Instruction
How to hit down on the golf ball
I have a lot of students who struggle to hit down on the golf ball, which often results from a basic misunderstanding of what it actually means to hit down. Hitting “down” is not something that most golfers can simply choose to do or not do — it requires a downward angle of attack (AoA), and golfers need to understand exactly what that means before they can execute.
Let’s start with the concept of Vertical Swing Plane (VSP). Doppler Radar Launch Monitors — I use FlightScope — measure the movement of the sweet spot of the club head relative to the ground, or the vertical movement of the sweet spot. If that sounds complicated, think of it this way: If the club was dragged along the ground through impact, it’s VSP would be 0 degrees. If it was swung from directly overhead, it’s VSP would be 90 degrees.
Now let’s discuss AoA. Somewhere on a club’s swing arc we strike the golf ball, and where we strike the golf ball on that arc is called AoA.
If the golf ball is struck before the club head gets to its lowest point, we are hitting down on the ball, which means that we have a downward AoA — Trackman and Flightscope indicate this as a “minus (-)” or negative number. If the ball is struck after the club reaches its low point, we are hitting up on the ball, which means we have an upward AoA, “plus (+)” or positive number. To hit any shot on the ground, we have to strike the ball before the low point, which means we have to have a downward AOA.
How do we hit the ball earlier in the arc, or before our swing plane’s low point? An obvious fix would be to move ball position back in our stance to hit downward and earlier in our arc, or to move the ball forward in our stance to hit upward or later in our arc. But that’s not it at all. I can have a back ball position and still have an upward AoA and a front ball position and still have a downward AoA.
So what do should you do?
What’s important to understand is this — to create downward AoA, your hands must stay in front of the club head and your weight center must be over the ball or slightly ahead of it. If you’re setting up with a wide stance and your spine is tilted “back,” or angled away from the target, you will have difficulty hitting down on the ball. So narrow your stance, keep your hands ahead of the club head and try to feel like your sternum is over the ball if you want to hit down on it.
When we look at the radar results, touring professionals have an average AoA of about -4 degrees with a 6-iron and I think that’s a good number for most to strive for when they’re hitting mid irons from the turf.
Above: A iron shot struck with a downward angle of attack (AoA). Notice that the club path is leftward. More on that below.
Hitting a driver is different. Touring professionals have an average AoA of -1 degree with their driver, while most amateurs should strive for a positive value, or upward A0A for their driver. The reason for the difference is speed. The best players in the world average around 115 mph club head speed with their drivers. With that much speed, they are looking for a launch angle of 11-to-12 degrees to optimize their distance. Amateurs at 90 mph need as much as a 15-to-16 degrees launch angle. It is simply not possible to get that much launch hitting down on the driver, so an upward swing is best for slower speeds. High speed players can get into trouble sweeping up that much, but when hitting irons, the goal should be similar to the top players.
Finally, a word about path. If hitting downward is the goal — and it should be for any shot off the ground — you will need to aim or swing a little left if you’re a right-handed golfer, or a little right if you’re a lefty.
Why? Because a downward hit on any inclined plane is an outward swing as well, which means that the sweet spot of the club is moving away from the body at impact. That’s why you see a lot of “laggers” with excessive forward shaft lean setup open to their targets. They are countering the outward movement of their path.
Tricky business this hitting down stuff, but once you feel it, you’re on your way to better golf. There is no need to fear hitting from tight lies if you can learn to move the swing bottom forward.
Drills to help you hit down on the ball
Downhill lie drill: Find a hill with a moderate-to-severe downhill slope. Hit balls off that lie — all day long. Typically, I use this drill with more skilled players, but it can help anyone who does it. If you reverse weight shift in the downswing or flip the club head past the hands into impact, you will hit the hill every time. Soon you’ll feel what leading with the hands feels like.
Aim Stick drill: Place an aim stick perpendicular to your target line and two inches behind the ball. Set your club head on the stick and hit balls without hitting the stick. This assures a definite downward movement of the club head into impact.
