Questions For Any and All 'Shank Survivors'

**ohiolefty** · March 28, 2010

I have something to admit...3 weeks ago, I developed the shanks.

After 3 lessons, a lot of hours on the range, and a lot of stomach knots - even a few tears (long story) I've broken out of it with the help of an instructor and figured out what I had developed that caused the shanks to start.

Where I'm at right now :

I had to make a grip change that was long and somewhat laughably (once a pro actually taught me a proper grip) overdue.
I have a drill I can use when and if the shank starts to get out of that feeling and back where I should be.
I still can't go more than 80-85% with any of my irons, because I don't have things back where they need to be so that I can reliably go into a shot aggressively. So, I'm anywhere from 1-3 clubs shorter on the irons depending on the distance, lie, wind etc because they physics of everything has changed.
On the positive side my short game has picked up to where it should be because all the tension from the shanking and the 'shank fear' was creating some weird mishits on wedges which kill scores. Also, the grip change has altered my ballflight for the better and made it a little easier for me to work the ball reliably when I need to and/or feel capable of doing so.

So....

My questions for all of you shank surviors are:

What was your shank experience?
Is my experience typical?
And, most importantly, once you got a workable fix and went into the process of re-creating the feelings and muscle-memory needed to get your swing back to normal...how long was it before you were back to where you should be? Am I in for months and months of work to get the distance and trajectories back?

**Hoselrockets** · March 29, 2010

Oh yes...hence my name. I love to hit the hosel sometimes and boy does it stink. For me the shanks come around when I get tired and lazy. I start to pull the club in too early and spin out with my hips. I've been doing it for such a long time I know what to do when I hosel one. Don't worry your not the only one to go through this. Keep working at it...

**Dr. Slice** · March 29, 2010

im in high school and last year during our super meet i developed the shanks for the first time and it was every shot was shanked during the back nine. I ended up shooting about a 115 through 18 holes. When my avg score would have been about 80-85

since it was my first time i had no clue how to fix it at the time, later that week when i was golfing i started to use my wrists a lot more on my shots, like really exaggerating it and then after awhile i just went back to my normal swing and they were gone :)

**saevel25** · March 29, 2010

I found two occassions were i get a shank..

1) when my wrist break down at the top of my swing, it will feel like the palm of the right hand (for a right handed golfer) goes towards the underside of the right forearm. Hold your palm up and bend it towards your face, thats the feeling i get when i know i am going to shank it.

2) when i do not rotate my hips at all and go all arms with the swing. This causes an extreme open face, and and extreme outside in swing.

I about gave up the game for a while. I developed them while on the highschool golf team. I was on the 18th hole at a golf course and put 20 golf balls in the water. It was not good.. But i haven't gotten the shanks in about 4 years.

**dweso** · March 29, 2010

I've had it so bad, that on two seperate occasions in the last 5 years I was extremely close to quitting golf, and I am a player that can hit the 70s quite frequently if I'm on my game. When it comes, it is single handedly the most unstoppable and unforgiving experience you can face. Notice that I refer to it as "it", I never say the word anymore. The first step is to never let it come into your mind in the first place, cause once its there, it won't leave. Whenever i get it, its usually towards the end of the season thankfully, and sometimes I just call it quits for that year. However if this is not an option, I've found that focusing on the good things in your game helps. If you make a great putt, pat yourself on the back, you essentially just need to get your confidence back, which sometimes seems impossible. Remember, its usually about 75% mental.

**saevel25** · March 29, 2010

Well if hitting, "IT" means hitting the hosel of the club, then most likely the person is standing to close to the ball. Since the hosel is the closest part of the club to you, then you are standing to close. But this is further perpetuated by an outside in swing and an open club face, which now you are having the hozel even more in play since the club face is rotating away from the ball. If the club face is open then that means the hozel is infront of the toe end of the club and more likely to impace the ball first. This is also true with an outside in swing, which the inner side of the shaft is comming at the ball, hence the hozel end of the club. If you have an inside out golf swing then you are protecting the hozel with the club face, less likely to hit the hozel from this position.

So, really this supports when i get, "IT", that it happens when my hands break down at the top of my swing, completely chaning the club face angle, and now the hozel is more in play, and add into the fact if there is no hip turn, you are swinging with all arms. You now just added an outside in golf swing. Unless you are able to extremely rotate your hands through and make sure you are far enough away from the ball, then the likely hood of hitting the hozel is high.

So my guess for a cure is, check the distance between you and the ball. For the most part, take a good athletic stance and let your hands hang from your shoulders straight down, or have your hands under your chin. This is a good starting position for the golf swing.

Make sure you have hip rotation going backwards, that means your back is getting close to facing the target and your hips are pointing 45 degrees to the right (for right handers). This will be a full turn. Next, make sure you are not casting the club on an outside in swing path.

My fix for this, laser pointer, duct tape and a yard stick.
Put the yard stick on your target line, tape the laser pointer to the butt end of your club. Do the pump drill, google it and make sure that the laser is traveling from the right end to the golf ball as you slowly lower the club in your down swing. This will train your body to have a very on plane swing.

**iWALK18** · March 29, 2010

Put your change in your left pocket. Go on, do it. Now, tie your left shoe in a double knot. Right now, do it! Turn the hat backwards. Turn your hat around. Do it, ohio lefty! Take this tee and stick it behind your left ear...

**canes113** · March 30, 2010

Mine were due to rolling the forearms at takeaway.... didn't even notice that was the problem until I took a lesson. After a couple lessons and working on the takeaway every night, they haven't come back (knock on wood!!)

