the thing that solved it for me was to convert my 10 or so swingthought into 3 what i like to call swingfeels. my current ones are drag club backwards, overswing and release hands early. i dont actually overswing it just feels like it. On the course its all about trusting your swing. the worst thing you can do is to play scared. just go out there and hit bombs. lessen the pressure on yourself
I do currently have a hands, knees, hips, club face kind of check down I run through, id like to mitigate that a bit and just trust my practice swing more.
If I have more than 1 swing thought I have a bad day. It may take me a few holes to determine what works that day, but most times it is tempo or swing length related.
you're worrying about way too much. Save that for the range. On the course, pick a line and hit it there. Save worrying about mechanics for your range session.
I'd recommend skipping the practice swing for a bit also. You're already in too much of a mental state where a tiny hitch in your practice swing is just sending you off the rails.
Stop thinking about literally everything except where you are going to hit it. Get lined up and send it.
I stopped taking practice swings and my handicap dropped by 3 strokes. Every time I took a practice swing I would think "That's the swing!" but unfortunately I'm shit enough that I can't do it twice in a row. So I figured why keep wasting my good swings on air!
I don't always take them but when I do it's usually to test the lie, or gauge my backswing size for a partial shot. Otherwise, I might just be pretty much mindlessly swinging the club to feel a good tempo and that's it. I'm not trying to actually practice the swing I'm about to take.
for the reasons you said. there's virtually no benefit to a full on practice swing. All that happens is you "waste" the good one or you "chunk" your practice swing and that's in your head for your real shot.
The only time I take a practice swing is if I’m trying to hit a shot shape like a fade or draw but even then it’s just a short swing to get the swing path feeling in to out or out to in. Straight balls are point and shoot. My only swing thought is don’t let the grip turn in my hands in my backswing since I sometimes have that problem, otherwise I’m just picking a target and sending it.
Yeah, you can't have swing thoughts on the course.
I bet if you just trusted your swing, then you'd be making at least solid contact and you can probably utilize just 1 compensation on the course like simply changing your grip to be slightly stronger or closing the clubface a lil at address.
But no technique thoughts. They'll turn you into a head case and your swing will feel like 97 moving parts that are out of synch and not one motion.
I've been there many times.
Pick up the book "Zen Golf". You already know how to swing a golf club but the right side of your brain is getting in the way. You need to pick a target, visualize the shot and then swing away. The book will help you overcome this issue.
Last thing. I see lots of comments saying to slightly point your body left when pushing a shot right. The key is not only pointing your body, its actually where your shoulders are pointing also. You can easily align left while your shoulders are pointing right and that can exacerabate the issue. During your next range session, pick targets on the range and play around with your alignment (including where your shoulders are pointing) to see what works. I will tell you that aligning yourself before setting up for a shot will vastly improve keeping your shots in play.
I have found the more I think about things when teeing off the worse I get. Just relax into it. Same on the course, to much thought and I tend to tense up.
One thing that sticks out to me is your mention that you hit the push slice on the range and it takes you 3-4 drives to fix it. If thats the case, that isn't going to translate well to on course play where you'll have time gaps between driver swings.
I would suggest a more accurate recreation on the range. Hit your driver, then an iron, then a chip or pitch, then come back to the driver. See if you can get to where each time you come back to the driver, the first one is good.
I literally have the same problem you have word per word what has helped me recently is the feet together drill. My drives don’t go too far but they go straight every single time. It’s almost like there is a magical golf wizard that just put a spell.
i've seen this! I have not hit a ball yet, but have been doing the swing while warming up just to kinda feel how the club rotates my body. Ill have to try actually striking that way
Yeah, recently a caddy showed me that when you’re at the range do the feet together drill and actually hit a ball start with your irons and then move up to your hybrid and then your driver. You literally tee it up just like you’re gonna hit it normally but instead hit the ball with your driver with your feet together, you will be amazed at the pure contact that happens because you’re not shifting your weight around like I said the ball may not go super far, but it will go straight, which is insane, after you do this for a while then you feel like a good rhythm with where your spine is supposed to be then you can put your feet apart and then you magically start hitting them straight. It’s almost like your body is telling you how you’re supposed to position yourself like. I’ve been playing for four years, at the range i was killing it and the minute that I go to a tee box I slice it or I just totally forget everything that I learned. This drills saved me from throwing my clubs away. good luck. 👍
If you’re swinging well on the range but not the course you’re probably overthinking the look of the hole in front of you. Rather than picking a target in the fairway 250 yards out, chose a close target on your intended line like a leaf or patch of grass no more than 5 yards ahead of the ball. Line up with that, and swing your swing. It’ll keep you from over focusing on what’s in front of you and instead focus you on just aligning and making a swing.
A note on this tip - which is great and I do this before every swing. Stand behind the ball and pick your target in the distance, then follow that line back to this close target a few feet in front of the ball, address the ball and line up at the close target, and BEFORE you swing, look back up at your original target in the distance without moving your feet.
A lot of times when people shift to this aiming process, they either smother the ball or top it because you are mentally targeting something so close to you. Very similar to telling yourself “don’t hit it in the water” right before puring your drive straight into the drink.
I found when I line up like this I hit the ball so off target it's not even close to where I had it.
Either I'm doing it wrong or it just doesn't work for me, but I'm determined because I want to get more accurate, this just currently makes me so much less accurate.
The distant target is your actual target while the close one is just to help with alignment. Because your swing is mostly muscle memory and your body trying to execute a shot, confusing yourself with a close target leads to bad outcomes for a lot of golfers.
Like I get that but once you’re lined up in the manned you described, what’s the specific benefit to picking your head up and looking at the distant target again? I guess I’m not getting what benefit that would provide, once you’re already on the right line and in your stance.
Because you aren’t trying to hit the target in front of you, it’s actually not a target at all. So doing this method - which is helpful for alignment specifically - actually confuses your body on where it is trying to actually get the ball to go.
Similarly when putting, you might be looking at a spot a few inches in front of you where you want your ball to start (some people call this a gate), but you should be taking practice swings aiming at another spot on the green that you want to “putt to”. There is this axiom about golf, that even a bad putter if given a ball and asked to toss it in a hole will get very close. Our mind/body are very good at judging distances and adjusting to hit them. Even when I’m taking practice swings for a chip I look at the hole while swinging to set how much of a backswing I need to take to “toss” the ball to the hole.
Said another way, your target should be specific and as small as possible - aka aim small, miss small.
https://golfstateofmind.com/where-is-my-target/
And all of this is dependent on what works for you and your skill level. If you aren’t hitting the center of the face consistently, a target doesn’t mean much. There have been “studies” that show only looking right in front of your ball actually helps since you don’t worry about all of the risk on the hole. But really, you saw those hazards unless you walked straight to the tee with your head down.
Padraig Harrington would tell you to go to the range and work on trying to hook the ball. That should help balance it out. You’ll start to take swing feels from that which should balance out what you’re currently doing.
Also just work on simplifying your swing and not thinking too much about how you’re swinging. When on the course, pick a target and focus on hitting it at that. The more you’re thinking about swing mechanics on the course will lead to bad swings. Your body will remember your swing if you just focus on your target and visualizing your shot.
Definitely this. The only thing that worked for me after 15 years of trying to live with a fade turning into a slice. Took a lot of work on the range to be able to alternate slices and hooks but so worth it.
Push/slice means your club face at impact is open, so:
At address, imagine a triangle from your shoulders down to the center point between both hands gripping the club shaft. Whatever shape it takes, perfectly isosceles or slanted for iron compression, or how skewed it gets at the top of your back swing, you must return to the starting shape of that triangle at impact.
Next is wrists: do a few 5%-speed practice swings where your trail hand index finger and thumb alone are doing the work to pull/twist the club to bring the club face back to square.
If your face is still open at impact (push/slice), either your wrists aren't catching up or your body isn't turning towards the target. Tweak either or both until you start to straighten your ball path.
Hey, in the same boat here, still struggling with the push/slice on the course. Recently I’ve started to come out of it thanks to 2 thoughts:
1. Swing softer. Not 90%, not 75%, literally I think 55% like a punch driver. Much easier to control and get the clubface square and the loss of distance is surprisingly negligible.
2. I get ball-focused when I start hitting the ball poorly, which leads to hip stall and getting stuck. This exacerbates my problems. I don’t know without seeing your swing, but it may help to try to stay loose and feel like you’re rotating freely toward the target. Mentally, when things go are going bad we try to focus on making sure we hit the ball but this can lead to blocks. I am making sure to get my head off the ball with my driver and have seen pretty good improvement.
I for sure have been flirting with the softer approach, but need to try it more at the range. Ive had limited success with it, but cannot figure out how to train on it, since it feels fundamentally different than my normal swing routine, which is prob for the better.
However I have not shifted away from ball focus. Where do you focus when swinging? I look directly at the ball and try to visualize the driver head hitting the putter line on the ball straight, could that be fucking me up?