Fairway bunker drill: Go into a fairway bunker and draw a line in the sand. Make some practice swings taking sand on the front or target side of the ball. Sam Snead used to hit balls barefoot in fairway bunkers to feel balance and a downward strike. This is tough, but I guarantee this: If you can consistently strike the ball first and the sand after in a fairway bunker, you are well on your way to learning how to hit down on the golf ball.
For some of you this might be the first time you’ve ever taken turf in front of the ball — it’s a great feeling when you do!
As always, feel free to send a swing video to my Facebook page and I will do my best to give you my feedback.
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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Rick Wright
May 16, 2017 at 9:16 am
Very nice piece of instruction on a very difficult golf topic hard to grasp but needed in your game with mathematical certainty appaulds many… Rick
Josh
Dec 21, 2014 at 6:19 pm
Click Here!
COASTKEK
Nov 23, 2014 at 2:54 pm
Mr. Clark you said, “If hitting downward is the goal — and it should be for any shot off the ground — you will need to aim or swing a little left if you’re a right-handed golfer”. I see the flight scope readout in the article shows the shot was a fade. If I wanted to hit a draw wouldn’t I want to still hit down but aim right or have a rightwards path?
Dennis Clark
Nov 23, 2014 at 4:35 pm
Yes you would need a path inside where the club face is aimed at impact. Don’t confuse path with swing direction. Thx
Dennis Clark
Nov 24, 2014 at 1:44 pm
the only time to swing left with a downward hit is when you want to get a ZERO path; for a draw you dont want that. Get it?
James
Dec 15, 2014 at 8:02 pm
So if I am swinging down 6 and 2 left with a driver Im not hitting a draw?
Jason
Nov 22, 2014 at 9:24 am
Great article, thanks Dennis! I hit the ball hard but have been having difficulty getting the ball to stop up where I need it to which adds a lot of strokes to my game. I’ll work on these drills and hopefully stick more. (I still consider myself quite a novice at 15+ but a lot of those strokes are due to inconsistency which is the most frustrating part of this *blessed* game! Ha)
So refreshing to see a well written article by someone who takes the time to follow up on reader questions to the extent you have. Good on you, and count me in on your future articles!
Dennis Clark
Nov 22, 2014 at 10:58 am
Thx Jason glad you enjoyed it.
Bob Tosh
Nov 21, 2014 at 8:32 am
I have been what they call a sweeper my entire 30 years of playing golf (I’m 40 now) I’ve been as low as 4 and since kids, oldest being 10 right now, my handicap has hovered around the 8-9ish mark for the past 3 or 4 years. At the end of Aug this past summer, two moons aligned for me. I had just heard the Paulson brothers once again talk about the values of the Tour Striker training club on their Sirius show and a long time playing partner finally said “you just fall back on so many shots”. I knew nothing about the tour striker besides what little the Paulson guys say about it. Well I bought one and within 10 minutes my entire golf game was transformed. My 8.9 cap went to a 6 in a matter of 4 rounds. I actually hit it well on my first try. Then hit or miss on the next ten. I’ve given it to some friends who tried to hit it 30 times and can’t do it and some hit it perfect right out of the gate 10 out of 10 times. They don’t need the club, they don’t have the issue I have. I now know exactly what position I should be in and what it feels like to be in that position and my ball flights have gone from fairly OK to good most of the time to penetrating, straight and solid. Even my miss hits still go straight, just not as far as they should but still solid and straight. I can’t imagine any golf lesson could produce the results that club produces in minutes. You can’t explain it to a student. You can’t hold most amateurs arms and club and go through a swing and stop at the impact point and say “here is where you want to be” and expect that they will feel it or get it. I have plenty of teachers, pros, my dad trying to show me or explain where I should be but it’s all on paper basically. This club does it for you. Either you hit it properly or you get nothing. I just ran out of warm weather. Can’t wait for spring.
kw
Nov 21, 2014 at 9:52 am
This is wonderful article which really makes sense. Lee Trevino used to aim to the left to counteract his amazing lag and was in top .001 % of iron players to ever live. I will try the downhill lie sounds like a real training aid versus the bs many swing aids are claiming create lag.
