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Why do low-handicap college golfers miss left?

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As instructional tools evolve, we as teachers are better armed with technology that helps us become better instructors. The video feature on my Trackman helps me to better understand the dynamics of impact and the issues of faulty positions throughout the golf swing. While there are always idiosyncrasies that players can make up for at different times during the golf swing, it seems like I continually see some of the same swing flaws. In this article, I’d like to discuss an issue I tend to see in most low-handicap college golfers who are trying to become scratch or better.

With today’s style of “grip it and rip it,” we have seen the evolution of the grip — what once was more neutral has now become stronger in efforts to hit the ball greater distances. These stronger grips help to deloft the club at impact and with the higher ball speed players, this can mean prodigious distance shots with all clubs. The second thing these stronger grips can promote is a larger face-to-path relationship (as we’ll discuss below), which moves the ball on a stronger right-to-left ball-flight pattern, which for most players — not all — tends to create more distance.

While this is all good, sometimes this stronger grip can be the root of an issue in the golf swing that causes the ball to begin at the target and miss it a touch left. This is always a concern for these college players in tournaments when trying to access back left pins with bunkers, water, and out-of-bounds just left of the green. We have all “tugged” this type of shot starting the ball too much targetward, thus when it begins to curve, it’s gone.

Now as we have all seen before, the perfect impact dynamics look something like this to hit a push draw:

Image 01

The ball begins in the direction of the face and curves away from the path. Thus, when the face angle at impact is between the path and the target as shown above, the ball will begin to the right and curve back to the pin.

Now, back to the grip and why it can become an issue with a stronger grip for the college kids.

CollegePlayersFace2

This player has today’s normal grip, which shows between two to three knuckles on the left hand at address. This grip places a slight “cup” in the left hand at address. Whenever this “cup” is lost on the way back, the club face tends to shut as you can see in the photo above. Now the face is NOT brutally shut, but it is a touch more closed than I’d like to see for this right-to-left player at this point in the golf swing.

From here, the club face remains shut at the top and into delivery, almost mirroring the same club-face position I showed you on the takeaway earlier. When this happens, you are in trouble as you will see in a second.

CollegePlayersFace2

As discussed, this player has begun with today’s stronger grip and shut the face on the way back, to the top, on the way down, and now is trying to deliver this slightly closed face through impact. From here, you will see that the problems begin in regard to missing the ball a touch left.

The player’s swing dynamic look like this, which will cause a draw that starts at the target and moves farther left:

Image 04

His path is from in-to-out at 5.7 degrees, but the club is basically reaching impact in a square or target-ward condition. Whenever the face is pointing AT the target during impact with a rightward path, you will see the ball begin at the target and move farther left (with centered impact) as shown by the ball flight screen at the bottom right of the photo above. This slightly shut face upon impact increases the face-to-path ratio to 5.6 degrees, meaning the face angle at impact was almost 6 degrees left of the club’s path. This gives us a 12.7-degree spin axis.

Whenever the club and the face point different directions, you will tilt the ball’s spin axis and the ball will curve, and in this case, it’s going left of where this player wanted the ball to go.

Note: this is NOT a path issue, it’s a FACE issue. Because of the stronger grip, the club moved into a shut condition from the takeaway through to impact leaving this player to fight a draw that starts at the target, which always misses to the left of the target.

So what is the fix?

As the teacher, I could weaken the grip slightly or keep the “cup” in the left hand the player established at address into delivery. I could even try more radical solutions, like raising the vertical swing plane at impact, decreasing the dynamic loft, leaning the shaft more forward at impact.

However, before we go crazy, we should try to monitor the face, making sure it’s not moving into a shut condition during the swing. If the student cannot feel the face condition doing this and it still remains too shut into impact, then I am forced to do one of the above things in efforts to put his club into a more consistent delivery and impact condition.

The key for these lower-handicap players is to fix the things that are easy to fix before going off on a complex mechanical tangent that will take time and “sweat equity” on your part.

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Tom F. Stickney II, is a specialist in Biomechanics for Golf, Physiology, and 3d Motion Analysis. He has a degree in Exercise and Fitness and has been a Director of Instruction for almost 30 years at resorts and clubs such as- The Four Seasons Punta Mita, BIGHORN Golf Club, The Club at Cordillera, The Promontory Club, and the Sandestin Golf and Beach Resort. His past and present instructional awards include the following: Golf Magazine Top 100 Teacher, Golf Digest Top 50 International Instructor, Golf Tips Top 25 Instructor, Best in State (Florida, Colorado, and California,) Top 20 Teachers Under 40, Best Young Teachers and many more. Tom is a Trackman University Master/Partner, a distinction held by less than 25 people in the world. Tom is TPI Certified- Level 1, Golf Level 2, Level 2- Power, and Level 2- Fitness and believes that you cannot reach your maximum potential as a player with out some focus on your physiology. You can reach him at [email protected] and he welcomes any questions you may have.

