Instruction
Golf 101: 3 fundamentals to straighter shots
Editor’s Note: This article was written by Kyla Carlson (Alaska), Hayley Mortensen (Oregon), Garret Howell (Arizona) and Seth Abrahamson (Guam), four students in New Mexico State University’s PGA Golf Management Program.
It is our belief that the majority of golfers are looking to achieve a straighter ball flight at a more normal trajectory. To accomplish this, we put together three fundamentals to help golfers improve. They are:
- Contact the Ball with the Center of the Club Face
- Contact the Ball when the Club Face is Square to the Target Line
- Swing the Club along the Target Line
Below, we take a step-by-step approach to helping golfers achieve these fundamentals so they can hit straighter shots.
Fundamental #1: Contact the Ball with the Center of the Club Face
In the photo above, Hayley demonstrates the circular nature of the swing as she maintains her balance.
Setup: A balanced setup is one where your weight is evenly distributed between your feet (50 percent on your right foot, and 50 percent on your left foot) and evenly distributed from heel to toe. The reason for the balanced setup is that it creates a radius between you and the ball. By maintaining your balance, you maintain the radius of the swing. Therefore, the center of the club face will return to the ball.
Swing: It is important to remain balanced throughout the swing. Be sure not to slide the weight of your body from left to right, as we want a balanced, circular rotation, not a swaying motion.
Fundamental #2: Contact the Ball when the Club Face is Square to the Target
In the photo above, Garret demonstrates holding the club with the grooves vertical. In addition, he demonstrates holding the club face “open” and “closed.” respectively.
Setup: To confirm that you’re holding the club with a square club face, stand up and hold the club out in front of you so that the shaft is parallel to the ground. From this position, the grooves of the club should be vertical.
A neutral grip gives the player the best chance to return to the point of impact with a square club face. A neutral grip is one where your palms are facing each other. In addition, the palm of the right-handed golfer will face the target. The club should be positioned behind the ball so that the club face is square to the target. Then, set your body so that you’re square with the grooves of the club face and so your club is in the center of your stance.
Grip Check: With your normal grip, stand upright with the club out in front of you and allow a friend to hold the club head with his or her index and middle fingers. Once he or she has a hold on the club head, relax your joints and lean back. This will mimic the centrifugal pull that is created by the swing. Depending on the position of your hands, the club head may twist one way or the other. If it does, adjust your hands (clockwise or counter-clockwise) until the club doesn’t twist. A neutral grip will not twist.
In the photo above, Henry does the grip check to confirm that Garret is holding the club with a neutral grip.
In the photos above, Garret and Henry also demonstrate the effects of holding the club with a “strong” and “weak” grip, respectively.
Swing: The club face should maintain its relationship to the player as it swings. The player should make no attempt to twist the club face. Holding the club face with a neutral grip will allow centrifugal force to square the club face at impact (as long as the player started the swing with the club in the middle of his stance and maintained balance throughout the swing).
Fundamental #3: Swing the Club Along the Target Line
In the photo above, Kyla demonstrates swinging the club along the target line. Notice how the shaft of the golf club tracks the target line as it swings around her body.
Setup: Set the club face so that it is perpendicular to the target line (Orange Line). The shaft of the golf club should also be perpendicular to the target line. Then set the feet and shoulders so they are parallel to the target line.
Swing: The shaft of the club should track the target line and point directly at the target just prior to 9 o’clock in the forward swing. Thinking of the shaft as a fire hose or telescope can be a helpful visualization for a player to understand this concept. A drill that may be helpful is to swing a short pool noodle along the target line, stopping before 9 o’clock to look through the hole and confirm that its pointing at the target.
By understanding and practicing these fundamentals, you will experience straighter shots and have more fun playing this wonderful game.
There may be no more painful affliction in golf than the “yips” – those uncontrollable and maddening little nervous twitches that prevent you from making a decent stroke on short putts. If you’ve never had them, consider yourself very fortunate (or possibly just very young). But I can assure you that when your most treacherous and feared golf shot is not the 195 yard approach over water with a quartering headwind…not the extra tight fairway with water left and sand right…not the soft bunker shot to a downhill pin with water on the other side…No, when your most feared shot is the remaining 2- 4-foot putt after hitting a great approach, recovery or lag putt, it makes the game almost painful.
