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Low Handicapper Who Can't Stop hooking..

post #1 of 17
10/17/10 at 2:44am
Thread Starter 
I'll get right to it. I'm a collegiate golfer so needless to say, the faster I can figure this out, the better. All summer I was fighting the ever growing urge for my golf balls to fly aimlessly to the left (violent draws/hooks). And its gotten to the point this fall where my scrambling ability/skill cannot even save my scores.

As my average for this half of the season steadily climbs I'm asking anyone for a simple tip to help me get it goin straight again. Obviously without seeing my swing, feedback is limited but this is starting to piss me off and I can't keep trying to fix the problem in the middle of a tournament. Any help would be much appreciated, thanks.
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post #2 of 17
10/17/10 at 4:28am

Re: Low Handicapper Who Can't Stop hooking..

True, without seeing a swing its hard to diagnose...but here are a few things I notice will cause a snap hook.

*Loosing your posture or standing up during the down swing, that can throw you steep causing a snap hook or a pull
*Allignment. Creeping closed throughout a round can shut down your lower body ""
*Trying to guide shots or "putting the steering wheel on a shot", tends to shut down the lower body ""
*Lateral movement, swing off the ball can create an over the top or hooky shot (one will tend to "hang on there right side "")
*Swinging to hard. This may seem simple, but I see good players do it at times trying hit the ball to far...never good
*Bad grip pressure (re-read Hogans chapter on the grip out of the 5 lessons)
*Taking the club back shut

These are all things I have noticed will cause me to hook or pull the ball. Best of luck in your quest for a solution to the H word.

-Beane
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post #3 of 17
10/17/10 at 4:43am

Re: Low Handicapper Who Can't Stop hooking..

Take a look at the start of your swing. DBeane said "taking the club back shut" but in addition to that make sure the club is not traveling to the inside on the way back. A old shaft or those sticks that almost everbody has now set up on the ground behind the ball aiming at your target will help you see were that club is traveling. Clubhead traveling on the inside of the stick normally creates a right to left ball flight. Good luck with your season!
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post #4 of 17
10/17/10 at 4:55am

Re: Low Handicapper Who Can't Stop hooking..

to be honest with you, the best way to fix a hook is by hitting slices or just normal fades. on your practice swing take swings holding off your release like you are trying to cut the ball. the goal with this is to retrain your muscle memory. normally when you hook the ball its because you get stuck in the downswing with your club and need to clear your body away from the ball to allow room for the club.

tim
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post #5 of 17
10/17/10 at 7:22am

Re: Low Handicapper Who Can't Stop hooking..

http://thesandtrap.com/forum/threads...to-do-About-it!

Seemed to help that guy at a +2.2 index
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post #6 of 17
10/17/10 at 8:51am

Re: Low Handicapper Who Can't Stop hooking..

Your hooks are caused by your swing path being too in-to-out.
There are no short cuts to fixing that, but for what it's worth give this a try;

Concentrate on really hitting down on the ball.

I do this when I'm hooking and it seems to fix the problem. It makes the downswing steeper stopping you from coming too much from the inside as you hit the ball.
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post #7 of 17
10/17/10 at 10:08pm
Thread Starter 

Re: Low Handicapper Who Can't Stop hooking..

ironically, early on this past season, I had been hitting weak fades and losing valuable distance so I trained myself to take the club slightly inside my plane on the backswing and out on the down andd this method produced a beautiful 5 yard draw and consistency. But as most good in golf does not stick around long, for some reason my body became too accustomed to the draw bias and I started snapping shots left. And i've been plagued by that tendency ever since. Each practice swing I have to repeatedly tell myself, "out to in, out to in" in order to just hit it straight.

I can't keep generating a temporary fix. I'm losing distance again from slowing my swing down to not hook it. And with an average swing speed of 116mph, anything less is going to be noticed. Plus it messes with my tempo. But I'll give that article a try. I just need something to work on over the winter when I CAN'T go try it on a course..
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post #8 of 17
10/17/10 at 10:20pm

Re: Low Handicapper Who Can't Stop hooking..