66 Comments

66 Comments

  1. Josh

    Dec 21, 2014 at 6:24 pm

  2. leo

    Oct 3, 2014 at 2:52 am

    the problem with the college players i have played with recently is they think they should try to birdie every hole.when i played in college we were taught to birdie the par 5s and go for green light pins maybe 6 per round.even after turning pro and playing a draw 95% of the time i would never miss left in the situation you described.if disaster lurkes just left aim a little more right try to make a 20-25 footer and live to fight another day with no worse than par

    • Tom Stickney

      Oct 3, 2014 at 8:38 pm

      Agree but sadly they are better now than we were then.

  3. Rumble

    Oct 1, 2014 at 9:53 pm

    Hey Tom ,
    I’m 24, stand at 5’4″ and carry the driver 250, and my 6 iron 180. However, the ball stops dead in the fairway on my drives, sometimes even ends up behind the pitch mark. I am very flexible and am told by everyone I have a “beautiful” swing, but I can’t seem to stop missing high and right. It generally starts right (sometimes way right almost shanked), and curves right near the end of flight. Often when the ball does start on line, it still falls off to the right. I do feel like I swing hard, as I sometimes wobble or my left foot swings open, and have thought for awhile of the typical fixes. My shoulders may open to fast, or my arms get stuck behind, my weight is stuck on my back foot, or I lose my tush line, but I can’t seem to pinpoint it for more than a couple swings. I know it is hard to give online instruction because there are so many variables, but do you have any ideas?
    Its frustrating because I’ve always been a good putter, and I average 1.9 putts per green, and I get up and down just shy of 50%, but can’t seem to hit enough GIR’s to score well.

    • Tom Stickney

      Oct 2, 2014 at 12:09 am

      If you’re missing high and right your path is left of your target and your face is rt of the target at impact.

      • Rumble

        Oct 2, 2014 at 9:00 am

        Thank you for the quick response Tom

      • Jeffcb

        Oct 4, 2014 at 10:08 am

        Hands could be ahead of the clubface at impact too huh? Its what I was taught and is the cause when I fan it. Gotta keep the clubhead moving past the hands. My pull draws (left misses) are because I stop turning my body and let my arms keep going. A fine line this game! I enjoy your articles Tom, lotsa food for thought.

        • Tom Stickney

          Oct 4, 2014 at 7:30 pm

          Thanks sir. Too much handle drag can be a killer in better players.

    • Set up

      Oct 6, 2014 at 1:07 am

      Rumble,

      Try to pull your right leg back behind the right one, and then try to purposefully hit big hooks from way right to left when you practice next time, so you can see and feel the opposite of what you’re used to. It should help you recognize how you’ve been lining up and how you’re coming across the line. Then go back to the middle from there. You should be able to hit it straight from there, I think. But it’s hard to break that “comfortable” set up position in alignment. It’s going to take some practice to change it up completely, it’ll be weird and uncomfortable for a while.

  4. JMaron

    Oct 1, 2014 at 2:00 pm

    My exact challenge – except I’m 52 years with a 1 handicap. Tried weakening my grip, but that feels so awful I gave up. Got a tip from an ex- tour pro about keeping the “cup” in the left hand through delivery…worked wonders for a while but definitely a battle.

    I’ve tried to focus on maintaining that cup at impact, but have not found much consistency. Any other tips throughout the the whole swing that might help me keep that cup into delivery?

    • Tom Stickney

      Oct 1, 2014 at 2:56 pm

      It’s not about cupping the left wrist at impact- that’s incorrect. It will be flat and the shaft lean will hold the face from shutting too rapidly.

      • Jim Maron

        Oct 3, 2014 at 8:00 am

        Thanks Tom,

        I appreciate the info.

      • JMaron

        Oct 3, 2014 at 2:16 pm

        I realize I incorrectly described the tip the ex playing pro gave me…it was to maintain an angle in the right wrist on impact and to have a sense that the heal strikes the ground first.

        Felt obliged not to misquote him in a sense – even thought I didn’t mention his name. He also said I should look at some tips from Paul Azinger.