And I’ve been fighting the yips (again) for a while now. It’s a recurring nightmare that has haunted me most of my adult life. I even had the yips when I was in my 20s, but I’ve beat them into submission off and on most of my adult life. But just recently, that nasty virus came to life once again. My lag putting has been very good, but when I get over one of those “you should make this” length putts, the entire nervous system seems to go haywire. I make great practice strokes, and then the most pitiful short-stroke or jab at the ball you can imagine. Sheesh.
But I’m a traditionalist, and do not look toward the long putter, belly putter, cross-hand, claw or other variation as the solution. My approach is to beat those damn yips into submission some other way. Here’s what I’m doing that is working pretty well, and I offer it to all of you who might have a similar affliction on the greens.
When you are over a short putt, forget the practice strokes…you want your natural eye-hand coordination to be unhindered by mechanics. Address your putt and take a good look at the hole, and back to the putter to ensure good alignment. Lighten your right hand grip on the putter and make sure that only the fingertips are in contact with the grip, to prevent you from getting to tight.
Then, take a long, long look at the hole to fill your entire mind and senses with the target. When you bring your head/eyes back to the ball, try to make a smooth, immediate move right into your backstroke — not even a second pause — and then let your hands and putter track right back together right back to where you were looking — the HOLE! Seeing the putter make contact with the ball, preferably even the forward edge of the ball – the side near the hole.
For me, this is working, but I am asking all of you to chime in with your own “home remedies” for the most aggravating and senseless of all golf maladies. It never hurts to have more to fall back on!
Over the last couple of decades, golf has become much more science-based. We measure swing speed, smash factor, angle of attack, strokes gained, and many other metrics that can really help golfers improve. But I often wonder if the advancement of golf’s “hard” sciences comes at the expense of the “soft” sciences.
Take, for example, golf instruction. Good golf instruction requires understanding swing mechanics and ball flight. But let’s take that as a given for PGA instructors. The other factors that make an instructor effective can be evaluated by social science, rather than launch monitors.
If you are a recreational golfer looking for a golf instructor, here are my top three points to consider.
1. Cultural mindset
What is “cultural mindset? To social scientists, it means whether a culture of genius or a culture of learning exists. In a golf instruction context, that may mean whether the teacher communicates a message that golf ability is something innate (you either have it or you don’t), or whether golf ability is something that can be learned. You want the latter!
It may sound obvious to suggest that you find a golf instructor who thinks you can improve, but my research suggests that it isn’t a given. In a large sample study of golf instructors, I found that when it came to recreational golfers, there was a wide range of belief systems. Some instructors strongly believed recreational golfers could improve through lessons. while others strongly believed they could not. And those beliefs manifested in the instructor’s feedback given to a student and the culture created for players.
2. Coping and self-modeling can beat role-modeling
Swing analysis technology is often preloaded with swings of PGA and LPGA Tour players. The swings of elite players are intended to be used for comparative purposes with golfers taking lessons. What social science tells us is that for novice and non-expert golfers, comparing swings to tour professionals can have the opposite effect of that intended. If you fit into the novice or non-expert category of golfer, you will learn more and be more motivated to change if you see yourself making a ‘better’ swing (self-modeling) or seeing your swing compared to a similar other (a coping model). Stay away from instructors who want to compare your swing with that of a tour player.
3. Learning theory basics
It is not a sexy selling point, but learning is a process, and that process is incremental – particularly for recreational adult players. Social science helps us understand this element of golf instruction. A good instructor will take learning slowly. He or she will give you just about enough information that challenges you, but is still manageable. The artful instructor will take time to decide what that one or two learning points are before jumping in to make full-scale swing changes. If the instructor moves too fast, you will probably leave the lesson with an arm’s length of swing thoughts and not really know which to focus on.
As an instructor, I develop a priority list of changes I want to make in a player’s technique. We then patiently and gradually work through that list. Beware of instructors who give you more than you can chew.
So if you are in the market for golf instruction, I encourage you to look beyond the X’s and O’s to find the right match!
Most pros take months, even years, to win their first tournament. Lottie Woad needed exactly four days.
The 21-year-old from Surrey shot 21-under 267 at Dundonald Links to win the ISPS Handa Women’s Scottish Open by three shots — in her very first event as a professional. She’s only the third player in LPGA history to accomplish this feat, joining Rose Zhang (2023) and Beverly Hanson (1951).
But here’s what caught my attention as a coach: Woad didn’t win through miraculous putting or bombing 300-yard drives. She won through relentless precision and unshakeable composure. After watching her performance unfold, I’m convinced every golfer — from weekend warriors to scratch players — can steal pages from her playbook.
