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Look on any tour. Golf swings all look different. But any consistent player has one thing in common: They have the ability to get the club in the slot on the downswing.

You ask, what in the heck is the slot? The slot is the halfway-down position in the downswing where the club is approaching from inside the target line with the right elbow fairly close to the right hip.

Most amateurs just are not able to get the club in the slot because they rotate their shoulders early from the top of their swing. This, of course, throws the club outside the target line and usually results in a slice, a pull, or even a top.

For example, Jim Furyk and Sean O’Hair have high swings but are still able to drop their arms into the slot before they turn out of the way with their body. Fred Funk and Trevor Immelman have low swings and don’t have to work so hard to get their club in the slot coming down.

After giving thousands of lessons over the years, I know how hard it is for you amateurs to get the club in the slot coming down.

In my opinion, the biggest reason for this is that you never really turn behind the ball on the backswing. If the weight hangs on the left side at the top of your swing, you are likely to start your downswing with an early unwinding of the shoulders and torso from the top of the swing.

Nothing could be more destructive for the average amateur. The resultant outside-inside swing makes golf a tough game indeed.

So you say, how do I make sure I get into the slot coming down every time?

Well, here are some tips for you to do just that.

* Make sure you make a big shoulder turn on the backswing. Get 75 to 80 percent of your weight to the inside of the right leg at the top of your swing. To get you to feel this, try to turn your left shoulder over your right knee.

* On your downswing, try to keep your back to your target as long as you can. As you are doing this, you want to feel like your arms are dropping down vertically from the top of your swing. You should now be in the slot if you perform this as I have mentioned. At this point in your swing, you should simply turn out of the way with your hips.

* The best drill I know to help you practice getting into the slot on the downswing is the slot-turning drill.

To perform this drill, just go to the top of your swing and stop. From here, just bring the club down to waist high. As you do this, feel the right elbow come into your side while keeping your wrists cocked. Pump the club two or three times like this, and on the fourth pump, go ahead and hit the ball.

* Another good drill I would practice is the Wall Drill. Just stand with your back facing a wall. You should be about a foot and a half from the wall.

Now, go to the top of your swing and stop and rest the clubhead on the wall.

Swing the club down at a very slow speed, keeping the clubhead on the wall. This will give you the feeling of being in the slot.

To be a consistent player, you must get the club in the slot coming down. Practice it and it will be yours.

Dr. Jim Suttie, the 2000 PGA Teacher of the Year, is director of instruction at The Club at TwinEagles in North Naples and at Cog Hill Golf Club in Lemont, Ill. Call 1-800-765-3838. Suttie is a Golf Magazine Top 100 Teacher, Golf Digest Top 20 Teacher, and coaches the FGCU golf team. E-mail him at jmsuttie@aol.com or go online to www.jimsuttie.com.