        • Tom Stickney

          Oct 5, 2014 at 2:05 am

          Appreciate it. Makes sense now. Bent right wrist with the feel of moving into the ball from the inside. Good thoughts.

  5. derek

    Oct 1, 2014 at 3:57 am

    On course adjustments? I can miss them both ways aka i can work them both ways.
    but lets say it the club championship and i dont wanna look like a fool.
    If I notice on the driving range my shots are missing 5 to ten yards right of target whats the best slight adjustment ? I feel if i start messing with the grip mid round bad bad things are gonna happen.
    Rather than mess with my grip would Lowering and moving the hands Forward a bit pull that miss back to the flag a bit? and vice versa for the 7 yard pull or over draw?

    My go-to shot is a 250 pull fade (Chandelle? Payne Stewart) But I feel it and dont know the technical stuff other than my thoughts being I have an out to in swing, open stance with an open(?) club face at impact.
    In pressure situations it calms the nerves and I can bunt the driver 250.(7k altitude)
    TIA for your thoughts or stats

    • Tom Stickney

      Oct 1, 2014 at 10:56 am

      I’d never mess with my grip on the golf course. The key would be to get it around the course as best as possible any way you can and then find it again on the range after your round. Golf is all about score.

    • leo

      Oct 3, 2014 at 2:31 am

      with all those adjustments and swing thoughts it is amazing you can make contact.if you are missing all your shots 5-10 yds right aim 5-10 yds left and make a confident swing.this worked for nicklaus for about 30 years.

  6. ChiefKeef

    Sep 30, 2014 at 11:58 pm

    Good read and refresher. I’d like to see a little more in-depth explanation(s) of the process you’d go thru with a better player to try and find the right “fix” for him/her…

    • Tom Stickney

      Oct 1, 2014 at 10:58 am

      The fix can be multiple things…but auditing your grip and release pattern would be the best place to begin.

  7. Jeffcb

    Sep 30, 2014 at 9:09 pm

    Usually I’m trying to hit it too hard and my body opens up to the target line. Since I try and swing in to in I try and resist and swing smooth but it easier said than done in this game.

  8. vinax

    Sep 30, 2014 at 2:47 pm

    Sorry to be an a s s.

    But which college golfer hits a 7i @ 2667 rp backspin @ 13yard height & 25* land angle? Did you just pick a THINNED SHOT to show us this?

    • Tom Stickney

      Sep 30, 2014 at 5:48 pm

      You’re kidding me right? Sir, this is a sample shot to get the point across. Always better to show the extreme case rather than one that is not that far off.

      • COGolfer

        Sep 30, 2014 at 10:17 pm

        The entire point was to show a shot that was missed left… The shot you chose makes sense, because it’s a miss.

  9. AJ

    Sep 30, 2014 at 12:30 pm

    AoA plays a big role in this too. Was AoA 0* in all the examples above?

  10. Jeff

    Sep 30, 2014 at 5:29 am

    I am a 1 who uses a neutral to slightly weak grip, and know I cup at the top. I see the draw in my head, but when I try my “normal” high draw shot, I tend to miss left with all clubs (as a miss). I can work it both ways, but find the draw easier and with stronger(more penetrating) ball flight. My ball does exactly what you say – starts at target and falls left, sometimes dramatically so. Could my path have something to do with this, or is it just face angle?

    • Tom Stickney

      Sep 30, 2014 at 9:41 am

      Face

      • Jeff

        Oct 1, 2014 at 10:53 am

        Thanks. So, with the weaker grip (one to on and a half knuckles showing), what’s the best way to get the face more to the right?

        • Tom Stickney

          Oct 1, 2014 at 10:59 am

          It could be something as simple as more shaft lean at impact.

  11. christian

    Sep 29, 2014 at 11:19 pm

    Before I even clicked on the article I was thinking “because they usually hit a draw in order to get max distance”. Has it not been known “forever” that a good players miss is a hook/miss left? I think this is common knowledge, see no need for some in-depth analysis.

    • Tom Stickney

      Sep 29, 2014 at 11:24 pm

      While you do not- others do! It’s always best to truly explore and thus understand why things happen rather than guess. There is more to this article than meets the eye…

    • Bryan

      Sep 30, 2014 at 10:14 am

      Why would you even post a response like that… Seriously.. If you don’t like it; don’t read it! No need to bash someone’s work.

      • Tom Stickney

        Sep 30, 2014 at 1:37 pm

        People often criticize what they don’t fully understand. You can ALWAYS learn more.