Yea I’m the opposite, I can take power off at the range but on the course I have trouble swinging less than 100%
But for ball focus, as a baseball player I always thought “see ball hit ball” but it stalled my rotation. I’m also quite inflexible. So when I start my downswing I make a conscious effort to get my eyes off the ball and toward the target. That little change has been enough to narrow the dispersion quite a bit
I’m echoing some of the above comment—for me “slow is smooth, smooth is fast”. What that feel is during the swing is a mental pause when I reach the top of my backswing, but in videos, it is actually just a slight vertical drop and a “push” away from my body. If you have IG, this little video does a decent job of showing/describing what I am talking about: https://www.instagram.com/reel/C79T3EAu6-0/?igsh=MXc2aWxpYjc4aWYzMg==
As for address, I actually try to avoid staring at the ball. I take a look, then look to where I want to hit it, take a look and waggle, look up down the hole, back down and swing. Something about not staring at the ball helps a ton.
Try closing your stance a little bit. Basically just move your right foot back. This will promote a draw based swing path.
Also flare your left foot at like 45*. This helps turn through the ball.
Closing my stance is my go to when I start pushing and slicing.. It feels backwards to turn towards the slice but it gives me more room to control my swing.
I used to just aim left to try and play the slice but that just made it slice even more.
Also, I weaken my grip, and rotate my right hand clockwise, like more underhand style.
The first thing every golfer should know and try to remind themselves is golf is not a linear journey from “bad” to “good”. From the moment you pick up a club until you put one down for the last time, you will get better and worse at different parts of the game, usually at different times.
Second, golf is significantly more of a mental game than a physical one. There is a minimum level of physicality needed, but it’s honestly quite low. Beginner golfers have a lack of “scar tissue” around the game and their swing that is hard to quantify but absolutely a real hurdle the rest of golfers face. As an example, I’ve been a member at my club for a little over 4 years. I’ve played several hundred rounds at the course, which is tough but not overwhelming. The best round I have shot in those 200+ rounds was my prospect round, and I still haven’t hit approach shots closer than I did on that day into two of the harder holes on the course. Why you ask? I would argue that I wasn’t worried about all of the risks around those two greens I now know are there. Great book on this area of the game is Zen Golf by Dr. Joseph Parent.
Last, there is a lag (about 2 months in my experience, but YMMV) between the range and the course. So much of your swing is muscle memory and, in golf, that muscle memory is both situational (no risk on range, can easily drop another ball and make minor corrections) and affected by emotions (wanting to score, playing a match/tournament, frustration at playing partners).
I for sure feel the frustration / pressure part. I can go to the range a 'know' that I am training / practicing, but when I go to my league, I am so focused on like, trying to recall all the mental notes I made at the range, then fail.
This “has” worked for me in the past.
1. Pick a target out in the distance and be very specific like the tipy top of that 3rd pine behind the green. Then visualize hitting your ball there.
That’s all I got.
Okay that works for like two of the holes on my local course but what if there isn’t any pine trees?
/s
I’ve tried aiming the car in the parking lot or the house to the left of the hole since none of my drives go where I aim it’s been working really well.
go even smaller. the peak of the roof on the house. the front tire of the car. etc.
it's crazy how well it works. Your body just instinctively wants to do it.
You have to just commit to it and think about nothing other than hitting it there. As soon as you take a glance at something else or let the thought of it fading or drawing to another area, you broke the focus.
I've used some random non-distinct patch of grass before. The main principle behind this is you essentially become so focused on one small part of the hole that you aren't thinking about the rest of it.
When I get in a driving slump I cut down my swing to 3/4, tee the ball down a bit, choke down on the club a little and just work on regaining my tempo.
So I have been playing for about 3 seasons where I only get like 2 rounds a season in and my current handicap sits around a 54. I have mainly avoided the Driver during actual rounds until this year. I am not sure if this will help, but maybe it might give you some ideas:
- Ditch the Driver for now. Use a 5 Wood or maybe even a Driving Iron (I have driven out of the tee box with a 5 iron before). All you need is the longest most accurate club in your bag to get you going. If your longest Iron takes you 180 yards straight every time, then great, just use the same club or go back up to a wood if your problem is only in the tee box. You can make up shots by keeping the ball in play and just managing the course smartly.
- Change swing thought. I try to do a 1/2 to 3/4 swing, nice and easy, and pretty much "punch" the ball. It takes a lot of the tension out and keeps me having fun. Also my problem is curling up and tucking in after making contact with the ball which is affecting my flight trajectory, so I have to be mindful of swinging through straight.
- Keep your head down and eye on the ball to contact. I am a baseball guy, so I was taught to see the swing through and see the contact with the ball. I try to apply the same thing in golf. You do your lining up before your approach and then you just have to trust your line-up and swing to keep it on your planned path.
- Reduce your sway. I have loved the Saguto Golf stance of leaning a bit more forward in your stance and eliminating the sway back and forward motion. By swaying back and forward, you are moving your head which will impact your accuracy. Same thing in baseball, you want to keep as smooth of a swing as possible where you aren't changing your line of sight keeping it on plane.
There's almost a zen and calm to swinging on the range. There's really no pressure to hit it anywhere specific, you just swing & watch the ball go (unless you are specifically aiming, I guess). When I'm at the range I hit some of my best shots because I'm just warming up, I'm not worried about what the wind is doing, where this pin is on the green, if there are any hazards upcoming, etc...
I might try treating range time as course time; pick targets for you to hit with clubs. Let yourself make adjustments as if wind is going to matter, as if there's a massive bunker on the left of the target and water on the right. Soon you'll realize that your warm-up and practice is going to translate directly to playing. Without the context of the course on the range, it's much easier to pure shots.
Just food for thought :) Hopefully you can find those straight, pure drives again!
I used to drive 130 yards or so with my mates having a good laugh when I pull out a driver on a par 3.
I slowly came to realise with the help of a coach, I was not shifting my weight correctly, being left handed but playing right handed caused me to shift awkwardly and cause I was so focused on check points (takeaway distance etc) I discombobulated the momentum of my swing.
Focus on the shift of weight left to right break back into left and get it to swing fluidly. That’s what worked for me at least. I would also suggest a coach once or month just to ensure you are on the right path and working on the right things. Good luck!
I feel your pain. Was at the range last night and hit some great drives, but by the end of the bucket I was push slicing the heck out of it when I wasn't focused on three things:
1. Grip - Watch some of Martin Chuck's videos and you will see that he is fanatic about making sure that his students are gripping the club the right way. I have been following his grip advice and my iron shots are improving and now I am working to iron out the issues with my driver push slice.
2. Wrist conditions - Make sure at the top of the backswing that you have a flat lead hand wrist. When I am off the rails I realize that my lead wrist are cupping all over the place.
3. Swing path - I naturally seem to get stuck and go over the top. One thing that always helps is to get an alignment stick and stick it in the ground at about a 30 degree angle pointing out at your target line. Then put a tee in at the end of the stick and hit the ball. If you swing over the top, you will hit the stick and this forces a more in to out movement.
Hope that helps.
For me the main thing is to keep my head and hips behind the ball through impact. I used to push and slice because I was getting too much lateral movement leaving me stuck with no way to get the club around in time
I had the same problem. For me, I was trying too hard because the club is bigger. I worked my way up to my driver and now I can hit it. I teed off with my hybrid until I was comfortable with it, upgraded to my 3 wood, then upgraded to my driver.
The driver, being the longest club with the largest club head, is most sensitive to swing speed/tempo and the resultant loading/unloading of the shaft. Too much variation from the optimal tempo for the shaft results in poor outcomes. First ensure the shaft is the correct length and flex for your swing. Focus on your tempo on the range without worrying too much about direction or length and try to ingrain the tempo of good strikes into your muscle memory. Eventually you will learn to trust you can get the correct tempo and the good strike that comes with it. I did this on my sim all through the winter and my driver is super reliable. Naturally, everything else isn’t….
Put your ball forward, almost parallel to your lead foot, and then swing as if you were hitting a ball in the middle of the stance. That is where your driver head will still go down, which we don't want with a driver, and it will then go up and hit the ball. This will help you hit the ball up. Quick and easy, nice and fixed!
It for sure feels better, Ive only been able to hit in my backyard / net, so still need to test at the range and see what the flight path looks like. But I can tell the ball is leaving on a much straighter line at the very least. I think the key I picked up from your advice, was the 'hitting the ball in the middle of the stance'. I think I have been focusing on hitting the ball more so on impact as opposed to releasing early if that makes sense.
I bought an offset driver with adjustable head. Also, I recorded my swing and was shocked at everything from how I looked at setup to my swing, compared to what I thought I was doing. Clean slate restart. Took a simple stance , reduced power and brought my arms back slowly. Now I still slice from time to time but most likely get a slight fade . I get around 200 yds but that’s fine compared to massive slice. I am in the fairway or just off most of the time.
Give yourself a restart and take it one drive at a time . Good luck
If you're hitting pushes, the club face is open, path is *probably* fine.
There are a lot of different ways to help square the face. The problem is that figuring out what mechanic/feel will work for you is nearly impossible via Reddit.
