Hitting Down: Instruction Necessary?

[wachesawgolfer]

Jambalaya,

I respectfully think no one who has ever played the game has attempted to lift or scoop the ball, despite what all the millions of teaching pros and your buddies say. I still believe the scoop is due to the outward motion at the top of the arms, instead of straight down, which causes the left arm to bend forward and cup at the wrist prior to impact which results in a scoop or thin shot. This same outward/in move causes the body to pull up prior to impact. If we were merely just trying to lift the ball, it would be very easy to correct our mindset and error and just hit down, but because the whole thing is the result of a serious swing flaw which is breaking down the left arm, it is difficult for the so afflicted to correct.

[MRL]

I have come to the conclusion that despite improvement in my game recently by using the "Golf Swing and it's Master Key" book, I seem to be sweeping the ball a little more instead of hitting down on it with my irons. I know of two instruction books or videos that discuss and emphasize hitting down on the ball and how to do it. I have not bought the books or videos of either. But I thought, how much discussion is really necessary and to I really need a $90 DVD to help out? What you usually find is a small part of the video devoted to hitting down and the rest of golfing fundamentals you already know about.

This may or may not work for you but it might be worth a try. I'm guessing you look at the ball while you swing. By doing this you release the club prematurely and hit up on it. Instead try looking at a spot just ahead of the ball. If you release the club just before where your eyes are looking than this little exercise can get the club to bottom out closer to the ball. Which is always a good thing.

[jonanthans]

My advice is to hold the ball up and look at it like a clock. Put a red dot on the ball with a marker at the 3 o clock position. Place the ball down on the 6 oclock position, and try to hit the dot on the ball with the 5th groove on your clubface, pinning the ball against the ground before it shoots up and out and towards your target. Complicated, huh? Well, thats the visual that I was given that made it "click" to me. Instead of a broad target, I was given 2 small targets (dot and the groove) and told to connect them. And it worked. I had been told many of the tips that I have seen given here, but it was that particular one that finally made me understand the process.
Thats what makes Teachers so impressive, people learn differently, so what works for one may not work for the next. My advice is to take all these tips, write them down or print them out, and take them to your next range session. Chances are, 1 of these tips are going to help you achieve the goal you are seeking.

Happy Holidays!

[muddcat]

trjonhson2 is right take a golf towel lay it down 6 inches to a 1 foot behind the ball and make swings not hitting the towel but hitting the ball first then having your swing bottom out this will give you the feel of have a steep angle at the ball and will make you a better ball striker you will find that when you hit down oposse to sweeping the ball you will be straighter

Correct me if i'm wrong but wouldn't 6" to a foot be way too far to place the towel behind? If your swing hits the ground that far back you will be lucky to even hit the ball. I would think the towel should be placed no more that 1" behind

[jambalaya]

I went out and tried some things this weekend and nothing was working very well. I wasn't hitting the ball terrible but just could not keep from flipping when I tried to come down and through the ball. I really felt helpless in holding lag and coming down on the proper angle to the ball. I would hit the occasional 150 yard shot but distance was very inconsistent. When I went home I grabbed my half-club for practicing in the house and realized why I may not have been able to execute. I wasn't minding my posture. At the course I was using an eight iron to hit a small bucket of balls. My posture was very upright putting the hands close to my body and flattening out my swing. It was definitely way to upright for an eight iron. It is of course very hard to swing at a steep angle in this position. Especially since I am using essentially a one plane swing these days. This could explain why I have been hitting my driver a lot better these days and not my irons since the driver is more suited to the flatter swing plane.

[AwYea]

The problem is you're not releasing your hands properly, mainly your right hand and you're not getting any extension in your swing which is costing you a lot of distance also, especially with the wedges.

You are probably stuck on pulling the club with the left arm. While this is very necessary you need to be conscious of how your hands are working, especially your right hand. Both hands should feel as though they are coming straight down on the ball and you're hitting the ball equally with both hands . You should feel NO cupping or hinginging of the hands, especially the right through the impact. Both hands should feel fully extended and pointing straight down at the ball though impact.

It's going to feel like your going to slice or hit the ball fat when first working on this. If your grip and everything else is correct your hands will rotate propery and square the face up. One drill i would try is just taking half or 3 quater swings(just a arm swing mainly) with a short iron and concentrate on really using your hands in the manor described above.

[Sandy Sammy]

The problem is you're not releasing your hands properly, mainly your right hand and you're not getting any extension in your swing which is costing you a lot of distance also, especially with the wedges.

I agree with this 100% and this is exactly what my coach has me working on .I don't think there is any requirement to hit down on the ball per se.

The other point I would emphasize in addition to the above is at the point of impact your shoulders should be parallel with the ball not open, pulling the ball with the left arm (as stated above) will mean at impact your shoulders will be open and the club quite open causing the ball to slice or hit to the right. After impact the shoulders should stay parallel as long as possible and the club should pass infront of the body and the right hand turnover the left (the release). One drill to solve this problem is to take a shot with your right foot placed say 18inch back (hence your left foot is 18 inches infront of your right), this will stop your shoulders opening and allow the club to pass correctly in front of you promoting a proper release of the club with your hands turning over.

[Sandy Sammy]

The problem is you're not releasing your hands properly, mainly your right hand and you're not getting any extension in your swing which is costing you a lot of distance also, especially with the wedges.

I agree with this 100% and this is exactly what my coach has me working on .I don't think there is any requirement to hit down on the ball per se.

