It’s crazy how many people spend years (decades in many instances) playing this game, and have absolutely no idea what actually makes the ball fly the way that it does.
Ask them to explain it as it relates to kicking a football or hitting a ping-pong ball and they’ll tell you straight away – “foot is turned like that when I kick the ball,” or “the bat must be angled like this when I hit the ball…”
Switch back into golf and we suddenly get a blank look and a shrug, or a shopping list of body positions with no mention of what has to happen between clubface and ball, just the assumption that if the head stays down or the arm stays straight etc. etc. then the ball flies as planned – there’s no connection to how that makes the club move correctly or where you are trying to get it at impact.
I spent more than 10 years being that guy, so, no judgements.
I realized that my old approach wasn’t working because my objectives were the wrong way round - the point of the golf swing is to deliver the clubface to the ball, in the appropriate position, to produce the desired ball flight. Therefore, the primary task is impact and ball flight, not trying to learn some generic movement (and assume that good shots will result).
Now, at this point you’re probably thinking “I’m not here for the fancy stuff, I just want to hit the ball straight…” Trust me when I tell you that that is the single most difficult thing to do in golf. Straight shots are the fancy stuff, and I’m not here for that either.
Here is the 3-step process I followed to learn how to make the ball curve (either way) deliberately. Let’s get to it:-
Level One - Get the ball to curve;
Level Two - Get the ball to start its journey on the correct side of the target and then curve as intended;
Level Three - Get the ball to start on the correct side, get it to curve the right way, and get it to finish in a suitable target area.
Sessions on Inrange and the Inrange app are perfect for this type of training.
Here are some ideas on how to train, to help you learn to shape shots on purpose :
The Game – Level One – Curve It:
- Play 10 shots, where you are simply trying to get the ball to curve either right-to-left or left-to-right.
- N.B. - It doesn’t matter how much or how little, it doesn’t even matter how far the ball goes or where it ends up, just curve it!
- To make the ball curve right-to-left you must have the clubface looking left of your swing direction at impact, and to curve it left-to-right the clubface must be looking right of your swing direction.
The Game – Level Two – Start Line + Curve:
- Play 10 shots, where you are trying to get the ball started to the side of the target and then curving back towards (or past) the target.
- You will need to pay attention to both the swing direction and the clubface aim here.
- For right-to-left shots you must, at impact, have the club travelling to the right of the target line and the clubface aiming slightly left.
- For left-to-right shots it is the opposite - you must have the club travelling left of target and the clubface looking slightly right.
Remember, it does not matter how far the ball goes or where it ends up – it just has to start on the correct side of your target and curve back.
The Game – Level Three – Start Line + Curve + Finish in the Target Area:
Here, you have the same 10 shot challenge as above, but with the added layer of having to manage the clubface in a very subtle way so that the ball curves and finishes up within an acceptable area or “zone” around your target.
N.B. - Bear in mind that Scratch golfers will miss a green from 150yds away an average of 40% of the time, and 20 h/c golfers will miss nearly 75% of the time so be realistic and make that target zone sufficiently big!
You will need a right or leftward swing direction and the clubface aiming very slightly to the target side of the path in this challenge. The bigger the gap between your swing direction and your clubface aim, the bigger the curve you will get so you have to be subtle with the clubface.
The Process, for all levels:
Use a 7i;
- Start in a neutral position, aiming straight, with the clubface square behind the ball;
- Remind yourself “what” the clubhead has to do through impact (you can make a few small practice motions above the ball so you can see and feel the correct motion in the club … prime yourself);
- Play the shot with a gentle swing (no more than 50% power to begin with);
- You score a point if you meet the challenge – do not get sidetracked by criteria that is not in the challenge;
- Ask yourself what you noticed about the way you moved when you moved the club correctly – what did it feel like / look like? Did the swing match the picture in your mind’s eye? Do you notice the same things happening, good or bad?
- Patience and Speed of Movement / Speed of Processing are super important here. Move at a speed that allows your thoughts and understanding to keep up with the motion (so you can be sure you’re doing what you think you’re doing);
- Make a note on your phone about the Challenge, your Score out of 10 and any Learnings.
Progression :
- Once you are averaging at least 6/10 with your 7i move to the next level;
- Once you have completed Levels 1 and 2 with your 7i start working on them again but with a selection of all the other clubs (you’re going to need to know how to use them when you play anyway).
- I suggested starting with swings at 50% speed so once you’re scoring at least 7/10 with any club try adding 10% more speed into the shot and see if you can still score at least 5/10;
- Go up in what feels like 10% increments, don’t try to jump from moving slowly all the way up to 100% in one step, you’ll crash and burn.
Conclusion
At its most basic, all you need to know is 2 things (we can get more detailed when we’re face to face in a lesson) :
1. The task is applying club to ball, in the appropriate position for the shot at hand. The swing is, and needs to be, adaptable and merely the conduit to achieving impact;
2. If your clubface is looking left of where you are swinging it is going to impart a spin on the ball that will make it curve to the left. If the clubface is looking to the right of where you are swinging, it is going to spin the ball in a way that will make it curve to the right;
Assumption to note: the above holds true if you are hitting the ball in, or close to, the sweetspot. If you are not striking it well then all bets are off, anything can happen.
I hope this article has inspired you to get out and try to develop some shot-shaping skills - if there are any terms / phrases in this article that you are not sure about you can visit the “Learning Hub” section of my website ( www.shaunfergusongolf.com ) where you will find a Glossary tab that takes you to an extensive list of golfing terms and definitions.
Enjoy your golfing,