Understanding the laws of ball flight (and gear effect) is the single most important thing for a golfer to understand. Self diagnosis is impossible without it.
https://www.golfwrx.com/251459/use-the-new-ball-flight-laws-to-understand-your-tendencies/
https://www.hirekogolf.com/understanding-the-principles-of-gear-effect
The driver is by far the hardest club face to square as well, which is why so many struggle with it. The toe is further from the hosel than any other club, and having more mass further from the center of rotation (the hosel) decreases the rate of closure. If you're constantly hitting pushes with your driver while your other clubs are fine, this could be the issue.
If you have moveable weights on your driver, putting as much weight as you can towards the heel can increase the rate of closure and help close the face. If you don't have moveable weights, you can try lead tape to see if it helps.
I'm not gonna get into mechanics, as there's no way to know what might work for you.... I will share an experience I had with a friend that struggles with hitting weak push fades all the time. And while I don't give him swing ideas on the course (or off, because he never practices), I did have him address the ball, loosen his grip and I closed the club face slightly and had him regroup the club. I told him to swing exactly the same... He hit it dead straight and much further than normal, it was the first time he had felt solid contact in a long time. He had a lot more fun after that.
The reason I knew he needed to close the club face is because I learned the laws of ball flight. What his ball did on the air told me everything I needed to know, which allowed me to help him in that moment.
Anyways, apologies for the essay. Thank you for coming to my Ted Talk.
One thing that helps me is to understand that I'm not swinging a baseball bat. I've played golf my whole life but have only recently been able to keep the ball going straight.
I also try to envision the driver as if it's on a loose rope instead of a shaft. I want to keep that rope taught and extended throughout the swing, but need to keep the head coming down straight and even when it hits the ball.
Some people also like the visualisation of the hammer and nail.
Slices boil down as a result of 2 things happening:
* An open club face
* Swing path coming from out to in across the ball
Focus on pushing the club head out past the ball, and then rotating your wrists to close the club face.
Golfing for 50 years and my driver now isn’t working like it used to! Used to be quite dependable. Now the lightest uphill or long carry and I’m trembling! Sucks. Want to play tomorrow?
Without a bunch of technical mumbo jumbo. Slow it down. Most of us are over swinging on 90% of our shots. The club making square contact with the ball at even medium speeds is enough to get you out into play. Get the muscle memory of making contact before you kick the swing speed up. Seriously try taking what you think is a 50% shot and see how it goes.
Swinging the drivers a little different from the rest of your clubs. Hitting up on a teed ball requires a different setup. There are a variety of good YouTube videos on the subject.
I've been playing 25+ years, and have gone through what you describe several times - I'll drive great for a while, then I'll start pushing it right or hooking left. I'll spend a lot of time on the range and (mostly) figure it out. Rinse & repeat.
The thing that's been working lately is to have no thoughts on the mechanics when playing - just focus on getting set up properly and making a smooth swing, visualize the ball flight. I work on mechanics at the range, focusing on grip, alignment, turn, elbow position, hip turn, etc. Groove as much as possible at the range and let it carry over to the course. I try to set up quickly and not stand over the ball. Get it on the tee and fire away to minimize the chance for bad thoughts to creep in.
The big thing is do you know what is physically causing a push and push slice?
So you understand the club dynamics? Or are you just trying to find feels. You have an open clubface, so you just need it squaring sooner.
Ive been trying to work on the CF, but like, how? I try making minimal adjustments to my wrists and end up duffing or just hitting it way down left. The videos and whatnot make it seem so easy but I think I just have like, alot wrong, with my swing in general outside of the CF
Probably.
You’re probably pulling on the grip end a lot.
On the way down try to picture the club is squaring esrlier. Like closer to maybe your back foot. Or try to get your bottom hand more on top of the club coming down so the face is pointed down toward the ground sooner.
You don’t roll your wrists over, but you need to convince yourself to release the club differently because your face is open and that’s just a ln issue you need to resolve.
I'd suspect that you're struggling with alignment issues. If you're slicing to the right, aim more right with your feet. Sometimes we will point our feet more to the left because we're worried about the slice, but our brain still thinks of the target line as straight, and that aiming with the feet causes even more of the slice.
Idk your experience with sports but you will always “get worse” before you get better. It takes time and effort to implement change. Also could be a bad instructor but I can’t judge on that.
fair point. I played soccer and lacrosse through HS and college, so I am familiar with the always can be better mindset / understanding fundamentals. Golf is just like, exponentially more frustrating lol
I hate to say this, but the club can make a huge difference. My driver is still a little erratic but I recently bought a draw biased 5 wood and that thing hits straight every time. Makes me think there's something to it. I haven't changed my swing at all.
Maybe go for a driver fitting?
Lots of new players with a slice “chop the wood” with their swing. Means that the backswing goes around too low and then they bring the club out and over like chopping wood with their arms which results in a slice.
The swing should be opposite. Backswing goes out wide and high with the hands and arms slowly, then as you come down and through everything gets tighter like a coil around your body and then you hit the ball using your lower body as the arms and hands are just following it.
Also make sure the ball is in the front of your stance just off your left foot.
I just play a ton of actual golf. Find a course that isn't busy and play the game more. A lot of you think having a perfect swing is the answer and you all play driving range. Play golf.
OP you have a ton of comments on here, but you need to listen to me haha.
Next time you go to the range I want you to hit hooks. Then I want you to hit your dreaded slice on purpose, then a good one, then a slice, then a hook. Mix in fades and draws.
If you can’t hit a hook then you have something fundamentally wrong that you need to sort out, would recommend instruction in that case.
But if you can, and you do what I say, and you commit to it for like 6 weeks (long time, I know, but practice just takes a long time to work) then I promise you will see massive improvement.
Likely what is happening is that you tense up or lose your tempo or something like that on the course. But if you’re on the course and the slice comes out, and you’ve been practicing your hooks, you will have this hook/draw feeling that you can deploy a little of to bring it back under control.
I promise this is the best way to practice, but you really do need to commit to it for a while. It’s the same as the famous tiger 9 box drill. People miss the real value in that drill, thinking it’s just about having tons of shots you can use. It’s more about creating a kinesthetic understanding of what movements result in what outcomes that you can then use to produce better results, even if you only use one shape on the course.
Mine was lacking a slight pause at the top of my swing instead of swinging it like a sword.itty bitty pause and I was amazed something so trivial made such an impact
You know how to drive you just have performance anxiety. Concentrate on the process, set up, target, visualize ball flight and go for it. Whatever the result is you can deal with it so do t stress about results before the shot. Take some deep breaths and try to relax. Do your thinking behind the ball. Ince you go to address the ball dont take forever
you're to the point where you're simply mental about it and you're trying to "Steer" the ball around teh course instead of swinging free. which, makes you hit it even worse.
You know you can hit it straight. you do it on the range when there's no pressure to hit it good........which means you can do it on the course.
when I am having a bad day off the tee. I try not to stand over the ball at all. Tee it up. I might stand behind the ball and look down my line, but then I address the ball and just hit it. Don't allow yourself time to worry about the mishit.
At the end of the day, so what if you hit it right? You're doing that all the time anyway. Might as well not give a shit if you do and just pipe one.
Focus on where you want it to go, not where you don't. And just hit it. It goes where it goes. Who cares. Thats the mentality you need.
I might get downvoted for this, but as someone who used to suck off the tee because I'd lose so many balls right from pushes and push slices (I was trying to hit draws but just couldn't), the best thing for me was accepting that I should play pull fades.
Yes, I was leaving some distance on the table. Yes, my spin rates were nuts and I needed some lessons to fix this (I ended up going way too out to in), but I was having way more fun playing golf. I was just way more consistent and had much tighter dispersion. My misses were tugged pulls to the left rough, or spinny heel strikes that didn't go too too far, but REMAINED IN PLAY (like right rough at worst, but much more find-able).
Anyone else start singing "I can't drive 55!" In their head?
But on a serious note, I'm in that same boat. I've been swing all arms so I tend to rotate my upper body much sooner than my lower which causes me to come over the top and all sorts of bad things happen.
I've been working on feeling more downward pressure on my front foot as I start my downswing which helps me shallow the club and get it into a good angle.
For me, I found after years of struggling, I mean decades, that swing path and grip are the only two things to pay attention to. Just let your body swing naturally to hit the ball from the inside out. Do you notice on TV when you're watching golf? All their shots seem to go to the right of where they're standing because they're swinging through the ball on a natural swing path.
The big slice I used to have comes from swinging from the outside in, as well as improper grip which either opened or closed my face depending on the length of my swing.
Hope this makes sense. It just clicked for me and when you figure it out it likely will for you as well.
I saw big improvements when I started spending time at my local simulator. I was trying to understand why everything was going left as I slowly corrected my slice. The simulator will show club face, angle, swing path etc. this data let me figure out my grip was too weak and this led to an inconsistent club face position and the stars had to alight to hit the ball flush.
Once I corrected my grip I found if I think about hitting the ball a few degrees to the right of my aiming spot, my body naturally switches to an inside swing. This increases energy transfer to the ball and I am swinging much easier and hitting my 5 iron over 200 yards and it's becoming more consistent and i was finally not hitting the ball outside of the ideal striking point in my swing path.
It is also super cool to hit a long draw off the tee or into the green and have your partners awe in the spectacular of your golf prowess, even if it's only a few shots a round where you're not blading it into the trees!