    • MJ

      Sep 30, 2014 at 12:35 pm

      A good players miss is usually or block to the right. Of course this depends on the player but I would say the majority of good players would be able to control this over a hook.

      • MJ

        Sep 30, 2014 at 12:40 pm

        I guess I meant to say that is the miss that a good player is trying to achieve. When I mean good player, I mean pro.

        • Tom Stickney

          Sep 30, 2014 at 5:49 pm

          Everyone has their “issue” for sure

  12. Alex

    Sep 29, 2014 at 10:23 pm

    I’m a 27 year old scratch and have been playing with a neutral grip for the past 14 years. Lately (last year or so) I’ve been thinking about trying out a stronger grip because so many of the college guys/mini tour pros I play with get it past me 10-20 yards.

    This article has given me confidence to stick with the neutral grip. I love curving it both ways and I hate the pull and/or hook miss. Thanks for the great, easy to understand piece.

  13. Jubby

    Sep 29, 2014 at 5:29 pm

    Better players in general tend to miss left more often than right. It’s mostly because they are coming in from a shallower angle versus a higher handicap that come over the top most of the time.

    • Tom Stickney

      Sep 29, 2014 at 5:36 pm

      Agree

      • Tom Stickney

        Sep 29, 2014 at 11:25 pm

        Keyser. I’m talking about strong gripped kids and ams- not Tour pros.

    • Carlos Danger

      Sep 30, 2014 at 10:13 am

      5 Handicapper here…

      I have been a strong draw player my entire life. My natural setup is aim right and suck it in. About three years ago I decided to switch my driver swing to a fade and keep everything else the same. I paid very close attention to my scoring and where I was loosing strokes, the area other than the obvious (putting) was that I could count on 2-5 strokes per round that were a result of a drive missed WAY left…or as some people call a snap hook. Also, the club I joined is pretty much clockwise OB left so one or two snap hooks a round is not an option.

      It took me about a year but I now am very confident standing on the tee box with a driver and while I have lost a little distance, my accuracy is much better. When I miss it is not a violent snap, its more of a balloon fade that lands soft.

      In the transition, this fade swing worked its way into my irons from time to time which really F-d me up but seems I got that fixed as well. Just wondering if anyone else has this same mindset/game plan of fading the driver and pounding draws with everything else?

      • Tom Stickney

        Sep 30, 2014 at 1:42 pm

        I’ve seen many rounds played that way; whatever works best

  14. SS

    Sep 29, 2014 at 3:57 pm

    All it means is that young kids are all wanting to hit longer with draws than lose distance with a cut. Why don’t they just learn to hit it both ways all the time and not stick to one shot shape?

    • Tom Stickney

      Sep 29, 2014 at 5:37 pm

      Everyone has a shot that they “see” and it’s best to stick with that most of the time.

      • Urrid

        Sep 29, 2014 at 10:21 pm

        So they “see” a hooked miss to the left ALL the time? Ridiculous

        • Tom Stickney

          Sep 29, 2014 at 11:26 pm

          Urrid– of course not. But players see either rt to left or vice versa. You have to play the shot you like to see most of the time.

        • Teaj

          Sep 30, 2014 at 8:59 am

          where did you get that? people play a draw because thats the way they like to see their flight. they get into the miss left because of face angle at impact with a draw swing plane (inside to out) and face square to target.

          if you are comfortable hitting both draw and fade just the same good on you but im going to bet 99% of golfers rather hit one over the other. thats how I read the article and comments anyways.

          • Tom Stickney

            Sep 30, 2014 at 9:42 am

            Teaj– most players have their go-to shot pattern for sure. Agree.

  15. Mickey Harris

    Sep 29, 2014 at 2:48 pm

    When I went through this phase my self a few years back, I found the same results through 3D launch monitors and the D-Plane. My fix was quite simple for me. For ME,, I managed the face by controlling post impact rotation. It worked dramatically fast and with relatively no growing pains. Golfing Machinist called my release “horizontal.” I called it the “nothing” feel. No reverse rotation, no hook rotation.

    • Tom Stickney

      Sep 29, 2014 at 5:39 pm

      Are you sure it wasn’t angled hinging? That’s usually described as a no roll procedure.