The other point I would emphasize in addition to the above is at the point of impact your shoulders should be parallel with the ball not open, pulling the ball with the left arm (as stated above) will mean at impact your shoulders will be open and the club quite open causing the ball to slice or hit to the right. After impact with shoulders stay parallel as long as possible the club should pass infront of the body and the right hand turnover the left. Anyone drill to solve this problem is to take a shot with your right foot placed say 18inch back (hence your left foot is 18 inches infront of your right), this will stop your shoulders opening and allow the club to pass correctly in front of you promoting a proper release of the club with your hands turning over.

[jambalaya]

The problem is you're not releasing your hands properly, mainly your right hand and you're not getting any extension in your swing which is costing you a lot of distance also, especially with the wedges.

Both hands should feel as though they are coming straight down on the ball and you're hitting the ball equally with both hands . You should feel NO cupping or hinginging of the hands, especially the right through the impact. Both hands should feel fully extended and pointing straight down at the ball though impact. You are going to have to explain this differently for me to understand. No cupping or hinging of the hands/wrists just coming down or anytime in the swing or just at impact? Both hands fully extended through impact? Implying they are always fully extended with no cupping or cocking in the wrists ever? I would hate to have to think about both hands hitting the ball equally. Maybe that is the desired result but..... Exacty how do the hands come "straight down on the ball"?

[jambalaya]

I agree with this 100% and this is exactly what my coach has me working on .I don't think there is any requirement to hit down on the ball per se.

I actually find myself closing the clubface when pulling too much with the left arm. What I am trying to learn is to pull the club with left shoulder. It's a fine line but produces decidedly different results. The drill you describe is a good one for learning how to bring the club from the inside but I can see how it would help for releasing the hands.

[Voiceontapex]

i read somewhere to take a penny or quarter or soemthing and put it infront of the golfball and try and hit the quarter cause the divot comes infront of the ball not behind it, so if you ended up hitting hte penny then youre divot would then be infront,

ive never tried it, think this works?

[Sandy Sammy]

What I am trying to learn is to pull the club with left shoulder.

STOP LEARNING IT!!!!.

Learn to release the club. Trust me, i've been there, learning to pull the club with my left shoulder as opposed to letting the club travel around me and releasing it with my right hand COMPLETELY KNACKERED my game for 18 months and has taken me the last 3 months to correct, and i'm still only 70% on the road to 'recovery'. The drill will stop your shoulders opening prior impact and tugging the club with the left shoulder, it should also cure a few other things and assist release.

[AwYea]

Both hands should feel as though they are coming straight down on the ball and you're hitting the ball equally with both hands . You should feel NO cupping or hinginging of the hands, especially the right through the impact. Both hands should feel fully extended and pointing straight down at the ball though impact.

The simplest way I can put it is you're not using your hands properly. I would suggest you work on starting the downswing with your hips(instead of pulling the left shoulder) and concentrate on hitting the ball with your right side(right hip) on the downswing. When you start with the hips still mantain your position over the ball and behind it. Don't come up and get in a reverse C position in your follow through.

The only other visual image i can give you is imagine you're holding a hammer in your right hand normally with the head pointing down while in your golf stance. Then imagine there is a 2X4 coming straight up from the ground where the ball would be. Now try to swing the hammer with your right hand and imagine your going to drive a nail at hip level in that 2X4 coming straight up from the ground where the ball would be . Notice how you got to work your right hand to hit the nail with the head of the hammer. If you was just to swing the hammer straight back and through you would hit the nail with the side of the hammer head instead of with the head of the hammer.

[trjohnson2]

i read somewhere to take a penny or quarter or soemthing and put it infront of the golfball and try and hit the quarter cause the divot comes infront of the ball not behind it, so if you ended up hitting hte penny then youre divot would then be infront,

I think you would lose a lot of change if you are taking the divot.

[Three Putt]

I always focus on something in the grass at least 2 inches in front of the ball, no more than 8 inches, and swing through that path. Even if it is a leaf or something outside the ball, I use it as a marker for my impact path. On tee boxes I always tee up behind a divot or obvious mark and swing through it.

I think it's all about the impact zone and impact path.

just my $.02

[mm6840]

If you're using oneplane swing ... :
1) are you performing step #2 ? ( 1 backswing, 2 step on your left foot, 3 - downswing)
2) are you bending enough ? more bend = more steep approach to the ball
3) for 8 iron ball postion around middle of yours stance

other oneplane basics reminder
- One plane swing path is in to in (and not down the line ... like 2 plane swing path)
- right side/hand dominated swing
- no crossover until waist high
- turning into the zone
- if you're hitting in to the ball .. divot should point to the left
- ....



regards,

[Sandy Sammy]

The simplest way I can put it is you're not using your hands properly. I would suggest you work on starting the downswing with your hips(instead of pulling the left shoulder) and concentrate on hitting the ball with your right side(right hip) on the downswing. When you start with the hips still mantain your position over the ball and behind it. Don't come up and get in a reverse C position in your follow through.

Yes I agree

Could try the feet together drill: In terms of the right foot behind: It says its preventing a slice but if you listen it also says it helps release and stops your body/arms getting out of sync.

[Ben]

practice hitting balls out of divots and you will learn to hit down or never hit a good shot from a divot.

I like this theory.

Also try hitting a bucket of punch shots. Half way back, half way through, emphasizing on the move through the "hitting zone". Hands in front of the ball at impact, also down and through. Read about another good drill in Golf Digest a few months back. Put a towel behind your ball, maybe 6 inches, and try to make sure you don't hit the towel.