shanking theories

[Grazer]

I know that the shanks are caused by the ball contacting the hostel and there are numerous explanations for it. I just went to the driving range a week ago and shanked a whole bucket, something i havent done since i was 12 years old or so.....but then again i have never been going to the driving range this often (everyday). I was wondering if anyones ever experienced this and took maybe 3-4 days off of golf and their swing was working perfectly again cause this is what happened to me and im going crazy trying to explain what happened. My theory is that maybe my hands were getting tired keeping them from turning and therefore leading the hostel in to contact the ball, or maybe i was just wearing the wrong pair of socks. Im just wondering if anyones every experienced this and have any explanation on what was happening.

Thx

PS: theres no way it was caused by standing too close because i stood a little farther than usual and i still shanked that ball pretty badly.

[lamebums]

Do you normally play a fade or slice in your ball?

If so, then you're swinging from the outside in, and in this case, you're just not bringing the club far enough back in, bringing the hosel into play. Drill to fix this... put a cardboard box about an inch in front of your ball, lay the box on its side. If you don't bring the club back in, you'll hit the box.

Or, you could have the clubface so far open that the hosel leads the rest of the clubface.

[oneil003]

I bet it was just one of those days. Last Friday I went to the range and I was shanking every single ball. That night thats all I thought about, and how my swing was now changed, and all these theories about how my swing was ruined and will be horrible forever. The next day I went out to the course and played the best that I have ever played in my life...

I know this is much easier said then done, but don't sweat it, you and your swing will be fine

[Mulligan26]

I shot 73 a few weeks ago on nine holes, took the long weekend off and my first round back was a 2 over 38. Take some time off dude it'll help

[Thrdroc]

I shot 73 a few weeks ago on nine holes, took the long weekend off and my first round back was a 2 over 38. Take some time off dude it'll help

I guess you don't take your stroke limit of 7 on a hole with you 10 handicap.

[Cleveland Gunmetal]

or maybe i was just wearing the wrong pair of socks.

That would be my guess

I shot 73 a few weeks ago on nine holes, took the long weekend off and my first round back was a 2 over 38. Take some time off dude it'll help

Wow. Talk about honest.

I'm most amazed that you actually continued to keep score

[Guest]

The most common cause for my shanking of the ball is rolling slightly on to the balls of my feet on the downswing; generally because I'm lunging at the ball, trying to generate more power when I am fatigued, usually after playing 18 or 36 holes in a day or if I've been playing several days in a row, etc. The weight shift isn't huge but it's enough to get me that much closer to the ball and produce the shank. Like most people I'd promptly move further from the ball thinking I was standing too close and this would really only make it worse because it made me lunge farther forward.

Dunno if any of that would apply to you but it's worth being mindful of.

[phicar2]

Well, I'll let you know my experience with this. I have been an average to above average golfer for about 10 years or so. The first time I got the shanks was on a golf trip about 6 years ago. Well, not playing really is not an option when you are on a golf trip, although that's not a bad idea. Since then my game has improved steadily, but, every so often I get the shanks, usually once or twice a year. It is so painful. Heck, I had my handicap down to 2.9 last summer and since then I have had 2 bouts with the shanks. My handicap is back up to 9 or so and it is funny when I go out an play and shoot a nice 3 or 4 over I get all kinds of crap about sandbagging - but I don't seem to hear anything when I shank a 100 around the course.

Anyway, the real question is why it happens. Well, as you can imagine I have been looking for that myself. What I found finally - and I have done lots of video taping of my swing - is that I actually moved my head (and thus weight) forward during my backswing (not the downswing). It seems that as my arms got past parallel going back as my swing would move to the top I would subtly move my head forward. On the downswing my head would stay were it was but by then I was 2-3 inches forward and hello hosel rocket.

So, to combat this I obviously focus on not letting my head move forward on the backswing. Mostly I just focus on keeping my weight centered without rocking forward (or rocking back). The other thing is that over time my hands get closer and closer to my body and thus when I get my hips through I don't have space for my hands and they move away from my body and shanks can occur for that reason as well.

I hope this helps - I know your pain. It is beyond frustrating to improve, shaving strokes off the handi and then all of a sudden it's like you never played before... The only other bit of adivice I would give you (which I plan to follow myself is "they" ever happen again) is when it happens on the range don't keep hitting balls. Try a few more and if you are in a rut go chip and putt for an hour and try again or go back another day..

[$2 Nassau]

I guess you don't take your stroke limit of 7 on a hole with you 10 handicap.

Well, his score is his score. Whatever you shoot you should write it down. It's when you enter the score for handicap reasons is when you figure in your stroke limit.

[$2 Nassau]

I know that the shanks are caused by the ball contacting the hostel and there are numerous explanations for it. I just went to the driving range a week ago and shanked a whole bucket, something i havent done since i was 12 years old or so.....but then again i have never been going to the driving range this often (everyday). I was wondering if anyones ever experienced this and took maybe 3-4 days off of golf and their swing was working perfectly again cause this is what happened to me and im going crazy trying to explain what happened. My theory is that maybe my hands were getting tired keeping them from turning and therefore leading the hostel in to contact the ball, or maybe i was just wearing the wrong pair of socks. Im just wondering if anyones every experienced this and have any explanation on what was happening.

I feel I am highly qualified to reply to this post.

Your last comment (The "PS" regarding standing too close) is something I have experienced myself. In my research, I've noticed teaching pros mention shanking can be caused by standing too close OR too far from the ball. The simple answer is to say you are too close. I tend to creep away from the ball for some reason, when I do, on my downswing I lunge forward towards the ball to compensate, finishing with all my weight on my toes and hitting the ball off the heel or shanking. The more I back away, the more I shank as I need to lunge further forward, throwing my weight even further off balance. As a 2 handicap, I bet you were just tired. Take a couple days off from the range. When I go and just pound balls day after day I start making lazy arms-only swings.

[golfgolfer]

Grazer, I think it is just one of those days.. Take a nice break, relax and enjoy yourself before heading back to the course. Especially so when you are a 2 handicapper.

Just fyi, my understanding of shanking is as follows. Shanking is related to standing too close, but even standing further back can have the same problem - like what you have experienced. The actually relation is with the weight loading. Shanking happens mostly when your weight is loaded on your toes when you strike the ball. The correct weight loading should be 80% on the right instep on your backswing and 90% on the left instep on the follow through.

You can actually practise by relaxing your swing and try to feel the weight loading again.. Once you get the right feel back, you can increase back to your normal swing speed.

I believe you know all this through your experience. For you, I will still say take a break. :)

[irfan]

just had them today on the front 9... for me it wasnt ball position since thats the first thing i check, but it was the fact that i was putting more weight on the balls of my feet than the heels, and this made me lean forwards during the swing. i adjusted to balance more on my heels or 50/50 and the shanks went away

[Sandtrapper]

I enjoyed reading your post phicar2. I tend to get the shanks once or twice a year and i normally have them gone after a couple really really bad rounds but I sure would love to alleviate them altogether. Here's another idea, when i get the shanks I hit the range and hit a few balls with my feet together, it helps keep your balance first off and it gets my body motion back on track if it has worked itself out of whack.

[lamebums]

I have only once in my entire life shanked an entire bucket of balls, that happened shortly after I changed my grip and redid my whole swing, about 3 months ago.

Otherwise, a shank strikes in the midle of my round, entirely without warning. Usually, it happens at the first time possible, when a hosel rocket goes into the hopelessly unfindable cabbage off to the right. It never happens when the right side is wide open and your next sho would be playable...as a rule, your next shot is always hitting 3.