Question
How much shoulder range of motion is required for a proper golf swing? I am thinking of patients who are status post left shoulder replacement and are trying to return to golf.
Answer
If we are talking about backswing, for right-handed golfers, the right shoulder will comfortably need a minimum of 70 degrees of external rotation. For follow through, they will need about the same in the left shoulder. The closer they can be to 90 degrees the better. As a practitioner, this is where knowing your client's limitations and where you think you can get them comes into play. If they are an avid golfer and want to get back to the game, they could shorten their backswing a little, and sometimes they can abbreviate their follow-through.
The Injured Golfer: The Full Swing Clinical Implications [Video Course]
