When we last checked in on Charles Barkley’s golf swing, famed instructor Hank Haney was trying to rid the burly broadcaster of a vicious hitch. The delay at the top of Barkley’s backswing was so pronounced, one could finish an entire episode of “Shaqtin A Fool” before he ever struck the ball.
After months of instruction, Haney’s project looked a little better but not much.
Well, the Chuckster was back at it this weekend in the American Century Championship at Lake Tahoe, California — new swing(s) and all.
Sporting a hard hat (maybe the gallery should have been wearing them), Barkley stepped up and addressed the ball with a cross-handed grip. Surprisingly, the hitch was gone and the swing didn’t look that bad, relatively speaking.
Charles Barkley’s wearing a construction hat at #ACCGolf and his swing’s not bad! pic.twitter.com/M3LtxxLGWB — SB Nation (@SBNation) July 14, 2017
Later in the tournament, maybe due to a sore wrist, Barkley was more like himself, swinging at the ball with one hand. The wicked duck-hook sent fans along a tree line scurrying.
Charles Barkley with the one-handed golf swing 😂 pic.twitter.com/rWu34xAauK — Def Pen Sports (@DefPenSports) July 16, 2017
When asked about his swing change by NFL Network, the ever humble Barkley said: “I’m hitting the ball a little better, but don’t get over confident that I’m not going to come in last place.”