  16. Jeff D.

    Sep 29, 2014 at 2:48 pm

    Interesting. I think demonstrates a lack of either understanding or trusting “shot shape” on behalf of the less than Pro Experienced Golfer. Every Instructor that I have ever heard – when explaining the shape of a draw says ” a shot that starts right of the target line and fall off on the target line – but not across it”. If I read correctly – this means that the college level golfer lines up incorrectly – either by accident or by refusing to “trust” the shot shape – both of which result in a shot that ends up left of the intended target.

    • Mickey Harris

      Sep 29, 2014 at 2:50 pm

      It just means more that thier club face is pointed too far left at impact.(righties) Alignments could be anywhere at that point.

    • Tom Stickney

      Sep 29, 2014 at 5:39 pm

      Could be. But it’s usually a face to path issue.

  17. TheFightingEdFioris

    Sep 29, 2014 at 12:23 pm

    Awesome stuff, had a student struggling with this very thing last week. Always nice to have affirmation of a diagnosis and fix! Keep up the great work.

  18. John R

    Sep 29, 2014 at 12:18 pm

    Good article. For students that cannot feel the face condition, do you have any ways for students to get a feel for the face condition before you move on to more… aggressive changes?

    • Mickey Harris

      Sep 29, 2014 at 2:57 pm

      What works for me is using what they know to be relative in their grip. Holding their grip and club at eye level, paralel to the ground, I teach them to feel their release going either way right or way left or staying stagnant. Some key words I use like “right palm to the sky for push slice” (right handers) “right palm to the ground for pull hooks.” They usually start to tap into thier innate feel at that point.

    • Tom Stickney

      Sep 29, 2014 at 5:41 pm

      Educate the hands and feel the face with chipping, pitching, and punch shots first.

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Instruction

The Wedge Guy: The easiest-to-learn golf basic

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My golf learning began with this simple fact – if you don’t have a fundamentally sound hold on the golf club, it is practically impossible for your body to execute a fundamentally sound golf swing. I’m still a big believer that the golf swing is much easier to execute if you begin with the proper hold on the club.

As you might imagine, I come into contact with hundreds of golfers of all skill levels. And it is very rare to see a good player with a bad hold on the golf club. There are some exceptions, for sure, but they are very few and very far between, and they typically have beat so many balls with their poor grip that they’ve found a way to work around it.

The reality of biophysics is that the body moves only in certain ways – and the particulars of the way you hold the golf club can totally prevent a sound swing motion that allows the club to release properly through the impact zone. The wonderful thing is that anyone can learn how to put a fundamentally sound hold on the golf club, and you can practice it anywhere your hands are not otherwise engaged, like watching TV or just sitting and relaxing.

Whether you prefer an overlap, interlock or full-finger (not baseball!) grip on the club, the same fundamentals apply.  Here are the major grip faults I see most often, in the order of the frequency:

Mis-aligned hands

By this I mean that the palms of the two hands are not parallel to each other. Too many golfers have a weak left hand and strong right, or vice versa. The easiest way to learn how to hold the club with your palms aligned properly is to grip a plain wooden ruler or yardstick. It forces the hands to align properly and shows you how that feels. If you grip and re-grip a yardstick several times, then grip a club, you’ll see that the learning curve is almost immediate.

The position of the grip in the upper/left hand

I also observe many golfers who have the butt of the grip too far into the heel pad of the upper hand (the left hand for right-handed players). It’s amazing how much easier it is to release the club through the ball if even 1/4-1/2″ of the butt is beyond the left heel pad. Try this yourself to see what I mean.  Swing the club freely with just your left hand and notice the difference in its release from when you hold it at the end of the grip, versus gripping down even a half inch.

To help you really understand how this works, go to the range and hit shots with your five-iron gripped down a full inch to make the club the same length as your seven-iron. You will probably see an amazing shot shape difference, and likely not see as much distance loss as you would expect.

Too much lower (right) hand on the club

It seems like almost all golfers of 8-10 handicap or higher have the club too far into the palm of the lower hand, because that feels “good” if you are trying to control the path of the clubhead to the ball. But the golf swing is not an effort to hit at the ball – it is a swing of the club. The proper hold on the club has the grip underneath the pad at the base of the fingers. This will likely feel “weak” to you — like you cannot control the club like that. EXACTLY. You should not be trying to control the club with your lower/master hand.

Gripping too tightly

Nearly all golfers hold the club too tightly, which tenses up the forearms and prevents a proper release of the club through impact. In order for the club to move back and through properly, you must feel that the club is controlled by the last three fingers of the upper hand, and the middle two fingers of the lower hand. If you engage your thumbs and forefingers in “holding” the club, the result will almost always be a grip that is too tight. Try this for yourself. Hold the club in your upper hand only, and squeeze firmly with just the last three fingers, with the forefinger and thumb off the club entirely. You have good control, but your forearms are not tense. Then begin to squeeze down with your thumb and forefinger and observe the tensing of the entire forearm. This is the way we are made, so the key to preventing tenseness in the arms is to hold the club very lightly with the “pinchers” — the thumbs and forefingers.