Dennis Clark
Nov 22, 2014 at 11:01 am
Its a good tool. Remember you can be a sweeper and play well. Tom Watson comes to mind…but “sweeping” in their case is less down than other elite level strikers, but DOWN nonetheless. Thx for reading
Steve
Nov 20, 2014 at 3:00 pm
With a downward strike should I feel like I’m covering the ball with my chest? When I do it feels like I am over the top.
Dennis Clark
Nov 20, 2014 at 3:48 pm
Generally yes but there is some right side bend. Over the top you’d need FlightScope or Trackman to tell true path. Some players who go too far under need to feel over it
CJ Bell
Nov 20, 2014 at 11:00 am
Dennis a little confused with your suggestion to set up open to the target for excessive laggers – why not fix the problem of excessive lag? If that type of lag (the ridiculous drill seen in thousands of instructional videos, with shaft parallel to ground, hands pushed wayyy forward) is actually held onto thru impact, that ball has nowhere to go but miles right, unless your timing/ability to flip the face thru is impeccable. Joe Mayo, Mark Crossfield, Steve Buzza, several teachers showing that the flip/wrist extension/whatever you call it is what’s really necessary near impact. Excessive lag isn’t storing more energy, it just causes balls lost deep in the rightside woods.
Dennis Clark
Nov 20, 2014 at 12:20 pm
I totally agree. That’s why I’ve been teaching release for 30+ years long before it was in vogue to do so. Lag is bad for 90 % or more of all golfers. What I said was great players, whose swing nobody would change, who have lag built into their DNA aim left to compensation for the excess lag. Thx for interest.
Dennis Clark
Nov 19, 2014 at 7:21 pm
It should also be noted that at the bottom part of the arc we are discussing, the club head is VERY stable…there is nothing we can about it at this point. Any change of path or face needs to programmed much earlier in the swing.
Golfnut
Jan 2, 2015 at 10:56 pm
Dennis, I have played off +5 left handed and now play off +2 right handed after an industrial accident. I am a fan of your instruction generally, but we can all have differences of opinion on some technical matters. I think your post I am replying to is relevant to all aspects of the golf swing – what happens before, causes the next effect. Perhaps you need to drive home this principle a little stronger. With respect to release, I think there is too much analysis on what happens during this phase, rather than the timing of it and the trigger which makes it happen effectively. Over the top and stuck on the inside is essentially the same cause for players of different abilities. I would suggest that for both, the issue of triggering release at transition is what alters posture and spine angle, rather than not manipulating the club correctly through the release phase. Proper positions in release, I believe, is a result of a passive transition and the right timing of release, together with an appropriate release trigger.
Dennis Clark
Nov 19, 2014 at 7:18 pm
Keith, feel free to send private message to continue if you’d like. I’d be happy to offer whatever I know o the subject.
Jm
Nov 19, 2014 at 6:42 pm
Also keep in mind these systems dont actually “measure” face angle at impact. It only estimates it based on ball flight.
Its not all an exact science like everyone wants you to believe
Dennis Clark
Nov 19, 2014 at 7:06 pm
No exact science, but clearly light years ahead of the technology of by gone days
Jm
Nov 19, 2014 at 10:06 pm
It basically comes down to the same thing it always has. Watch the ballflight and that should tell you what you need to fix. The biggest problem is still getting students to actually improve.
Dennis Clark
Nov 22, 2014 at 11:41 am
Jm, In most cases that’s true. ballflight is a good indiscator of impact. I can, however, slice with a closed face and hook with an open one with either heel or toe contact. Just have to know face to path relationship and check for point of contact. Thx for interest.
Jm
Nov 19, 2014 at 10:29 pm
True the technology is better but does it actually make you a better teacher or your students better players?