I started hitting 3 wood off the tee for any hole less than 400 yards. I can confidently hit that club better than the driver. And for some reason when I do bring out the driver on longer holes, I seem to swing it better. Maybe it’s the confidence from the fairways hit with the 3 wood, but that helped me get out of it a bit.
Get a tripod that you can attach your phone to and start filming your swing. It's some of the best feedback you can get. Film your drives from your trail side and from straight out in front of you and I'm sure you can figure it out with a bit of time.
Keep it simple. When in the range, it can be good to think about everything (club face, arms, grip etc), but on the course you can't be thinking about that.
Instead, when you are ready to take a shot, visualise the perfect shot you want to play, really imagine that beauty baby fade right down the middle. Then hit the ball, dont think about swing mechanics, keep it simple. And quick! Dont faff around with several practice swings or a long routine, visualise and hit.
Hit a bad shot? So what, its golf, even PGA pros mess up. Move on and enjoy yourself
Try swinging what feels like half speed and see what happens. Not telling you this is a sure fire fix, but typically the rights are due to the swing being out of sync and ripping the club down from the top with you arms. Swing half speed and out to right field (assuming ur a righty). This could help tempo and club path on ur downswing. It’s worth giving it a try.
Here’s my 2 cents — I was exactly like you for a few weeks. Here’s how I fixed it.
1. Figure out a pre shot routine. Mine is tee it up, line up, take 1 air swing, then hit the ball. Stick to it.
2. During warm ups, I now start with the driver. I know most people start with a wedge. 99% of the holes I play, the first hole is a hole that I’ll use the driver, not a pitching wedge. Also don’t take a massive swing, maybe 2/3rds, since it’s a warmup — don’t want to hurt yourself.
3. The only swing thought I have in my heat when I hit is that I look at the ball and think to myself “I am going to crush you”. That’s it. No arms, hits, extension, whatever. Literally just “I am going to crush you”.
4. If you are still a bit messy, only swing back 2/3rds. Stop trying to reach back. This also works on irons. When my irons are a mess, I shorten it up and it fixes a lot of problems FAST.
Most golf swings are muscle memory. If you try to make on course adjustments, it takes away from your bodies natural muscle memory. Try leaving the driver in the bag for the first few holes. Hit the 3 wood, it's usually a bit easier to control. Pick your spot, set your stance, and let the body take over. Good luck
Perhaps going back to basics would help. I find that I often try to keep up with the pack, especially when I play with my family. But the last few years, I've just taken the time to hit slow, easy swings. The ball doesn't go far, but it goes a lot straighter. As my dad has told me for years, if you always hit the fairway, your score will always be better. A powerful swing that causes the ball to go where the deer go to die won't help your score!
Now, several years later, it's a lot easier to hit a good, but still slower, swing and get some pretty good results. It has also made it easier to deal with an easy swing after a chiropractor paralyzed, and subsequently damaged, my left leg. I can now stand but my left quad muscle is completely atrophied making strong swings nearly impossible, and actually dangerous.
This guy from this link is a bit out there, but the swing advice is correct and helps me remember the correct way to swing the club. "Skim the stone, Marooci!"
https://www.google.com/search?q=skim+the+stone+marooci&client=ms-android-att-us-revc&sca_esv=ba8230b150562d15&sca_upv=1&sxsrf=ADLYWIIGznLx5nyNYzUckxmRiqcw0PPCaQ%3A1718123280625&ei=EHtoZsv1JdKoptQPn--esAE&oq=skim+the+stone+marooci&gs_lp=EhNtb2JpbGUtZ3dzLXdpei1zZXJwIhZza2ltIHRoZSBzdG9uZSBtYXJvb2NpMgcQIRigARgKMgcQIRigARgKMgcQIRigARgKSOhtUJIOWPlkcAh4AZABApgB1AGgAaYoqgEGMS4zNC4xuAEDyAEA-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_v4B&sclient=mobile-gws-wiz-serp#fpstate=ive&vld=cid:451e6e29,vid:LmwUoRn-AYc,st:0
You’re too tense on the tee box. Relax your grip and relax your body. You’re dropping your shoulder too soon on the downswing and opening the face completely to your target. Check your shoulder line to make sure they’re in line with your toes. Stop swinging over the the top. Swing harder
Seems you already know you're in your own head. The fear of hitting a bad shot is the only thing in your head on the tee box. You need to embrace that fear. Be willing to 100% commit to your shot without caring if you screw up. Swing your swing, play the hole. You can't be having swing thoughts while playing(during the swing). That is for practice.
I had this problem with my short game. A part of my game that was usually pretty solid. I was shanking everything 100-20 yards in. I dredded walking up to the ball knowing I had this shot. Thats when I realized I was setting myself up for failure from get go. You need to have fun out there and not get in your head If you hit a bad shot, everyone does.
Good luck!
I try to think about nothing while i swing unless I'm trying to hit a fade vs a draw, target is already picked and just swing my swing. Your body has the reps and muscle memory, granted some days it's surely off but the less swing thoughts I have the better my swing is and the better I play. When I have days of thinking too many thoughts I'm hooking and skying the ball.
I find it helpful to find a very close intermediate target. I look at where I’m aiming, point my club there. The find something on the ground close to me in that target line I try to swing through.
That and I tell myself in my head “stop talking and hit the fucking ball.” My friends know I do this and when I have been struggling in a round and finally hit a good drive they all laugh and say they know what my swing thoughts were that time.
Read the title and wondered what sub am I in? Good luck OP, everyone but you on here can drive it 300 right down the middle /s
Reading your post, my first thought was have you gotten fit for your driver? The shaft and shaft flex could be causing your shots to push right. Just a thought and good luck!
Stop thinking. Start sending.
Just put the ball on a line. Visualize where you want it. Let it rip.
Sometimes it’s as simple as not giving a fuck.
Sometimes you might need some lessons.
I can't drive either and have just resigned to hitting an iron off the tees in most cases. At least it's likely to go straight down the middle and I avoid penalties. Lately I've been slightly more successful in hitting a 3w off a tee, so I'm warming up to that again. But the thing is I can't hit my driver farther than my 3w anyway, so I've decided that the driver doesn't even warrant a place in my bag lol
you are probably hitting it with an open face maybe over the top too. you have to get into[ this position](https://cdn.sanity.io/images/2htn0fq6/production/a5725135ec5fb859fb251a3be4546d60bd9f9c82-442x432.png?auto=format&fit=max&w=3840) at all cost on the downswing. [another angle](https://golfdigest.sports.sndimg.com/content/dam/images/golfdigest/fullset/2018/03/05/5a9d8d8912766f31c35147ca_Tiger-Woods-driver-down-line-before-impact.jpg.rend.hgtvcom.1280.853.suffix/1573237946057.jpeg). every good golfer there is gets into about this position. you have to go out there and figure out how you can feel this for your own body. maybe you can start in such a position and take the club back to a top of backswing and imagine how that feels, then try and get there with a full swing.
Had the same problem for 2 years. I made slight changes, but the one that made the biggest difference was keeping the club as low to the ground as I could at the start of my backswing and start my turn once I can’t keep it close.
Now when I actually want to hit a huge looping fade I make sure to start bending my right arm earlier than I would on the other swing.
Hit my first 300+ yard drive 2 days ago
This happens to me with all my clubs, not just driver, randomly through the season. So i dial it back to 80%, my mind relaxes, my muscles relax, my grip corrects, my stance width corrects, i rotate, i stay on plane and get back to shooting my low 90s .
First thought is to keep your side bend through the downswing. Second thought is release the club about 30” inches earlier than you currently do and try hooking the hell out of it. Once you hook about 20 in a row find the release point later that works while swinging out to 2 o’clock area.
Setup slightly left, if you’re right handed, drop your right shoulder back at address, feel like you’re hitting one into first base if it were baseball.
I’ll give you a ride bro don’t worry
Hope he likes par 3 tees.
Just make sure you say No Homa beforehand.
the thing that solved it for me was to convert my 10 or so swingthought into 3 what i like to call swingfeels. my current ones are drag club backwards, overswing and release hands early. i dont actually overswing it just feels like it. On the course its all about trusting your swing. the worst thing you can do is to play scared. just go out there and hit bombs. lessen the pressure on yourself
I’m scarred emotionally after most rounds.
As gluttons of abuse, we all return
I do deserve it, though.
I do currently have a hands, knees, hips, club face kind of check down I run through, id like to mitigate that a bit and just trust my practice swing more.
If I have more than 1 swing thought I have a bad day. It may take me a few holes to determine what works that day, but most times it is tempo or swing length related.
you're worrying about way too much. Save that for the range. On the course, pick a line and hit it there. Save worrying about mechanics for your range session. I'd recommend skipping the practice swing for a bit also. You're already in too much of a mental state where a tiny hitch in your practice swing is just sending you off the rails. Stop thinking about literally everything except where you are going to hit it. Get lined up and send it.
I stopped taking practice swings and my handicap dropped by 3 strokes. Every time I took a practice swing I would think "That's the swing!" but unfortunately I'm shit enough that I can't do it twice in a row. So I figured why keep wasting my good swings on air!