Precision Beats Power (And It’s Not Even Close)
Forget the driving contests. Woad proved that finding greens matters more than finding distance.
What Woad did:
• Hit it straight, hit it solid, give yourself chances
• Aimed for the fat parts of greens instead of chasing pins
• Let her putting do the talking after hitting safe targets
• As she said, “Everyone was chasing me today, and managed to maintain the lead and played really nicely down the stretch and hit a lot of good shots”
Why most golfers mess this up:
• They see a pin tucked behind a bunker and grab one more club to “go right at it”
• Distance becomes more important than accuracy
• They try to be heroic instead of smart
ACTION ITEM: For your next 10 rounds, aim for the center of every green regardless of pin position. Track your greens in regulation and watch your scores drop before your swing changes.
The Putter That Stayed Cool Under Fire
Woad started the final round two shots clear and immediately applied pressure with birdies at the 2nd and 3rd holes. When South Korea’s Hyo Joo Kim mounted a charge and reached 20-under with a birdie at the 14th, Woad didn’t panic.
How she responded to pressure:
• Fired back with consecutive birdies at the 13th and 14th
• Watched Kim stumble with back-to-back bogeys
• Capped it with her fifth birdie of the day at the par-5 18th
• Stayed patient when others pressed, pressed when others cracked
What amateurs do wrong:
• Get conservative when they should be aggressive
• Try to force magic when steady play would win
• Panic when someone else makes a move
ACTION ITEM: Practice your 3-6 foot putts for 15 minutes after every range session. Woad’s putting wasn’t spectacular—it was reliable. Make the putts you should make.
Course Management 101: Play Your Game, Not the Course’s Game
Woad admitted she couldn’t see many scoreboards during the final round, but it didn’t matter. She stuck to her game plan regardless of what others were doing.
Her mental approach:
• Focused on her process, not the competition
• Drew on past pressure situations (Augusta National Women’s Amateur win)
• As she said, “That was the biggest tournament I played in at the time and was kind of my big win. So definitely felt the pressure of it more there, and I felt like all those experiences helped me with this”
Her physical execution:
• 270-yard drives (nothing flashy)
• Methodical iron play
• Steady putting
• Everything effective, nothing spectacular
ACTION ITEM: Create a yardage book for your home course. Know your distances to every pin, every hazard, every landing area. Stick to your plan no matter what your playing partners are doing.
Mental Toughness Isn’t Born, It’s Built
The most impressive part of Woad’s win? She genuinely didn’t expect it: “I definitely wasn’t expecting to win my first event as a pro, but I knew I was playing well, and I was hoping to contend.”
Her winning mindset:
• Didn’t put winning pressure on herself
• Focused on playing well and contending
• Made winning a byproduct of a good process
• Built confidence through recent experiences:
- Won the Women’s Irish Open as an amateur
- Missed a playoff by one shot at the Evian Championship
- Each experience prepared her for the next
What this means for you:
• Stop trying to shoot career rounds every time you tee up
• Focus on executing your pre-shot routine
• Commit to every shot
• Stay present in the moment
ACTION ITEM: Before each round, set process goals instead of score goals. Example: “I will take three practice swings before every shot” or “I will pick a specific target for every shot.” Let your score be the result, not the focus.
The Real Lesson
Woad collected $300,000 for her first professional victory, but the real prize was proving that fundamentals still work at golf’s highest level. She didn’t reinvent the game — she simply executed the basics better than everyone else that week.
The fundamentals that won:
• Hit more fairways
• Find more greens
• Make the putts you should make
• Stay patient under pressure
That’s something every golfer can do, regardless of handicap. Lottie Woad just showed us it’s still the winning formula.
FINAL ACTION ITEM: Pick one of the four action items above and commit to it for the next month. Master one fundamental before moving to the next. That’s how champions are built.
PGA Professional Brendon Elliott is an award-winning coach and golf writer. You can check out his writing work and learn more about him by visiting BEAGOLFER.golf and OneMoreRollGolf.com. Also, check out “The Starter” on RG.org each Monday.
Editor’s note: Brendon shares his nearly 30 years of experience in the game with GolfWRX readers through his ongoing tip series. He looks forward to providing valuable insights and advice to help golfers improve their game. Stay tuned for more Tips!
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Henry Stetina
Apr 27, 2018 at 11:57 pm
Incorrect? Please explain.
One Day At A Time
Apr 27, 2018 at 6:57 pm
For everyone reading this- As a 35 year old non-university student going through the PGA PGM program, I’d like to contribute the following- the PGM program is so much more than meets the eye.
If I had known about the PGA PGM program when I was 18, I would have sought out an accredited University.
Point being, there’s more to this post than the instruction.
george
Apr 27, 2018 at 8:11 pm
Golf as a past time and business is under stress. More than a million leave the game every year.
Enjoyment of the game depends upon how golfers improve and play better.
This article simply demonstrates how out of date, backward the current state of PGA golf instruction.
Its as if defence of the pga organization takes precedent over success of the game and business of golf. Cest dommage
JohnnyNight
Apr 26, 2018 at 7:37 am
Great info..!!
Thanks All..
Straight forward sound advice we all need to go back to when things get a little COO COO with the swing.!!
Andrew Cooper
Apr 26, 2018 at 4:09 am
Good work guys. Clear and easy to follow advice that will be helpful to any learner golfer.
Wiger Toods
Apr 26, 2018 at 3:26 am
This is where a little of something is more dangerous than the whole enchilada.
I’m not in the mood to pick on kids – the fundamentals are here, but it’s the description that’s difficult. It defies easy explanation in words, and even pictures. But I’ll add some concerns out of respect to those who dared to do…
First, Fundamental 1 is misleading to the amateur player. The way it is described suggests that the club is returned back to the way it started. This includes no weight shift, a constant 50/50 feel, and no shaft lean; three very necessary concepts.
Fundamental 2 is questionable; many players play with a strong grip, but I understand why you start neutral here. The concern I have is that the photo showing a neutral grip looks fundamentally the same as the grip on the right. I’m not sure it’s intended, but the neutral, middle shot looks weak, and does not close the thumb-index gap.
Fundamental 3 is the classic hula-hoop demo. The way it is written, it’s hard to imagine what the “line” is with the circular depiction. That said, this gets back to Fundamental 1; it’s not an exact return, so yes, it should be “on plane”, but it’s better to describe it with the different impact position the body takes and that while that changes and that it’s impact that matters. ($1 to Clampett)
Finally, there’s no discussion of shallowing. This will lead to the left arm being returned ahead of the body and out of sync with the weight shift that wasn’t described. The shallowing and hip turn actually give you a better chance of making solid contact, and that’s how clubs are designed. Without explicit instruction, novice golfers always believe that a club is returned to the setup position. I’ve never met anyone new to the game who understands, without explanation, how shaft lean is intended.
Again, with all due respect, you’ve put it out there. Glad to see where this takes you! Just be aware that if you’re going to give novice instruction, please make sure that you don’t leave the next instructor with the unfortunate task of having to remove bad habits to start with, even if it’s well-intended.
Best of luck.
Gary Sowinski
Apr 25, 2018 at 4:09 pm
Most of what you stated is flawed. The pulling of the club for neutral grip. The hands will fight even is one is strong. Try the same with each hand. Too much negative in the teaching. Too many things that are not correct. You do not swing down the target line. If thee is a radius like you mentioned then the club swings in a circle. Down the line is a straight line. Last time I look d there are no straight lines in a circle. These are just a few from a quick glance.
Kyla Carlson
Apr 25, 2018 at 4:35 pm
Hello Gary,
The pulling of the club is a drill to see if your grip is neutral or not, and shows where the force directs your clubhead during a golf shot. This drill works when you let your arms and hands relax, and is not intended to be “fought” by the muscles in your arms/wrists. If you take the grips stated, and perform this drill, the force pulled back upon the club will attempt to bring your hands back to a more neutral grip, as this is the point that is physically less resistant to this pulling force.
As for your second statement regarding swinging down the target line, in the given picture with the orange line, when you aim at a target, lets say a flag stick, this line from behind the ball to the target is your target line. The swing is circular, but as we swing down, from behind the point of impact and towards the target, you follow this “line”. It is not perfectly straight as the club is traveling around us, but is a good fundamental to follow as it directs the club and ball in the direction you swing towards. You can think of it as having a circle, and the point of impact being at the bottom of this circle as a singular point. Although slanted, because of the way we stand, the circle will track from this point, and travel along the target line before and after impact. If we don’t picture swinging towards the target, where would we swing to? It is the same concept as if you are throwing a ball to someone underhand. If you toss it towards them, it will go that direction, if you toss it left of them, it will go left!
Hope this cleared a few things up for you. Thanks for the Feedback!
Henry Stetina
Apr 25, 2018 at 4:39 pm
Gary, I am sorry to hear that this article doesn’t match your understanding of the golf swing. This article was a project for a group of college students considering careers as golf instructors. I would expect more leniency from a veteran instructor like yourself.
