Hi Tom and others,
I am swinging pretty good, hitting ball crisp a lot and looking now to take it up a notch and shape shots at times. I noticed that there is not really a vid on this... There was one or 2 that briefly touch on it, but beyond keeping shots low or higher, I am not really talking about ball flighting here.
More like, pin tucked in right hand corner and you want to fade or feather it into that spot. Or conversely you want to heavy draw it and have it run out as the pin is tucked back left and there is a bunker protecting a direct shot to it. Then of course, there was JT's hook draw shot at the Players Championship last week, which was a thing of beauty.
I used to either pick my hands up higher to fade it or bring them down lower to draw it, but then it was tough to be accurate with this approach. I stumbled across some Philly Mick where he said he would open the face a degree or 2 for a fade and use the same swing, it would take 3-5 yrds off the distance. The opposite was true for a draw. This info would come in handy for a between club shot, where you take the longer club, open the face a bit and just fade it to your target distance (oh, that sounds just so easy doesn't it?🤔)
So I would like to request some video addressing this more fine tuning part of the game. I am thinking the best way to shape is to take the same swing and weaken or strengthen a grip- adjusting your stance a little to allow for the shape. It would be very informative to know the distance added or subtracted to a shot like this.
Also, in regards to JT's low hook shot, if trying to mimic that on a severe dogleg, would that be only grip, or wouldn't the hands have to be taken down lower and the follow through a bit more out? He also had some mondo cut slices and I was wondering the same thing as some of his follow throughs looked "wonky"
Tom, you don't need to necessarily answer here, but I would really love some video on this action and especially to know if a slight cut is taking off 2 or 5 yards.
Also, bumping and running around the greens, my dad is a wizard at taking an p,8, or 6 iron and running the ball to the green with almost a putting stroke. always says 8 iron was 50/50 (would fly as much in the air as run out), P was 2/3- 1/3. Don't know if this is a real golf thing or just an "old man river" thing .
I know that is a lot of info, but c'mon, this is really all about me isn't it?
Thanks for the consideration.
-Be the ball
The draw the ball more, move the ball back in your stance more (this opens the face more suggesting a start direction to the right, and shifts the swing path more in/out causing a greater curve of right to left).
To fade the ball more, move the ball forward in your stance more (the face begins to close suggesting a start direction to the left, and the club path is oriented to swing out/in suggesting a fade back to your target)
Hand position remains the same - inside of the lead thigh.
It sounds so easy coach – and I hate using the word EASY in golf because golf is really SIMPLE, but not easy. I will answer this in sections:
1. It is normal to lose yardage hitting a cut – BUT a power fade (which is really a push-fade) can be a really long shot. For righties, a cut starts left of the target and fades right, to the target. This type of shot has less distance than a draw because you’re swinging across your body out/in swing path. An in/out swing path will compress the ball better, all things considered. The draw is always the longer shot and rolls out more when compared to a cut. A cut stops on a dime and is great for attacking flags.
2. Reviewing Mickelson’s advice, that is what he FEELS to produce his cut. Recall the ball flight laws – the FACE controls the start direction of the ball, the PATH controls the curvature. Based on Mickelsons advice, he is manipulating path by opening his stance (out/in path) and opening the face (ball starting left of the target) – this would create a shot that starts left and curves left. It is a weak push-cut – he loses 3-5 yards in the process. It’s not a true cut though because the ball should start RIGHT and fade to the LEFT. I am talking in left-handed terms for the Mickelson example.
3. To control ball flight, I suggest understanding THE GRID and how it affects your clubface and path. This is something I am working on – it is a powerful tool to change ball flight without changing your stance or swing. The only change is ball position. See the photo below for a taste of what the grid will bring to your game: