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By Scott Sackett
Photos by Colleen Miniuk-Sperry
To get a better understanding of the golf swing, it is very important that you understand what causes what. It is really what makes Tour players great. They have a crystal-clear picture of what this tip is all about.
1. Club face
2. Path
If you’re in the process of taking golf lessons and you’re currently slicing the ball, I have some news that you might find interesting. The slice at impact is an open club face. Most of us try to correct that shot subconsciously by swinging over the top or out-to-in through impact. If you’re interested in changing the path of your golf swing through impact, you must fix the club face first. In simple terms, the path to a large degree is a byproduct of the club face…period.
The club face is controlled by two factors: a) position of your hands on the club at address and b) the tension in your hands while gripping the club at address. At address, your hands can be in one of three positions.
Remember, when we talk weak, neutral, and strong related to the grip, those are golf terms—they do not have anything to do with strength. When your hands are in a weak position, the Vs of your hands are pointing toward your chin (Figure 1). If the grip is neutral, the Vs are pointing at your right ear (Figure 2). If the grip is strong, the Vs are pointing at your right shoulder (Figure 3).
Remember that the stronger we grip the club, the more it allows for the face to rotate through impact. If we’re looking to hit that perfect draw, the club face at impact is slightly closed to the path. That seems to be everyone’s dream shot. Because of the lack of our understanding of the club face and its function, most of us never reach that stage in our golf swing. Approximately 85 percent of all golfers slice the ball.
If are guilty of any of the following, then your game is probably in need of some help:
- If I’m slicing the ball, I just take my top hand and turn it more to the left.
- If I slice the ball, I align my body right of the target.
- If I hook the ball, I just align myself more to the left of the target.
If you need a lesson on one of these three things, e-mail Scott Sackett for an introductory summer special rate.
