Playing a fade every shot?

[Dr. Slice]

Im looking for a little added consistency in my swing and with everyone saying the fade is the most  consistent shot in golf i thought would give it a shot.

from what ive learned, to play a fade its just, line up a little left of target and hit the ball with a little out to in swing path and making sure the wrists dont roll over.

Is that how you guys play a fade?

[phillyk]

A shot is only as consistent as much as you practice it to be.  Whatever you think will help you gain consistency, go for it!

My normal shot is a draw, but my intentional fade is dead on where I want it to be because i practice it.  My fade, i try to focus on my wrists staying square at impact and making a slight outside to in swing path.  This comes from my hips staying a little bit quieter than normal.  It might sacrifice distance (max 10 yards), but it is accurate.

[LankyLefty]

Most people who play a fade consistently play it not because they think its great but because their swing is naturally a fade.

That is not to say you cant learn a fade but I think trying to change your fundamental swing to create a fade is not such a good idea.

[senorchipotle]

pretty much all the pro's, unless intentionally trying to draw the ball, play a 5-10 yard fade with their irons. it helps to hold on greens and such. i prefer playing that shot as well.

[Zeph]

Originally Posted by senorchipotle

pretty much all the pro's, unless intentionally trying to draw the ball, play a 5-10 yard fade with their irons. it helps to hold on greens and such. i prefer playing that shot as well.

Ummmmmm...no they don't. The majority (around 60%) plays a draw.

http://thesandtrap.com/forum/thread/44547/draw-or-fade-tour-survey-results

You can hit a high draw that lands just as soft as a fade.

[CalBoomer]

Originally Posted by Dr. Slice

Im looking for a little added consistency in my swing and with everyone saying the fade is the most  consistent shot in golf i thought would give it a shot.

from what ive learned, to play a fade its just, line up a little left of target and hit the ball with a little out to in swing path and making sure the wrists dont roll over.

Is that how you guys play a fade?

Sorry, no. What you have described is how to hit a slice. The professional fade is hit with the standard in-out swing path. Set up with an open stance aimed left, the ball a little bit back from normal, the club face slightly open, and hit it with a in-out swing. The ball will go straight if the club face is square (to the target line) at impact or will move slightly right if the club face is a bit open (to the target line) at contact. The very best pros do not always hit draws or always hit fades. They hit what is best for the situation. In general, a fade will go slightly higher and stop quicker than a draw. Another generalization is that, even for a pro, a fade is a little bit less likely to go awry than a draw in critical situations under pressure.

[CalBoomer]

Originally Posted by Zeph

You can hit a high draw that lands just as soft as a fade.

That may be true if you are hitting a highly lofted club. I doubt that it is true for mid-long irons. And it certainly isn't true for the driver.

[iacas]

Originally Posted by CalBoomer

That may be true if you are hitting a highly lofted club. I doubt that it is true for mid-long irons. And it certainly isn't true for the driver.

Yes, it is true for the driver. You don't seem to be aware of the fact that you can hit a push-draw. They'll go higher and land softer than a pull-fade.

[CalBoomer]

Originally Posted by iacas

Yes, it is true for the driver. You don't seem to be aware of the fact that you can hit a push-draw. They'll go higher and land softer than a pull-fade.

For the exact same launch conditions, they should be the same. However, for the very same club, the launch conditions can't be the same. For the push fade, the club face will be slightly open, increasing the launch angle. For the push draw, the club face will be slightly more closed, lessening the launch angle. At least as long as we're talking about a professional fade and not a slice.

[iacas]

Originally Posted by CalBoomer

For the exact same launch conditions, they should be the same. However, for the very same club, the launch conditions can't be the same. For the push fade, the club face will be slightly open, increasing the launch angle. For the push draw, the club face will be slightly more closed, lessening the launch angle. At least as long as we're talking about a professional fade and not a slice.

Launch conditions can be the same. Sure they can. They're often not in real life, but if you want to talk about the theoretical, of course they can:

Imagine a clubface pointing somewhere in space. The clubface will not change at all in this example - it will always be pointing at the same place in space. To put some numbers to it, the face is pointing 20 degrees "up" and 0 degrees left to right. Got that picture in your head?

Okay, now imagine that the path of the club is three degrees below vertical (measured solely in one plane, 23 degrees away from the clubface angle) and four degrees to the right (horizontally). Got it?

Now, the mirror image has the clubface pointed in the same exact orientation, but the path will change to three degrees below vertical (this remains the same) and four degrees to the left .

Voila! Same launch conditions. One's a draw, one's a fade. We don't know which is which unless we assume we know whether the golfer is a righty or a lefty.

The key point: "Closed to the path" doesn't necessarily mean "more closed" or "less loft" than a clubface that's "open to the path." Again, a pull-fade will tend to fly lower and land less softly than a push-draw. Clubface loft and orientation more relevantly linked to our body's alignment. After all, I can point a clubface 90 degrees left of the target and still maintain the same loft if my body moves 90 degrees left too.

So again, and generally speaking, a push -draw will launch higher and land softer than a pull -fade. Especially with the driver and long clubs.

[i-Guy]

When talking about a fade I naturally have always been one who can play a pull fade...yes and when I am not swinging well (timing off) it can turn into a slice...or a dead pull...but if I were to master this swing (meaning can repaet it quite often) why would I not play a pull fade??? I would have to think that with an inside-outside swing if your timing is off as it reates to hitting the ball straight you can hit a push or a push draw...so wat is the difference? Isnt the key to havigna good golf game finding a swing that fits your nataural tendicies and then grooving it to where you can repeat it??? Just wondering...

[cipher]

I took a picture of this earlier this week to show my brother, because he did not think you can stop a ball well on a green with a draw . I told him there is no problem with a push draw and you can stop it quicker than with a fade. It was a 7 iron.