As for the content, what exactly is wrong with it? You mention the concept of swinging ‘down’ the target line yet I don’t see that written anywhere in the article. Could you please direct me to the paragraph that mentions swinging ‘down’?
Garret Howell
Apr 25, 2018 at 9:10 pm
With all do respect sir, every player should swing down the target line. Perhaps we did not explain this in depth enough for an experienced teacher like yourself but we wanted to keep things simple. When we say swing down the target line, we mean that at the moment of impact the club is traveling directly at the target. In other words, the tangent line of the circle created by the swing is pointed at the target at impact. If one swings in a perfect circle, every tangent line created by that circle will point directly at or directly away from the target line with the exception of the very top of the circle when the tangent line will be perpendicular to the target line. In relation to the ground, the swing arc is tilted. This gives us the illusion that when we swing, we are swinging inside the target line, back to the ball, and again inside the target line. However, we are always swinging down the target line, the circle of the swing is simply not vertical.
george
Apr 27, 2018 at 11:17 am
The golf club is a lever. In the hands of a golfer, it is an extension of the lever system of our arms.
neither is swung in a circle. A hammer thrower swings in a circle.
The golf swing, is a lever action as in an axe swing.
if we use our hands (forearm muscles) to hit the ball, we have a very small, tangent where impact with the ball is made.
When we use our arms and golf club as levers
we can extend the area of impact (AOI) for straighter more consistent shot making, just as AOI and bat mass, made Babe Ruth one of the greatest hitters in baseball.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1bUvU4gH1GI&index=2&list=PLBanE6ZrAEbO80oMc0SMBd3HLcAES6Nq1
Dan Jones, PGA
Apr 28, 2018 at 4:27 am
Garrett – As I read the article I have to agree with Gary. Assuming that the article is printed as you wrote it, there is a fundamental flaw in stating that the golf swing is circular, yet you tell everyone to swing down the line. I submit to you and your colleagues to use the wonderful tools available to you via the university and research on a graduate level the biomechanics of the golf swing. You will find that the golf swing is not circular, but rather a motion that is dynamic, with a variety of levers, pulleys, accelerations and brakes, in a somewhat circular motion. Plus I find it interesting that you have are teaching against any slide, which interestingly enough could be the an aspect that supplies extra energy, but also allows the player to hit down the line.
Consider this, by design some people don’t have the ability to slide, while others can do so with an extreme amount of motion. Are you proposing that the same golf swing is best for both of them? A slider needs to slide for their body to give it the best feedback. Not utilizing their bodies natural motion takes away stopping and stress points that give the brain kinesthetic feedback needed for repeatability. Just a little food for thought. I suggest you and your colleagues look away from the cookie cutter golf swing and learn more about the body via classes at the University, then you will be able match your training to your students, rather than matching your students to your training.
Chris
Apr 25, 2018 at 2:13 pm
This is awesome! What an easy concept and a great way to teach the golf swing in the simplest ways. As an alumni of the NMSU PGM program it’s great to see these kids learn the correct way!
Matt
Apr 25, 2018 at 12:38 pm
Wow. Hit the ball in the middle of the club, when the club face is pointing at your target and while swinging the club down your target line. If only I knew this before! Looking forward to their next article titled “One Tip To Make More Putts: Hit the ball in the hole.”
4Right
Apr 25, 2018 at 11:29 am
WOW, really!!! They went to school for this…
juststeve
Apr 25, 2018 at 10:20 am
Their advice, every bit of it, including the grip test, was taken directly from Manuel de la Torre. While I applaud any spreading of Manny’s teaching, the least they could have done is give credit to the source.
Henry Stetina
Apr 25, 2018 at 12:38 pm
Yes, much of this information is from what has been learned from Manuel de la Torre, and Ernest Jones. It is also from the PGA Curriculum to which these students are studying.
juststeve
Apr 25, 2018 at 1:20 pm
When I was in school we were not allowed to pass off the ideas of others as though they were our own. Attribution was required. Not so at New Mexico State?
ROY
Apr 25, 2018 at 12:49 pm
Actually, these principles come from physics – not sure they are “fundamentals” so much as lows of motion….
NMSU PGA
Apr 25, 2018 at 1:12 pm
Roy, you are correct. These are laws of physics. They are universal. We also provided 1-3 principles that make them easier to achieve.
george
Apr 25, 2018 at 7:55 am
To believe this instruction, shoulders, hips, knees would all be square to the target line at impact. They are NOT.