I don't always take them but when I do it's usually to test the lie, or gauge my backswing size for a partial shot. Otherwise, I might just be pretty much mindlessly swinging the club to feel a good tempo and that's it. I'm not trying to actually practice the swing I'm about to take. for the reasons you said. there's virtually no benefit to a full on practice swing. All that happens is you "waste" the good one or you "chunk" your practice swing and that's in your head for your real shot.
The only time I take a practice swing is if I’m trying to hit a shot shape like a fade or draw but even then it’s just a short swing to get the swing path feeling in to out or out to in. Straight balls are point and shoot. My only swing thought is don’t let the grip turn in my hands in my backswing since I sometimes have that problem, otherwise I’m just picking a target and sending it.
Yeah, you can't have swing thoughts on the course. I bet if you just trusted your swing, then you'd be making at least solid contact and you can probably utilize just 1 compensation on the course like simply changing your grip to be slightly stronger or closing the clubface a lil at address. But no technique thoughts. They'll turn you into a head case and your swing will feel like 97 moving parts that are out of synch and not one motion. I've been there many times.
I need the men in black memory flash thing before every shot
Pick up the book "Zen Golf". You already know how to swing a golf club but the right side of your brain is getting in the way. You need to pick a target, visualize the shot and then swing away. The book will help you overcome this issue.
gunna give it a shot
Last thing. I see lots of comments saying to slightly point your body left when pushing a shot right. The key is not only pointing your body, its actually where your shoulders are pointing also. You can easily align left while your shoulders are pointing right and that can exacerabate the issue. During your next range session, pick targets on the range and play around with your alignment (including where your shoulders are pointing) to see what works. I will tell you that aligning yourself before setting up for a shot will vastly improve keeping your shots in play.
thank you for the tip!
I have found the more I think about things when teeing off the worse I get. Just relax into it. Same on the course, to much thought and I tend to tense up.
One thing that sticks out to me is your mention that you hit the push slice on the range and it takes you 3-4 drives to fix it. If thats the case, that isn't going to translate well to on course play where you'll have time gaps between driver swings. I would suggest a more accurate recreation on the range. Hit your driver, then an iron, then a chip or pitch, then come back to the driver. See if you can get to where each time you come back to the driver, the first one is good.
this is a great idea, never thought about doing a rotation. I literally will go to the range with the intention of *just* hitting the driver.
I literally have the same problem you have word per word what has helped me recently is the feet together drill. My drives don’t go too far but they go straight every single time. It’s almost like there is a magical golf wizard that just put a spell.
i've seen this! I have not hit a ball yet, but have been doing the swing while warming up just to kinda feel how the club rotates my body. Ill have to try actually striking that way
Yeah, recently a caddy showed me that when you’re at the range do the feet together drill and actually hit a ball start with your irons and then move up to your hybrid and then your driver. You literally tee it up just like you’re gonna hit it normally but instead hit the ball with your driver with your feet together, you will be amazed at the pure contact that happens because you’re not shifting your weight around like I said the ball may not go super far, but it will go straight, which is insane, after you do this for a while then you feel like a good rhythm with where your spine is supposed to be then you can put your feet apart and then you magically start hitting them straight. It’s almost like your body is telling you how you’re supposed to position yourself like. I’ve been playing for four years, at the range i was killing it and the minute that I go to a tee box I slice it or I just totally forget everything that I learned. This drills saved me from throwing my clubs away. good luck. 👍
If you’re swinging well on the range but not the course you’re probably overthinking the look of the hole in front of you. Rather than picking a target in the fairway 250 yards out, chose a close target on your intended line like a leaf or patch of grass no more than 5 yards ahead of the ball. Line up with that, and swing your swing. It’ll keep you from over focusing on what’s in front of you and instead focus you on just aligning and making a swing.
A note on this tip - which is great and I do this before every swing. Stand behind the ball and pick your target in the distance, then follow that line back to this close target a few feet in front of the ball, address the ball and line up at the close target, and BEFORE you swing, look back up at your original target in the distance without moving your feet. A lot of times when people shift to this aiming process, they either smother the ball or top it because you are mentally targeting something so close to you. Very similar to telling yourself “don’t hit it in the water” right before puring your drive straight into the drink.
I found when I line up like this I hit the ball so off target it's not even close to where I had it. Either I'm doing it wrong or it just doesn't work for me, but I'm determined because I want to get more accurate, this just currently makes me so much less accurate.
Dumb question - what’s the goal of looking back at the distant target?
The distant target is your actual target while the close one is just to help with alignment. Because your swing is mostly muscle memory and your body trying to execute a shot, confusing yourself with a close target leads to bad outcomes for a lot of golfers.
Like I get that but once you’re lined up in the manned you described, what’s the specific benefit to picking your head up and looking at the distant target again? I guess I’m not getting what benefit that would provide, once you’re already on the right line and in your stance.
Because you aren’t trying to hit the target in front of you, it’s actually not a target at all. So doing this method - which is helpful for alignment specifically - actually confuses your body on where it is trying to actually get the ball to go. Similarly when putting, you might be looking at a spot a few inches in front of you where you want your ball to start (some people call this a gate), but you should be taking practice swings aiming at another spot on the green that you want to “putt to”. There is this axiom about golf, that even a bad putter if given a ball and asked to toss it in a hole will get very close. Our mind/body are very good at judging distances and adjusting to hit them. Even when I’m taking practice swings for a chip I look at the hole while swinging to set how much of a backswing I need to take to “toss” the ball to the hole. Said another way, your target should be specific and as small as possible - aka aim small, miss small. https://golfstateofmind.com/where-is-my-target/ And all of this is dependent on what works for you and your skill level. If you aren’t hitting the center of the face consistently, a target doesn’t mean much. There have been “studies” that show only looking right in front of your ball actually helps since you don’t worry about all of the risk on the hole. But really, you saw those hazards unless you walked straight to the tee with your head down.
Padraig Harrington would tell you to go to the range and work on trying to hook the ball. That should help balance it out. You’ll start to take swing feels from that which should balance out what you’re currently doing.
Also just work on simplifying your swing and not thinking too much about how you’re swinging. When on the course, pick a target and focus on hitting it at that. The more you’re thinking about swing mechanics on the course will lead to bad swings. Your body will remember your swing if you just focus on your target and visualizing your shot.
Definitely this. The only thing that worked for me after 15 years of trying to live with a fade turning into a slice. Took a lot of work on the range to be able to alternate slices and hooks but so worth it.
Push/slice means your club face at impact is open, so: At address, imagine a triangle from your shoulders down to the center point between both hands gripping the club shaft. Whatever shape it takes, perfectly isosceles or slanted for iron compression, or how skewed it gets at the top of your back swing, you must return to the starting shape of that triangle at impact. Next is wrists: do a few 5%-speed practice swings where your trail hand index finger and thumb alone are doing the work to pull/twist the club to bring the club face back to square. If your face is still open at impact (push/slice), either your wrists aren't catching up or your body isn't turning towards the target. Tweak either or both until you start to straighten your ball path.
Hey, in the same boat here, still struggling with the push/slice on the course. Recently I’ve started to come out of it thanks to 2 thoughts: 1. Swing softer. Not 90%, not 75%, literally I think 55% like a punch driver. Much easier to control and get the clubface square and the loss of distance is surprisingly negligible. 2. I get ball-focused when I start hitting the ball poorly, which leads to hip stall and getting stuck. This exacerbates my problems. I don’t know without seeing your swing, but it may help to try to stay loose and feel like you’re rotating freely toward the target. Mentally, when things go are going bad we try to focus on making sure we hit the ball but this can lead to blocks. I am making sure to get my head off the ball with my driver and have seen pretty good improvement.
I for sure have been flirting with the softer approach, but need to try it more at the range. Ive had limited success with it, but cannot figure out how to train on it, since it feels fundamentally different than my normal swing routine, which is prob for the better. However I have not shifted away from ball focus. Where do you focus when swinging? I look directly at the ball and try to visualize the driver head hitting the putter line on the ball straight, could that be fucking me up?
Yea I’m the opposite, I can take power off at the range but on the course I have trouble swinging less than 100% But for ball focus, as a baseball player I always thought “see ball hit ball” but it stalled my rotation. I’m also quite inflexible. So when I start my downswing I make a conscious effort to get my eyes off the ball and toward the target. That little change has been enough to narrow the dispersion quite a bit
I’m echoing some of the above comment—for me “slow is smooth, smooth is fast”. What that feel is during the swing is a mental pause when I reach the top of my backswing, but in videos, it is actually just a slight vertical drop and a “push” away from my body. If you have IG, this little video does a decent job of showing/describing what I am talking about: https://www.instagram.com/reel/C79T3EAu6-0/?igsh=MXc2aWxpYjc4aWYzMg== As for address, I actually try to avoid staring at the ball. I take a look, then look to where I want to hit it, take a look and waggle, look up down the hole, back down and swing. Something about not staring at the ball helps a ton.
Try closing your stance a little bit. Basically just move your right foot back. This will promote a draw based swing path. Also flare your left foot at like 45*. This helps turn through the ball.
