not because it looks cool, but because it improves their performance and prevents injuries.
LPGA and PGA Tour players use movement science to fire the right muscles, open the right joints and set the tempo before they hit a ball. Do you remember Tiger Woods famously saying, “I can’t activate my glutes.” He explained that his inability to activate his glutes led to lower back pain, and it forced him to withdraw from tournaments.
On the PGA Tour, pros like Rory McIlroy, Collin Morikawa and Justin Thomas go straight to the fitness trailer to warm up before hitting a golf ball. They perform the following exercises:
• Glute bridges and band walks
• T-spine openers
• Core and scapular activation
• Light-speed swings to fire their CNS
LPGA and PGA Tour Testing and Evaluation Expert Jason Meisch from Peak Golf Institute notes, “If they’re not assessing, then they’re guessing.” The pros are preparing their bodies to perform through a comprehensive program that begins with a warm-up. And here’s the kicker: these exercises aren’t complex routines. They’re short, specific and scalable.
Prepare to Win: The GFAA 5-Phase Golf Warm-Up
This is your performance primer: fast, functional and evidence-based. In under 10 minutes, you’ll wake up your swing engine to reduce dysfunctions that cause swing faults.
1. Mobilize the Big Three (2 minutes)
• Cat-Cow (10 reps) – Restores spinal fluidity
o Linked to: Loss of Posture, Reverse Spine Angle
• Hip Circles (10 each leg) – Unlocks hip rotation
o Linked to: Early Extension, Slide/Sway
• Torso Rotations (30 sec) – Frees thoracic mobility
o Linked to: Over-the-Top, Reverse Spine Angle
Sources: TPI Mobility Screens; NASM CES; ACSM Guidelines - Improved joint range of motion reduces faulty compensatory movement.
2. Activate Key Movers (2–3 minutes)
• Mini-Band Side Steps (15 each way) – Glute medius activation
o Linked to: Sway/Slide, Early Extension
• Bird-Dogs (10 each side) – Core control and stability
o Linked to: Loss of Posture, Over-the-Top
• Wall Slides (10 reps) – Scapular and postural activation
o Linked to: Reverse Spine Angle, Poor Arm Plane
Sources: NASM CES, ACSM Position Stand (2013) – Muscle activation restores balance and improves dynamic control.
3. Pattern the Golf Swing (2–3 minutes)
• Toe Touch to Overhead Reach (10 reps) – Connects the kinetic chain
• Lateral Lunges with Reach (10 each side) – Opens frontal plane movement
o Linked to: Poor Weight Transfer, Slide/Sway
• Split-Stance Rotations (10 each) – Reinforces proper sequencing
o Linked to: Over-the-Top, Loss of Separation
Sources: TPI Kinematic Sequence; ACSM Functional Training Guidelines - Patterned movements enhance coordination and swing timing.
4. Prime the CNS (1 minute)
• Tempo-Controlled Swings (5 reps) – Sets rhythm and sequence
• Speed Swings (3–5 reps) – Activates fast-twitch fibers
• Breathing (3 deep breaths) – Focus and mental readiness
Sources: “The Science Behind a Golf Warm-Up,” TPI; ACSM 2022 Review on Dynamic Warm-Ups - Neural priming improves performance and movement efficiency.
5. Visualize the Shot (30 sec)
Picture the shot. Feel the tempo. See the swing. Now go deliver it with purpose.
Final Word from the First Tee
Let’s shift the mindset that warming up isn’t “extra.” It’s the first step to a healthy round of golf. It’s your antidote to stiffness and your insurance policy against injury. Most importantly, a warm-up is your correction for swing faults before they surface.
In conclusion, the next time you arrive at the golf course or driving range, don’t skip the warm-up. Play with purpose by implementing a 10-minute routine of exercises that can save you strokes and prime your body to perform at its best. Your peak performance doesn’t start on the first tee; it begins in the parking lot with a plan.
To faster swings, fewer faults and a body that performs on command,
Dr. Steven LorickPresident, Golf Fitness Association of America
Dr. Steven Lorick is a golf exercise physiologist recognized by the PGA of America, Titleist Performance Institute and NASM as a global expert in golf and fitness. Dr. Lorick holds a doctorate from USC, an MBA from Georgetown University and over 20 advanced certifications, including from Stanford in nutrition. A military veteran, he was honored with the U.S. Congressional Award of Special Recognition as a member of the Presidential Escort.