How To Hit a Hook and a Draw
Hitting a slice is usually not a problem for anyone who "sucks at golf". The 'Ol Banana Ball often defines the term! There are so many things you can do during the golf swing to cause a slice. Most of which happens at address before you even start the club back!
The best way to cure a slice is to learn how to hit a hook. Once you learn how to execute this shot, and what it "feels like" to hit this shot, you'll be well on your way to curing your slice for good.
In order to hit a controlled hook several things have to happen. The clubface has to approach the ball from inside the target line. (an inside-out swing) The clubface has to be pointing at the target at impact, and you must release your hands to square the face up at impact. Simple enough, how do we do that?
First take a "square stance". Both feet "parallel left" to the target. To see this take your normal stance and then lay a club on the ground with the shaft touching your toes. Step away and look from behind and see where the club "points". If it's not parallel left of the target adjust the club on the ground until it is. Take your stance again with your toes now touching the adjusted club on the ground. You are now set up correcty for a straight shot. Got it?
Now set up again with your toes touching the club on the ground which should be aiming parallel left. Bring your right foot back away from the ball about 3 or 4 inches. (more or less. AWAY from the ball, not wider!) You are now set up with a closed stance. If you adjust the club on the ground to touch your toes now and check from behind, it will be aiming either right at the target or to the right of the target. We're half way there!
Now take your stance again, toes touching the club pointing right of the target, clubface aiming At the target. Bring the club back on your takeaway along the LINE OF YOUR FEET. The idea is to bring the club back "inside" the target line, (line of the ball to the target) and then to stay on the same plane on the downswing, striking the ball with the club coming from inside the target line, and extending out to the right of the target after impact before it returns naturally to the finish. The clubface facing the target at impact. This will impart a right to left spin on the ball. Since the club head is traveling to the right of the target at impact, and the clubface is pointing AT the target, (just like at address) the ball will start off right of the target and the sidespin will cause it to draw back in.
Helpful Tips:
Fast hands are needed to hook the ball. If you already have fast hands the above may work fine. If it doesn't start to hook after some practice try this: To speed up your hands and allow them to turn over at impact sooner, take a stonger than normal grip. To do this you need to rotate your hands to the right. Take your normal grip with the club on the ground behind the ball. Without changing the position of the clubface on the ground, re-grip the club with your hand further under the club. ( The V's of your hands that point say to your right shoulder or chin, now point outside the right shoulder.) (see how to grip the club if you don't get this) By rotating your hands to the right you speed up your wrist action and it's easier to square the clubface at impact naturally.
When you get to the impact zone make sure you make a conscience effort to turn your hands over hard! (release your hands)
Practice this with 1/2 swings without a ball. You should see the back of your right hand clearly when you reach hip height on the follow through. That tells you you've released the clubhead. If you don't see the back of your hand you've lost a lot of power, left the clubface open, and the ball will either slice or push-slice.
GREAT DOWNSWING TIP!
It's easy to say swing from inside out, but how do you know you're doing it? Here's how! When you start your downswing make sure you start by dropping your right elbow into your right side. So close that it might even brush against your shirt. If you do this it will cure a lot of problems immediately! Just remember to release the hands at impact.
Practice these moves at the range until you can consistently hook the ball. All of these adjustments are based of course on how you set up now, how you grip now etc. I can't see you, but it almost doesn't matter. Unless you are already gripping it like a sledgehammer their should be room to rotate your hands a bit more to the right. Once you've hooked a few you can work on fine tuning it by possibly not closing your stance as much, or bringing your grip back a little more to the left.
Whenever you go to the range be sure to take some time to practice hitting hooks, draws, and fades. It will take some time but eventually you will get the feel for these shots and will be able to correct and adjust for whatever "bug" creeps into your swing on the course. Nothing is more frustating than not knowing what is causing a big slice, and aiming further left only makes it worse.
You'll be amazed at how quickly your scores will drop when you practice shot making and not just beating balls hoping the stars will allign and one will go straight. Practice doesn't make perfect, it makes permanent. Practice the right things and you'll improve. Practice the same wrong swing over and over and you'll always SUCKATGOLF!