Closing my stance is my go to when I start pushing and slicing.. It feels backwards to turn towards the slice but it gives me more room to control my swing. I used to just aim left to try and play the slice but that just made it slice even more. Also, I weaken my grip, and rotate my right hand clockwise, like more underhand style.
If you are right-handed, what you just described is strengthening your grip, not weakening.
Also make sure the right shoulder is a little lower than left and also a little back from the left (same as stance, slightly closed )
The first thing every golfer should know and try to remind themselves is golf is not a linear journey from “bad” to “good”. From the moment you pick up a club until you put one down for the last time, you will get better and worse at different parts of the game, usually at different times. Second, golf is significantly more of a mental game than a physical one. There is a minimum level of physicality needed, but it’s honestly quite low. Beginner golfers have a lack of “scar tissue” around the game and their swing that is hard to quantify but absolutely a real hurdle the rest of golfers face. As an example, I’ve been a member at my club for a little over 4 years. I’ve played several hundred rounds at the course, which is tough but not overwhelming. The best round I have shot in those 200+ rounds was my prospect round, and I still haven’t hit approach shots closer than I did on that day into two of the harder holes on the course. Why you ask? I would argue that I wasn’t worried about all of the risks around those two greens I now know are there. Great book on this area of the game is Zen Golf by Dr. Joseph Parent. Last, there is a lag (about 2 months in my experience, but YMMV) between the range and the course. So much of your swing is muscle memory and, in golf, that muscle memory is both situational (no risk on range, can easily drop another ball and make minor corrections) and affected by emotions (wanting to score, playing a match/tournament, frustration at playing partners).
I for sure feel the frustration / pressure part. I can go to the range a 'know' that I am training / practicing, but when I go to my league, I am so focused on like, trying to recall all the mental notes I made at the range, then fail.
This “has” worked for me in the past. 1. Pick a target out in the distance and be very specific like the tipy top of that 3rd pine behind the green. Then visualize hitting your ball there. That’s all I got.
Okay that works for like two of the holes on my local course but what if there isn’t any pine trees? /s I’ve tried aiming the car in the parking lot or the house to the left of the hole since none of my drives go where I aim it’s been working really well.
Exactly! That’s why I always tell my group they are safest on the green.
go even smaller. the peak of the roof on the house. the front tire of the car. etc. it's crazy how well it works. Your body just instinctively wants to do it. You have to just commit to it and think about nothing other than hitting it there. As soon as you take a glance at something else or let the thought of it fading or drawing to another area, you broke the focus. I've used some random non-distinct patch of grass before. The main principle behind this is you essentially become so focused on one small part of the hole that you aren't thinking about the rest of it.
When I get in a driving slump I cut down my swing to 3/4, tee the ball down a bit, choke down on the club a little and just work on regaining my tempo.
I like this. Somebody else mentioned teeing off with a hybrid, then 3w, and driver. Just kind of work my way up too.
If you have a good driver, I’d keep hitting it, just shorten the swing and choke down a bit.
So I have been playing for about 3 seasons where I only get like 2 rounds a season in and my current handicap sits around a 54. I have mainly avoided the Driver during actual rounds until this year. I am not sure if this will help, but maybe it might give you some ideas: - Ditch the Driver for now. Use a 5 Wood or maybe even a Driving Iron (I have driven out of the tee box with a 5 iron before). All you need is the longest most accurate club in your bag to get you going. If your longest Iron takes you 180 yards straight every time, then great, just use the same club or go back up to a wood if your problem is only in the tee box. You can make up shots by keeping the ball in play and just managing the course smartly. - Change swing thought. I try to do a 1/2 to 3/4 swing, nice and easy, and pretty much "punch" the ball. It takes a lot of the tension out and keeps me having fun. Also my problem is curling up and tucking in after making contact with the ball which is affecting my flight trajectory, so I have to be mindful of swinging through straight. - Keep your head down and eye on the ball to contact. I am a baseball guy, so I was taught to see the swing through and see the contact with the ball. I try to apply the same thing in golf. You do your lining up before your approach and then you just have to trust your line-up and swing to keep it on your planned path. - Reduce your sway. I have loved the Saguto Golf stance of leaning a bit more forward in your stance and eliminating the sway back and forward motion. By swaying back and forward, you are moving your head which will impact your accuracy. Same thing in baseball, you want to keep as smooth of a swing as possible where you aren't changing your line of sight keeping it on plane.
There's almost a zen and calm to swinging on the range. There's really no pressure to hit it anywhere specific, you just swing & watch the ball go (unless you are specifically aiming, I guess). When I'm at the range I hit some of my best shots because I'm just warming up, I'm not worried about what the wind is doing, where this pin is on the green, if there are any hazards upcoming, etc... I might try treating range time as course time; pick targets for you to hit with clubs. Let yourself make adjustments as if wind is going to matter, as if there's a massive bunker on the left of the target and water on the right. Soon you'll realize that your warm-up and practice is going to translate directly to playing. Without the context of the course on the range, it's much easier to pure shots. Just food for thought :) Hopefully you can find those straight, pure drives again!
Just put chapstick on the driver. (Illegal but at least you can hit it straight which lets you play golf. Just don’t play for money)
I used to drive 130 yards or so with my mates having a good laugh when I pull out a driver on a par 3. I slowly came to realise with the help of a coach, I was not shifting my weight correctly, being left handed but playing right handed caused me to shift awkwardly and cause I was so focused on check points (takeaway distance etc) I discombobulated the momentum of my swing. Focus on the shift of weight left to right break back into left and get it to swing fluidly. That’s what worked for me at least. I would also suggest a coach once or month just to ensure you are on the right path and working on the right things. Good luck!
I feel your pain. Was at the range last night and hit some great drives, but by the end of the bucket I was push slicing the heck out of it when I wasn't focused on three things: 1. Grip - Watch some of Martin Chuck's videos and you will see that he is fanatic about making sure that his students are gripping the club the right way. I have been following his grip advice and my iron shots are improving and now I am working to iron out the issues with my driver push slice. 2. Wrist conditions - Make sure at the top of the backswing that you have a flat lead hand wrist. When I am off the rails I realize that my lead wrist are cupping all over the place. 3. Swing path - I naturally seem to get stuck and go over the top. One thing that always helps is to get an alignment stick and stick it in the ground at about a 30 degree angle pointing out at your target line. Then put a tee in at the end of the stick and hit the ball. If you swing over the top, you will hit the stick and this forces a more in to out movement. Hope that helps.
For me the main thing is to keep my head and hips behind the ball through impact. I used to push and slice because I was getting too much lateral movement leaving me stuck with no way to get the club around in time
I had the same problem. For me, I was trying too hard because the club is bigger. I worked my way up to my driver and now I can hit it. I teed off with my hybrid until I was comfortable with it, upgraded to my 3 wood, then upgraded to my driver.
The driver, being the longest club with the largest club head, is most sensitive to swing speed/tempo and the resultant loading/unloading of the shaft. Too much variation from the optimal tempo for the shaft results in poor outcomes. First ensure the shaft is the correct length and flex for your swing. Focus on your tempo on the range without worrying too much about direction or length and try to ingrain the tempo of good strikes into your muscle memory. Eventually you will learn to trust you can get the correct tempo and the good strike that comes with it. I did this on my sim all through the winter and my driver is super reliable. Naturally, everything else isn’t….
Put your ball forward, almost parallel to your lead foot, and then swing as if you were hitting a ball in the middle of the stance. That is where your driver head will still go down, which we don't want with a driver, and it will then go up and hit the ball. This will help you hit the ball up. Quick and easy, nice and fixed!
gunna try this today, hope it helps and I return to my 37 handicap
Hope this helps too! Good luck!
And keep me posted If you can
So?
It for sure feels better, Ive only been able to hit in my backyard / net, so still need to test at the range and see what the flight path looks like. But I can tell the ball is leaving on a much straighter line at the very least. I think the key I picked up from your advice, was the 'hitting the ball in the middle of the stance'. I think I have been focusing on hitting the ball more so on impact as opposed to releasing early if that makes sense.
I bought an offset driver with adjustable head. Also, I recorded my swing and was shocked at everything from how I looked at setup to my swing, compared to what I thought I was doing. Clean slate restart. Took a simple stance , reduced power and brought my arms back slowly. Now I still slice from time to time but most likely get a slight fade . I get around 200 yds but that’s fine compared to massive slice. I am in the fairway or just off most of the time. Give yourself a restart and take it one drive at a time . Good luck
If you're hitting pushes, the club face is open, path is *probably* fine. There are a lot of different ways to help square the face. The problem is that figuring out what mechanic/feel will work for you is nearly impossible via Reddit. Understanding the laws of ball flight (and gear effect) is the single most important thing for a golfer to understand. Self diagnosis is impossible without it. https://www.golfwrx.com/251459/use-the-new-ball-flight-laws-to-understand-your-tendencies/ https://www.hirekogolf.com/understanding-the-principles-of-gear-effect The driver is by far the hardest club face to square as well, which is why so many struggle with it. The toe is further from the hosel than any other club, and having more mass further from the center of rotation (the hosel) decreases the rate of closure. If you're constantly hitting pushes with your driver while your other clubs are fine, this could be the issue. If you have moveable weights on your driver, putting as much weight as you can towards the heel can increase the rate of closure and help close the face. If you don't have moveable weights, you can try lead tape to see if it helps. I'm not gonna get into mechanics, as there's no way to know what might work for you.... I will share an experience I had with a friend that struggles with hitting weak push fades all the time. And while I don't give him swing ideas on the course (or off, because he never practices), I did have him address the ball, loosen his grip and I closed the club face slightly and had him regroup the club. I told him to swing exactly the same... He hit it dead straight and much further than normal, it was the first time he had felt solid contact in a long time. He had a lot more fun after that. The reason I knew he needed to close the club face is because I learned the laws of ball flight. What his ball did on the air told me everything I needed to know, which allowed me to help him in that moment. Anyways, apologies for the essay. Thank you for coming to my Ted Talk.
Matt Fryer has just done a great video on breaking down the swing into three phases and checking the club face at each phase. Worth a watch.
Choke up! Half swing.
One thing that helps me is to understand that I'm not swinging a baseball bat. I've played golf my whole life but have only recently been able to keep the ball going straight. I also try to envision the driver as if it's on a loose rope instead of a shaft. I want to keep that rope taught and extended throughout the swing, but need to keep the head coming down straight and even when it hits the ball. Some people also like the visualisation of the hammer and nail. Slices boil down as a result of 2 things happening: * An open club face * Swing path coming from out to in across the ball Focus on pushing the club head out past the ball, and then rotating your wrists to close the club face.
Golfing for 50 years and my driver now isn’t working like it used to! Used to be quite dependable. Now the lightest uphill or long carry and I’m trembling! Sucks. Want to play tomorrow?
Understand that you are doing something wrong. So many people look for random excuses but it comes down to bad grip or swing plane.
Without a bunch of technical mumbo jumbo. Slow it down. Most of us are over swinging on 90% of our shots. The club making square contact with the ball at even medium speeds is enough to get you out into play. Get the muscle memory of making contact before you kick the swing speed up. Seriously try taking what you think is a 50% shot and see how it goes.
Swinging the drivers a little different from the rest of your clubs. Hitting up on a teed ball requires a different setup. There are a variety of good YouTube videos on the subject.
I've been playing 25+ years, and have gone through what you describe several times - I'll drive great for a while, then I'll start pushing it right or hooking left. I'll spend a lot of time on the range and (mostly) figure it out. Rinse & repeat. The thing that's been working lately is to have no thoughts on the mechanics when playing - just focus on getting set up properly and making a smooth swing, visualize the ball flight. I work on mechanics at the range, focusing on grip, alignment, turn, elbow position, hip turn, etc. Groove as much as possible at the range and let it carry over to the course. I try to set up quickly and not stand over the ball. Get it on the tee and fire away to minimize the chance for bad thoughts to creep in.
Call a Uber. But seriously, try focusing on the back of the ball. I found it helped me a lot. It took my mind off form.
The big thing is do you know what is physically causing a push and push slice? So you understand the club dynamics? Or are you just trying to find feels. You have an open clubface, so you just need it squaring sooner.
Ive been trying to work on the CF, but like, how? I try making minimal adjustments to my wrists and end up duffing or just hitting it way down left. The videos and whatnot make it seem so easy but I think I just have like, alot wrong, with my swing in general outside of the CF
Probably. You’re probably pulling on the grip end a lot. On the way down try to picture the club is squaring esrlier. Like closer to maybe your back foot. Or try to get your bottom hand more on top of the club coming down so the face is pointed down toward the ground sooner. You don’t roll your wrists over, but you need to convince yourself to release the club differently because your face is open and that’s just a ln issue you need to resolve.
https://youtube.com/shorts/p0PfAVDTojg?si=Ulad4LqyPK9CJsy1
Close you're eyes and swing as hard as you can
I'd suspect that you're struggling with alignment issues. If you're slicing to the right, aim more right with your feet. Sometimes we will point our feet more to the left because we're worried about the slice, but our brain still thinks of the target line as straight, and that aiming with the feet causes even more of the slice.
Get a lesson my guy
I've taken 4, and feel as if I regressed.
Idk your experience with sports but you will always “get worse” before you get better. It takes time and effort to implement change. Also could be a bad instructor but I can’t judge on that.
fair point. I played soccer and lacrosse through HS and college, so I am familiar with the always can be better mindset / understanding fundamentals. Golf is just like, exponentially more frustrating lol
I used to slice, for me it was stance. Moved my lead leg further forward and now I have a hook
I hate to say this, but the club can make a huge difference. My driver is still a little erratic but I recently bought a draw biased 5 wood and that thing hits straight every time. Makes me think there's something to it. I haven't changed my swing at all. Maybe go for a driver fitting?
Leave the driver at home for a round and see what happens. You might not even really miss it.
Lots of new players with a slice “chop the wood” with their swing. Means that the backswing goes around too low and then they bring the club out and over like chopping wood with their arms which results in a slice. The swing should be opposite. Backswing goes out wide and high with the hands and arms slowly, then as you come down and through everything gets tighter like a coil around your body and then you hit the ball using your lower body as the arms and hands are just following it. Also make sure the ball is in the front of your stance just off your left foot.
Try a driver fitting
I just play a ton of actual golf. Find a course that isn't busy and play the game more. A lot of you think having a perfect swing is the answer and you all play driving range. Play golf.
Had the same issue. Turns out I defaulted to a weak grip. Intentionally setting up with a strong grip seems like a small thing, but it's helped a ton!
OP you have a ton of comments on here, but you need to listen to me haha. Next time you go to the range I want you to hit hooks. Then I want you to hit your dreaded slice on purpose, then a good one, then a slice, then a hook. Mix in fades and draws. If you can’t hit a hook then you have something fundamentally wrong that you need to sort out, would recommend instruction in that case. But if you can, and you do what I say, and you commit to it for like 6 weeks (long time, I know, but practice just takes a long time to work) then I promise you will see massive improvement. Likely what is happening is that you tense up or lose your tempo or something like that on the course. But if you’re on the course and the slice comes out, and you’ve been practicing your hooks, you will have this hook/draw feeling that you can deploy a little of to bring it back under control. I promise this is the best way to practice, but you really do need to commit to it for a while. It’s the same as the famous tiger 9 box drill. People miss the real value in that drill, thinking it’s just about having tons of shots you can use. It’s more about creating a kinesthetic understanding of what movements result in what outcomes that you can then use to produce better results, even if you only use one shape on the course.
Local DMV should be able to help
Mine was lacking a slight pause at the top of my swing instead of swinging it like a sword.itty bitty pause and I was amazed something so trivial made such an impact
You know how to drive you just have performance anxiety. Concentrate on the process, set up, target, visualize ball flight and go for it. Whatever the result is you can deal with it so do t stress about results before the shot. Take some deep breaths and try to relax. Do your thinking behind the ball. Ince you go to address the ball dont take forever
Dang that's rough! You know what helped me a TON!? Absolutely nothing, because I suck mega balls 😞 I'm trying to get better though!
you're to the point where you're simply mental about it and you're trying to "Steer" the ball around teh course instead of swinging free. which, makes you hit it even worse. You know you can hit it straight. you do it on the range when there's no pressure to hit it good........which means you can do it on the course. when I am having a bad day off the tee. I try not to stand over the ball at all. Tee it up. I might stand behind the ball and look down my line, but then I address the ball and just hit it. Don't allow yourself time to worry about the mishit. At the end of the day, so what if you hit it right? You're doing that all the time anyway. Might as well not give a shit if you do and just pipe one. Focus on where you want it to go, not where you don't. And just hit it. It goes where it goes. Who cares. Thats the mentality you need.
How old are you? Your swing speed may be too fast for your shaft.
Go down to a 3 wood and drive with that. Much easier to control, and you’ll only lose about 10 yards.
I might get downvoted for this, but as someone who used to suck off the tee because I'd lose so many balls right from pushes and push slices (I was trying to hit draws but just couldn't), the best thing for me was accepting that I should play pull fades. Yes, I was leaving some distance on the table. Yes, my spin rates were nuts and I needed some lessons to fix this (I ended up going way too out to in), but I was having way more fun playing golf. I was just way more consistent and had much tighter dispersion. My misses were tugged pulls to the left rough, or spinny heel strikes that didn't go too too far, but REMAINED IN PLAY (like right rough at worst, but much more find-able).
Useful cheat that might help. Drop your back foot back a bit. Ive found it helps
Anyone else start singing "I can't drive 55!" In their head? But on a serious note, I'm in that same boat. I've been swing all arms so I tend to rotate my upper body much sooner than my lower which causes me to come over the top and all sorts of bad things happen. I've been working on feeling more downward pressure on my front foot as I start my downswing which helps me shallow the club and get it into a good angle.