**ohiolefty** · March 30, 2010

Today, on the course, no shanks. I topped one ball, but pretty good ball striking otherwise. Trying to get back to full distances. Trying to pull the club I'd normally use...I have the distance back on 7iron and down...but the mid irons are still a long way off. Luckily, at my home course, I don't hit a lot of 4-6 irons. I had one 4 iron shot today that I hit a backed-off, cut 3 hybrid and actually came up short because I backed off a little too much.

**Deryck Griffith** · March 31, 2010

Today, on the course, no shanks. I topped one ball, but pretty good ball striking otherwise. Trying to get back to full distances. Trying to pull the club I'd normally use...I have the distance back on 7iron and down...but the mid irons are still a long way off. Luckily, at my home course, I don't hit a lot of 4-6 irons. I had one 4 iron shot today that I hit a backed-off, cut 3 hybrid and actually came up short because I backed off a little too much.

That is great news. I wouldn't worry about your distances so much. Just use a stronger lofted club when necessary during this time and eventually, your distances will come back. If you try to force yourself in getting distances back right away, you may fall out of your current corrected mechanics and start shanking again. Just deal with the distances, put down some good scores and focus on your confidence! Good luck!

**IceDave** · April 1, 2010

I began shanking when i started to laterally move my upper body forward in the second part of the swing. I didn't notice it until my instructor showed me on the video. After that fix I still had the shanks scare and occasional shanks had me move my stance further away from the ball. And bing, I had more shanks. I was so far away from the ball that when I had swung at the ball and through I was standing on my toes.

I am working on my stance at the moment and finding some balance. Feels like now I have the ball between my feet when I tee it up :)

But basically I was always moving away from the solution, that is moving farther away from the ball in the stance, hence creating more of a shanks-like motion with my swing.

**lhshurdl3r** · April 1, 2010

Awful shank experience last fall... First two holes hit my best 2 drives and best 2 approaches ever. Started 2-under thru 2. Proceeded to slice off the tee and shank 90% of my following iron shots. Never found a quick fix during the round, it was terrible. I've done a lot of tweaking thru the past couple of months and it seems to be working a bit better. I just need to get on the first tee after I'm warmed up and not just getting out of the car lol

**ohiolefty** · April 2, 2010

Shanked once today off a weird, side-hill lie. Hit a second ball...shanked it again...so I picked up the second and went and hit the first. Took a lot of club and did my 'drill' that I use to get me out of the shanks...put it on the green (I usually get a really crisp, really 'spinny' ball when I do the drill my instructor gave me...and I can use it when I'm playing if I get screwed up)....made par on a long par 5 into the wind. Didn't stop me from saying the F-word at least 25 times, though.

**walk18** · April 3, 2010

Well you've gotten plenty of good advice so I'll just add this. Since a shank is a hit off the hosel, if you address the ball more at the toe of your club, you will not shank it. If nothing else, this will get you through the day if they come back mid-round.

**laxbballgolf** · April 12, 2010

Here's my theory: (I am sad to admit I hit more than a couple shanks at the range the other day...)

If the bend in your knees is less at address than it is at impact, you might shank it. Think about it, the more you bend your knees, the further from your feet the club will rest. So basically, it's just another way of saying the ball has drifted too close to your feet in your stance. I'm pretty sure this is what happened to me. Without realizing it, I was addressing the ball with my knees not bent much at all, but by the time I got to impact they would be bent in my normal impact move. So, my solution is to make sure I have my knees bent properly when I step up to the ball. I think it's good for my swing, anyway, to have a more athletic position at address. Bottom line: match up the bend in your knees at address to the bend in your impact position.

**Doctorfro** · April 12, 2010

Crowding the ball and using my hands too much. Stepping away and getting quieter hands helped me. It's a helpless feeling but now I know how to fix.

**nevets88** · April 12, 2010

I had the shanks awhile ago and finally figured out it was two things. I was kicking my right knee and body towards the ball and cupping my wrist in an attempt to get that hands way ahead of the ball. Once I got rid of the lunge and simply turned and stopped the wrist cup and went more with a bowed wrist, I fixed the shank and the toe came into play much more often. I still shank once in a while, when I try things on the range, but rarely on the course and the shank is not so much on the hosel like it used to be.

The standard suggestions didn't help a bit - stand further away, using a 2x4 to prevent a too in to out path. An instructor noticed it and lots of frustrating trial and error.

**PingGKEN** · April 12, 2010

For me sh@nks happen when I fire my right side into the ball on the downswing. My spine angle changes, I get closer to the ball, I come forward off my "tushline" and you know what happens after that. Absolutely no "room" for my hands to get through impact. Also, a flip is needed for any kind of straight shot.

If I focus on keeping my spine angle constant throughout the entire swing, and just rotate around that fixed spine, then things are ok.

Sign In

Questions For Any and All 'Shank Survivors'

Recommended Posts

Link to comment

Share on other sites

Link to comment

Share on other sites

Link to comment

Share on other sites

Link to comment

Share on other sites

Link to comment

Share on other sites

Link to comment

Share on other sites

Link to comment

Share on other sites

Link to comment

Share on other sites

Link to comment

Share on other sites

Link to comment

Share on other sites

Link to comment

Share on other sites

Link to comment

Share on other sites

Link to comment

Share on other sites

Link to comment

Share on other sites

Link to comment

Share on other sites

Link to comment

Share on other sites

Link to comment

Share on other sites

Link to comment

Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

Create an account

Sign in

Topics Being Discussed Right Now on The Sand Trap

TST Partners

Popular Now

Posts

Important Information