No one could break 120 with all those square to the targetline at impact; so why would it be a fundamental to have them square at address?
New Mexico State University PGA Golf Management
Apr 25, 2018 at 1:35 pm
Having a good setup doesn’t guarantee making good impact, it just makes it easier to achieve.
george
Apr 26, 2018 at 11:18 am
Not a single major winner on the pga is or has been square at address. At impact knees, hips and shoulders are open to the target line.
So how is it easier to achieve this position at impact with square feet(toes no less?), knees, hips and shoulders at address? it is bogus teaching , always has been.
Andrew Cooper
Apr 26, 2018 at 2:07 pm
Where does it say they should be square to the target line at impact?
george
Apr 26, 2018 at 4:26 pm
Im saying that nothing is square at impact, so for that reason, alone (there are others) it is bogus to say that body parts should be square to target line at address.
These guys would have changed Ben Hogan, Sam Snead and George Knudson(all had trail foot back from target line) to improve their setup?
Humans want to make everything symmetrical. That is the only reason why golf instruction keeps stating, ” in a good setup”, the feet, knees, hips and shoulders are square to the targetline.
OTT, EE and many other golf swing flaws can be attributed to square at address.
The pga has been propagatng the same BS forever.
Dan Jones, PGA
Apr 28, 2018 at 3:50 am
George – As a PGA Professional, I will actually support some of what you are saying. Honestly most PGA Professionals, as well as yourself, don’t fully understand why we need to achieve a good setup. You are correct in saying that we are not in that position at impact, and I totally agree that we are not trying to achieve these positions for the sake of accuracy or trying to return to these positions as so many of my peers would have people believe. But you are 100 percent wrong if you believe we shouldn’t be in a good setup position. The answer has much more to do with biomechanics during the entire swing, rather than accuracy. Ask yourself why basketball players, shortstops, soccer goalies, and even golfers, utilize the position we put people in during setup. It is so our bodies can make a fast ballistic movement in both directions and stay balanced. There is not a more efficient position to do this in than knees bent, hip bent forward, and feet shoulder width apart. Personally I pivot my lead foot towards the target to facilitate core rotation and braking while maintaining balance, and do so more as I get older and also when I have had injuries. I am fortunate in that I have a bachelor degree in kinesiology and a masters in exercise science, and although I specialized in sports psychology, I had to take many classes in exercise science while getting my masters degree. The PGA has in the last 10 years made huge strides in incorporating more modern research into the teaching of their members, you apparently don’t know what is being taught currently. I suggest you research the new programs and certification program before you make broad generalizations about the members and what they teach.
george
Apr 26, 2018 at 4:53 pm
What possible benefit comes from lining up our toes square to the targetline(parallel to target line)?
Hayley Mortensen
Apr 26, 2018 at 9:33 pm
At impact the knees, hips and shoulders are opening to the target line because of the motion the body and force the club is creating by the swinging motion. The finish of the swing, a players belt buckle should be pointed at the target and shoulders and hips would be in relation to that. By placing the feet parallel to the target line, it allows a golfer easier alignment and less manipulation of the club in order to swing to the target.
It may not look like the feet are aligned to the target on the PGA Tour because of the perception and illusion created by the target line and the parallel line the feet are on. For example in this picture of a PGA professional on tour, the club face is pointed towards the target and the feet are parallel to the target line. Yet, if we extend those lines like in the picture the clubface target line points to the target and the feet look like they are pointing to the left side of the green, causing an illusion that the feet are open. Yet, in reality the two lines are the same distance apart from the player standpoint to the target. It’s an illusionary factor that makes is look like the feet are open at set up.
Regarding Ben Hogan, Sam Snead and George Knudson their set up worked best for their swing and body type and was their preference. In How to Play Golf by Sam Snead (1946 1st Edition), in which I own, Mr. Snead talks about the importance of a proper stance and the different uses of a square, open and closed stance. He refers to the square stance as the “most popular” (119) and refers to the open and closed stance when a player is over swinging or cannot pivot well. An open and closed stance falls under the principles and preferences of players.
If someone has a lack of motion or injury then having a flared foot or more open/closed stance could help with the compensation and lack of motion. This article is supposed to be one, a learning experience and two, a basic analysis of a simple golf swing, whom anyone can do. Since golf is such a special sport there will always be principle changes based upon the person’s ability and motion, but all rely on the same laws of golf and physics.