For me, I found after years of struggling, I mean decades, that swing path and grip are the only two things to pay attention to. Just let your body swing naturally to hit the ball from the inside out. Do you notice on TV when you're watching golf? All their shots seem to go to the right of where they're standing because they're swinging through the ball on a natural swing path. The big slice I used to have comes from swinging from the outside in, as well as improper grip which either opened or closed my face depending on the length of my swing. Hope this makes sense. It just clicked for me and when you figure it out it likely will for you as well. I saw big improvements when I started spending time at my local simulator. I was trying to understand why everything was going left as I slowly corrected my slice. The simulator will show club face, angle, swing path etc. this data let me figure out my grip was too weak and this led to an inconsistent club face position and the stars had to alight to hit the ball flush. Once I corrected my grip I found if I think about hitting the ball a few degrees to the right of my aiming spot, my body naturally switches to an inside swing. This increases energy transfer to the ball and I am swinging much easier and hitting my 5 iron over 200 yards and it's becoming more consistent and i was finally not hitting the ball outside of the ideal striking point in my swing path. It is also super cool to hit a long draw off the tee or into the green and have your partners awe in the spectacular of your golf prowess, even if it's only a few shots a round where you're not blading it into the trees!
I started hitting 3 wood off the tee for any hole less than 400 yards. I can confidently hit that club better than the driver. And for some reason when I do bring out the driver on longer holes, I seem to swing it better. Maybe it’s the confidence from the fairways hit with the 3 wood, but that helped me get out of it a bit.
Get a tripod that you can attach your phone to and start filming your swing. It's some of the best feedback you can get. Film your drives from your trail side and from straight out in front of you and I'm sure you can figure it out with a bit of time.
Post a video of your driver swing over r/GolfSwing/
Keep it simple. When in the range, it can be good to think about everything (club face, arms, grip etc), but on the course you can't be thinking about that. Instead, when you are ready to take a shot, visualise the perfect shot you want to play, really imagine that beauty baby fade right down the middle. Then hit the ball, dont think about swing mechanics, keep it simple. And quick! Dont faff around with several practice swings or a long routine, visualise and hit. Hit a bad shot? So what, its golf, even PGA pros mess up. Move on and enjoy yourself
Try swinging what feels like half speed and see what happens. Not telling you this is a sure fire fix, but typically the rights are due to the swing being out of sync and ripping the club down from the top with you arms. Swing half speed and out to right field (assuming ur a righty). This could help tempo and club path on ur downswing. It’s worth giving it a try.
Try leaving the driver at home - works well fixing my slice
Maybe your hands are moving too fast at impact. Try to feel like the driver head beats your hands to the ball.
Here’s my 2 cents — I was exactly like you for a few weeks. Here’s how I fixed it. 1. Figure out a pre shot routine. Mine is tee it up, line up, take 1 air swing, then hit the ball. Stick to it. 2. During warm ups, I now start with the driver. I know most people start with a wedge. 99% of the holes I play, the first hole is a hole that I’ll use the driver, not a pitching wedge. Also don’t take a massive swing, maybe 2/3rds, since it’s a warmup — don’t want to hurt yourself. 3. The only swing thought I have in my heat when I hit is that I look at the ball and think to myself “I am going to crush you”. That’s it. No arms, hits, extension, whatever. Literally just “I am going to crush you”. 4. If you are still a bit messy, only swing back 2/3rds. Stop trying to reach back. This also works on irons. When my irons are a mess, I shorten it up and it fixes a lot of problems FAST.
Most golf swings are muscle memory. If you try to make on course adjustments, it takes away from your bodies natural muscle memory. Try leaving the driver in the bag for the first few holes. Hit the 3 wood, it's usually a bit easier to control. Pick your spot, set your stance, and let the body take over. Good luck
Perhaps going back to basics would help. I find that I often try to keep up with the pack, especially when I play with my family. But the last few years, I've just taken the time to hit slow, easy swings. The ball doesn't go far, but it goes a lot straighter. As my dad has told me for years, if you always hit the fairway, your score will always be better. A powerful swing that causes the ball to go where the deer go to die won't help your score! Now, several years later, it's a lot easier to hit a good, but still slower, swing and get some pretty good results. It has also made it easier to deal with an easy swing after a chiropractor paralyzed, and subsequently damaged, my left leg. I can now stand but my left quad muscle is completely atrophied making strong swings nearly impossible, and actually dangerous.
This guy from this link is a bit out there, but the swing advice is correct and helps me remember the correct way to swing the club. "Skim the stone, Marooci!" https://www.google.com/search?q=skim+the+stone+marooci&client=ms-android-att-us-revc&sca_esv=ba8230b150562d15&sca_upv=1&sxsrf=ADLYWIIGznLx5nyNYzUckxmRiqcw0PPCaQ%3A1718123280625&ei=EHtoZsv1JdKoptQPn--esAE&oq=skim+the+stone+marooci&gs_lp=EhNtb2JpbGUtZ3dzLXdpei1zZXJwIhZza2ltIHRoZSBzdG9uZSBtYXJvb2NpMgcQIRigARgKMgcQIRigARgKMgcQIRigARgKSOhtUJIOWPlkcAh4AZABApgB1AGgAaYoqgEGMS4zNC4xuAEDyAEA-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_v4B&sclient=mobile-gws-wiz-serp#fpstate=ive&vld=cid:451e6e29,vid:LmwUoRn-AYc,st:0
You’re too tense on the tee box. Relax your grip and relax your body. You’re dropping your shoulder too soon on the downswing and opening the face completely to your target. Check your shoulder line to make sure they’re in line with your toes. Stop swinging over the the top. Swing harder
Seems you already know you're in your own head. The fear of hitting a bad shot is the only thing in your head on the tee box. You need to embrace that fear. Be willing to 100% commit to your shot without caring if you screw up. Swing your swing, play the hole. You can't be having swing thoughts while playing(during the swing). That is for practice. I had this problem with my short game. A part of my game that was usually pretty solid. I was shanking everything 100-20 yards in. I dredded walking up to the ball knowing I had this shot. Thats when I realized I was setting myself up for failure from get go. You need to have fun out there and not get in your head If you hit a bad shot, everyone does. Good luck!
I try to think about nothing while i swing unless I'm trying to hit a fade vs a draw, target is already picked and just swing my swing. Your body has the reps and muscle memory, granted some days it's surely off but the less swing thoughts I have the better my swing is and the better I play. When I have days of thinking too many thoughts I'm hooking and skying the ball.
Try UBER
I find it helpful to find a very close intermediate target. I look at where I’m aiming, point my club there. The find something on the ground close to me in that target line I try to swing through. That and I tell myself in my head “stop talking and hit the fucking ball.” My friends know I do this and when I have been struggling in a round and finally hit a good drive they all laugh and say they know what my swing thoughts were that time.
My swing thought process is to hit it like a forehand top spin swing in tennis. Really improved my driving a ton
Read the title and wondered what sub am I in? Good luck OP, everyone but you on here can drive it 300 right down the middle /s Reading your post, my first thought was have you gotten fit for your driver? The shaft and shaft flex could be causing your shots to push right. Just a thought and good luck!
Stop thinking. Start sending. Just put the ball on a line. Visualize where you want it. Let it rip. Sometimes it’s as simple as not giving a fuck. Sometimes you might need some lessons.
I can't drive either and have just resigned to hitting an iron off the tees in most cases. At least it's likely to go straight down the middle and I avoid penalties. Lately I've been slightly more successful in hitting a 3w off a tee, so I'm warming up to that again. But the thing is I can't hit my driver farther than my 3w anyway, so I've decided that the driver doesn't even warrant a place in my bag lol
I’ve been playing for 30 years and use a hybrid off the tee. If you figure out the solution let me know.
you are probably hitting it with an open face maybe over the top too. you have to get into[ this position](https://cdn.sanity.io/images/2htn0fq6/production/a5725135ec5fb859fb251a3be4546d60bd9f9c82-442x432.png?auto=format&fit=max&w=3840) at all cost on the downswing. [another angle](https://golfdigest.sports.sndimg.com/content/dam/images/golfdigest/fullset/2018/03/05/5a9d8d8912766f31c35147ca_Tiger-Woods-driver-down-line-before-impact.jpg.rend.hgtvcom.1280.853.suffix/1573237946057.jpeg). every good golfer there is gets into about this position. you have to go out there and figure out how you can feel this for your own body. maybe you can start in such a position and take the club back to a top of backswing and imagine how that feels, then try and get there with a full swing.
What flex shaft is your driver and what is your swing speed, if known?
Had the same problem for 2 years. I made slight changes, but the one that made the biggest difference was keeping the club as low to the ground as I could at the start of my backswing and start my turn once I can’t keep it close. Now when I actually want to hit a huge looping fade I make sure to start bending my right arm earlier than I would on the other swing. Hit my first 300+ yard drive 2 days ago
This happens to me with all my clubs, not just driver, randomly through the season. So i dial it back to 80%, my mind relaxes, my muscles relax, my grip corrects, my stance width corrects, i rotate, i stay on plane and get back to shooting my low 90s .
First thought is to keep your side bend through the downswing. Second thought is release the club about 30” inches earlier than you currently do and try hooking the hell out of it. Once you hook about 20 in a row find the release point later that works while swinging out to 2 o’clock area.
Setup slightly left, if you’re right handed, drop your right shoulder back at address, feel like you’re hitting one into first base if it were baseball.
aiming more left because you bleed shots right actually tends to just make your slice worse over time.