Or does it help people improve faster? I always hear how great all of this technology is but i neve hear anyone give any statistics on how it actually effects teaching results.
DG Jei
Nov 19, 2014 at 6:08 pm
Wow. Problems are solved. I was always curious about why tour player’s average AoA for driver is minus one. Swing Speed matters!
Dennis Clark
Nov 19, 2014 at 7:08 pm
DG, you’re welcome; it would be difficult for the average golfers to get sufficient launch angle hitting down regardless of manufacturer loft.
KP
Nov 19, 2014 at 4:41 pm
this was a good article..of course it will be picked apart by everyone..
Dennis Clark
Nov 19, 2014 at 5:42 pm
🙂
Dan
Nov 19, 2014 at 9:24 pm
Haha. So true
Jose
Nov 19, 2014 at 12:39 pm
You should never think hit down on the ball. You would lose your objective which is the target.
You swing to the target and collect the ball in the downward portion of your swing. Thus the sequence ball, grass, ground happens instinctively, almost automatically.
Example: The feet together drill. Since you can not shift your weight, where your swing bottoms out is fixed. You can then tee the ball up center, off your left foot pinky toe, off your back foot big toe. Thus each teed ball position will teach you the feel of collecting the ball in a different part of the swing: The feet together drill teaches you:
• With the ball teed off the front pinky toe you will collect the ball on the upswing like a driver.
• With the ball teed center of your stance. you will have a ball, grass, and barely skim the ground feel.
• With the ball teed off the big toe back foot, it will feel like the centered ball position feet apart swing with an equivalent ball, grass, ground result.
Why don’t you simply pick the ball with the ball in the center? Lag, If you have been focusing on swinging to the target AND the body has gotten out of the way you will have a proper lag/shaft lean. That lag/shaft lean allows the bottom of the swing to happen just past you center of gravity. In a normal golf swing your weight shifts forward and so does the bottom of the swing.
The arc of the down swing of the arms and the downswing arc of the club head vary. The arc of the club head is shifted forward due to wrist cock and the resulting lag.
When you shift your weight forward the bottom of the arc of the downswing of the arms and hands follows your center of gravity. Again the bottom of the arc of the club head is slightly forward of that due to lag.
It is just basic physics.
Dennis Clark
Nov 19, 2014 at 12:56 pm
Is that what you teach your students?
Gary McCormick
Nov 19, 2014 at 12:08 pm
It would be nice to have an illustration that demonstrates this statement:
“…a downward hit on any inclined plane is an outward swing as well, which means that the sweet spot of the club is moving away from the body at impact…”
Does this assumes that contact with a negative angle of attack comes at a point before the club has reached the furthest point (in its swing circle) from the body, and is therefore still moving (slightly…) away from the golfer’s body?
Also, I wouldn’t say “…where we strike the golf ball on that arc is called AoA.”, more like “…where we strike the golf ball on that arc determines AoA.”
Dennis Clark
Nov 19, 2014 at 1:10 pm
If we had a perfect vertical circle, for example a hula hoop standing straight up, every point in the swing would be directed at or perfectly away from wherever the hula hoop is pointed. There would be NO left or right
movement of a club swung on that that 90 degree arc. Now if we tilt the dual hoop down to 45 degrees as we might in a driver swing, the downward part of the swing is no longer swinging exactly where the base of that hula hoop is pointed. It is swinging to the right of it until it hits low point and then begins to swing left of it as it begins to ascend. The sweet spot, when the face is square,will be at right angles to the plane, IOW coming coming OFF the plane and swinging OUT to the right (of the base plane line) as it descends.
Agreed om the phrase “determines”. Thx for interest. DC
Oliver Heuler
Nov 19, 2014 at 9:34 am
I think that everything you wrote is correct, but I am surprised that you didn’t include a warning for all slicers (which should be the majority of your readers) that it is not helpful to try to hit down on the ball as long as your ball curves to the right on all long shots. Or do you think otherwise?