So, those are what I believe are the four fundamentals of a good grip. Anyone can learn them in their home or office very quickly. There is no easier way to improve your ball striking consistency and add distance than giving more attention to the way you hold the golf club.

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Clement: Stop ripping off your swing with this drill!

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Not the dreaded headcover under the armpit drill! As if your body is defective and can’t function by itself! Have you seen how incredible the human machine is with all the incredible feats of agility all kinds of athletes are accomplishing? You think your body is so defective (the good Lord is laughing his head off at you) that it needs a headcover tucked under the armpit so you can swing like T-Rex?

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How a towel can fix your golf swing

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This is a classic drill that has been used for decades. However, the world of marketed training aids has grown so much during that time that this simple practice has been virtually forgotten. Because why teach people how to play golf using everyday items when you can create and sell a product that reinforces the same thing? Nevertheless, I am here to give you helpful advice without running to the nearest Edwin Watts or adding something to your Amazon cart.

For the “scoring clubs,” having a solid connection between the arms and body during the swing, especially through impact, is paramount to creating long-lasting consistency. And keeping that connection throughout the swing helps rotate the shoulders more to generate more power to help you hit it farther. So, how does this drill work, and what will your game benefit from it? Well, let’s get into it.

Setup

You can use this for basic chip shots up to complete swings. I use this with every club in my bag, up to a 9 or 8-iron. It’s natural to create incrementally more separation between the arms and body as you progress up the set. So doing this with a high iron or a wood is not recommended.

While you set up to hit a ball, simply tuck the towel underneath both armpits. The length of the towel will determine how tight it will be across your chest but don’t make it so loose that it gets in the way of your vision. After both sides are tucked, make some focused swings, keeping both arms firmly connected to the body during the backswing and follow through. (Note: It’s normal to lose connection on your lead arm during your finishing pose.) When you’re ready, put a ball in the way of those swings and get to work.

Get a Better Shoulder Turn

Many of us struggle to have proper shoulder rotation in our golf swing, especially during long layoffs. Making a swing that is all arms and no shoulders is a surefire way to have less control with wedges and less distance with full swings. Notice how I can get in a similar-looking position in both 60° wedge photos. However, one is weak and uncontrollable, while the other is strong and connected. One allows me to use my larger muscles to create my swing, and one doesn’t. The follow-through is another critical point where having a good connection, as well as solid shoulder rotation, is a must. This drill is great for those who tend to have a “chicken wing” form in their lead arm, which happens when it becomes separated from the body through impact.

In full swings, getting your shoulders to rotate in your golf swing is a great way to reinforce proper weight distribution. If your swing is all arms, it’s much harder to get your weight to naturally shift to the inside part of your trail foot in the backswing. Sure, you could make the mistake of “sliding” to get weight on your back foot, but that doesn’t fix the issue. You must turn into your trial leg to generate power. Additionally, look at the difference in separation between my hands and my head in the 8-iron examples. The green picture has more separation and has my hands lower. This will help me lessen my angle of attack and make it easier to hit the inside part of the golf ball, rather than the over-the-top move that the other picture produces.

Stay Better Connected in the Backswing

When you don’t keep everything in your upper body working as one, getting to a good spot at the top of your swing is very hard to do. It would take impeccable timing along with great hand-eye coordination to hit quality shots with any sort of regularity if the arms are working separately from the body.

Notice in the red pictures of both my 60-degree wedge and 8-iron how high my hands are and the fact you can clearly see my shoulder through the gap in my arms. That has happened because the right arm, just above my elbow, has become totally disconnected from my body. That separation causes me to lift my hands as well as lose some of the extension in my left arm. This has been corrected in the green pictures by using this drill to reinforce that connection. It will also make you focus on keeping the lead arm close to your body as well. Because the moment either one loses that relationship, the towel falls.

Conclusion

I have been diligent this year in finding a few drills that target some of the issues that plague my golf game; either by simply forgetting fundamental things or by coming to terms with the faults that have bitten me my whole career. I have found that having a few drills to fall back on to reinforce certain feelings helps me find my game a little easier, and the “towel drill” is most definitely one of them.

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