In your back swing, make sure the toe of the club is pointing upwards.
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post #9 of 17
10/17/10 at 11:11pm
Thread Starter 

Re: Low Handicapper Who Can't Stop hooking..

what will keeping the toe pointing up do?
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post #10 of 17
10/17/10 at 11:26pm

Re: Low Handicapper Who Can't Stop hooking..

Originally Posted by MrW00t10 View Post
what will keeping the toe pointing up do?
I'd look past this for now.

Post a video when you can. As others have said, often times a draw or hook that is larger than intended is caused by the path of the club not just the hands at impact.

A drill that has helped me reduce getting "stuck inside" is to hit balls and limit the action of my right foot at impact. By limiting the release of the hips in favor of a lateral slide, you may be able to come into the ball more on plane rather than severely inside. In my case, paying attention to plane on both the backswing and downswing has really helped my consistency and reduced the big hooks or overdraws I was fighting earlier in the season.

This of course could not be the case for you however, as we don't know whats going on quite yet.

Best of luck.
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post #11 of 17
10/17/10 at 11:32pm
Thread Starter 

Re: Low Handicapper Who Can't Stop hooking..

Originally Posted by delav View Post
I'd look past this for now.

Post a video when you can. As others have said, often times a draw or hook that is larger than intended is caused by the path of the club rather than what the hands are doing at impact.

A drill that has helped me reduce getting "stuck inside" is to hit balls and limit the action of my right foot at impact. By limiting the release of the hips in favor of a lateral slide, you may be able to come into the ball more on plane rather than severely inside. In my case, playing attention to plane on both the backswing and downswing has really helped my consistency and reduced the big hooks or overdraws I was fighting earlier in the season.

This of course could not be the case for you however, as we don't know whats going on quite yet.

Best of luck.
i'll get a video up as soon as I can and the weather permits. I have a strong feeling its just a inside-to-out plane problem that is causing this.
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post #12 of 17
10/18/10 at 12:45am

Re: Low Handicapper Who Can't Stop hooking..

Originally Posted by DaSportsGuy View Post
In your back swing, make sure the toe of the club is pointing upwards.
As others have said, please don't do this.

A video will help, as will an accurate description of your shots - where do they start? How much do they curve? Where are your feet actually aiming?
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post #13 of 17
10/21/10 at 9:55pm
Thread Starter 

Re: Low Handicapper Who Can't Stop hooking..

Originally Posted by iacas View Post
As others have said, please don't do this.

A video will help, as will an accurate description of your shots - where do they start? How much do they curve? Where are your feet actually aiming?
9 times out of 10 my stance and alignment are at my target but i grew up with an open stance so on occasion my front foot finds its way slightly behind my back foot. during my best ball-striking rounds my shots start approx 5-7 yds right of my target and draw in nicely to where I'm aiming. but now these stupid misses have my flight starting left of my target (pull) and then continuing to draw 10-20 yds after that.
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post #14 of 17
2/22/13 at 6:12am

Two weeks ago I starting doing the same and it is driving me crazy.  Thanks for the question.  I can't wait to see the advice you are given.

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post #15 of 17
2/22/13 at 9:16pm

With my back problems, I am prone to start taking it back too far to the inside. 

That's all it takes for me to develop a cute hookz2_scared.gif

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post #16 of 17
2/23/13 at 11:55am

Make sure your left hand (thumb) is hinging "vertically" as you take the club back...that will keep the club head slightly outside the hands on the takeaway...less chance that clubface will be closed and "trapped" in behind you. Thinking of keeping the clubhead lower to the ground after impact will help too.

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post #17 of 17
2/23/13 at 12:20pm

Great advice up here for sure. In the last 15 years of golfing, various Pros' advice, I've found that swinging through without coming too close to the hip, and using your hips to torque with less focus on the velocity of the swing, can get you back on track. I used to have a long history of hooking/slicing and based on a touring pro's advice, we were actually able to design a device to keep them straight as an arrow. Take a look at this video to get the concept...http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=upfL9fwPsUs

 

Let me know if that advice is helpful, its completely corrected my drive and I'm able to get straight shots every time.

Have a great weekend!

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