Oliver from Germany
Dennis Clark
Nov 19, 2014 at 12:08 pm
On the ground vs off a tee. Read again where I mention “driver is different”. Up for T ball down for turf shots.
gary
Nov 19, 2014 at 8:58 am
So although the launch monitor reads it as a leftward path, its actually a rightward path because the golfer is lined up left? How confusing, therefore the launch monitor only reads in respect to the target line? Also doesn’t explain the 2.1L face angle which should of caused a draw shape?
Dennis Clark
Nov 19, 2014 at 12:10 pm
20 MPH left to right wind. Path is left not right. And path to face curvature is ONLY on balls hit in middle of face. Even a slight off center all bets are off
Dennis Clark
Nov 19, 2014 at 12:13 pm
Another thing to look at is HSP which is swing direction. Path is a 3-D value derived from seing direction and AoA. I think HSP here is 4.6 or so
Keith
Nov 18, 2014 at 3:43 pm
Any chance you can do a follow up on how wrist set affects AoA?
Meaning…if you set with radial deviation and release with ulnar deviation versus setting with Dorsifelxion and holding through impact…I would assume this would have a significant affect on AoA.
Which is correct…or easier to repeat? This is something that has always been a question of mine and it seems to have a different answer depending on who you ask.
Dennis Clark
Nov 18, 2014 at 6:08 pm
i think it’s confusing because there is some of all the motions, not simply one or the other. In swinging the golf club, there is radial, ulnar deviation, flexion, extension and pronation and supination. Clearly At impact the right wrist is extended or dorsi flexed and the left wrist is flat, having gone from radial deviation to a neutral position. So what I see happen is ulnar and radial D when supinated becomes a dorsiflexed position. Of the two you described I would think dorsi flexed and held on describes it better buts it’s too simplistic. thx
Keith
Nov 18, 2014 at 11:32 pm
Thank you very much for the reply.
That’s just it…it’s incredibly complex…but isn’t this ‘the move?’ if you understand and can apply how the wrists truly function wouldn’t that be the missing link for AoA?
Outside of changing your body angles (frowned upon) how else to you return the club back to the ball after you set your wrist? Shoulder turn, hip turn…all very easy moves to understand and apply. Your wrists…more specifically combination of wrist movements to correctly set and release would be most helpful.
Maybe I am not seeing the forest for the trees…but I feel like this is the part that instructors continue to gloss over given the complexity and say things like just release it…isn’t that going to be the most vital part of AoA?
Dennis Clark
Nov 19, 2014 at 7:09 am
Keith have you read my two articles on release in this site? If not do so and get back to me…
Jay
Nov 19, 2014 at 12:14 pm
I have a difficult time getting my left wrist flat at impact. I shoot in the upper 70’s to low 80’s, but tee shot accuracy is my huge downfall. What kind of drills can I do to learn/feel how to keep the left wrist flat? Thank you
Keith
Nov 19, 2014 at 12:48 pm
I have not, thank you for the direction!
Keith
Nov 19, 2014 at 3:07 pm
Alright…I read (3) different articles you pointed me to.
I guess why I am questioning in my own mind is lines like “The release is the unhinging of the wrists and the rotation of the forearms in the downswing. And a handful of drills to feel proper release…golfers including myself continue to leave storkes on the table because that still doesn’t answer what the release actually is.
I’d like to think I am a smart person (debatable)…but…if ‘feel’ isn’t working…why not throw a little science our way? Let’s get into the weeds of what is really happening when you ‘feel’ your wrists and forearms do something. I don’t want to trick my mind into making something work…I want to understand what my body needs to do and then make it do exactly that.
Anyway…you’ve given me too much of your time already and I appreciate your engagement on the topic. Thank you for that.
Dennis Clark
Nov 18, 2014 at 1:41 pm
Yes. Lateral slide of body can produce too much right side bend and result in the reverse C look which creates a very shallow attack angle.
Brandon
Nov 18, 2014 at 1:38 pm
Do you think the rotational movement of the body helps in any way with this?