Scores improved after playing fade.

[mikeosborne38]

My scores suffered recently after my draw turned into low hooks with not much carry distance on my drives and getting into trouble on approaches. I worked at the range for three hours to work on hitting a fade. I found a simple way by aiming left and weakening my grip and making my normal swing. My misses are nowhere near as bad with my fade and I find myself in less trouble the two rounds I have played since the change. My playing partners say I'm crazy for getting rid of my draw because it is seen as a shot hit by better players but to me a true fade is preferable. Has anyone else here made a similar switch concerning their primary ball flight shape?

[mvmac]

Has anyone else here made a similar switch concerning their primary ball flight shape?

Most tour players curve it one way 90% of the time and we encourage amateurs to do the same. If you "own" a pattern you'll definitely be able to play better golf.

Check out this thread

[flopster]

My scores suffered recently after my draw turned into low hooks with not much carry distance on my drives and getting into trouble on approaches. I worked at the range for three hours to work on hitting a fade. I found a simple way by aiming left and weakening my grip and making my normal swing. My misses are nowhere near as bad with my fade and I find myself in less trouble the two rounds I have played since the change. My playing partners say I'm crazy for getting rid of my draw because it is seen as a shot hit by better players but to me a true fade is preferable. Has anyone else here made a similar switch concerning their primary ball flight shape?

A guy named Jack Nicklaus won 18 professional majors with a fade is what I would tell your friends. Really a fade is a lot more easier shot to control and it usually will fly higher and stop faster so with approach shots it's probably the better shot.

[David in FL]

As Lee Trevino once said, "You can talk to a fade but a hook won't listen"! :-)

[Abu3baid]

As Lee Trevino once said, "You can talk to a fade but a hook won't listen"! :-)

What did he say about the slice then? ;)

[boogielicious]

What did he say about the slice then?

He said this, " " like everyone else!!!

[Abu3baid]

He said this, "" like everyone else!!!

figures..

[MS256]

My "natural" ball flight was anything between a draw and a hook from the first day I ever played golf but I also had no problem hitting fades when I wanted.

It seems like my game stays more focused if I use both during a round. When a draw starts getting a little stale usually switching to a fade gets me back in the groove or vice versa. I also tend to do better on courses with a lot of trees that force me to do both often.

BTW. The very best golf I ever played was on a day when I only had enough daylight to play 8 holes and all I intended to do was work on hitting all fades that day. After 8 holes I had 7 birdies and one par. I had never done anything close to that either before or since.

Hmmm. Maybe there's a lesson in there somewhere if I was smart enough to use it.

[Dave2512]

I wish I could hit a controlled fade on command. When I try I usually miss left. It will be something I ask my new instructor about for those shots here and there when it would be nice. There are a few holes at our course that give me trouble playing the ball right to left. One is a par 3, almost all my double or worse scores are on this hole at that course.

[JP golf]

My playing partners say I'm crazy for getting rid of my draw because it is seen as a shot hit by better players but to me a true fade is preferable. Has anyone else here made a similar switch concerning their primary ball flight shape?

Better players can hit draws but don't necessarily prefer them or play them all the time.  As @mvmac mentioned most good players shape the ball one way or the other.  Know your natural shot and you can eliminate a side, work the ball away from a hazard etc.

Personally, when I was playing my best golf, I was playing a draw... When I quit and started playing again, my ball flight ended up being a fade...  I actually like the fade better because as @flopster mentioned, it's a shot you can hit high and stop fast.  On hard, fast greens, that is a must to have scoring opportunities.

If I could pick, go with the fade...  but in all honesty... play with what your hitting good that day...  Don't force either.

[JoePete]

My playing partners say I'm crazy for getting rid of my draw because it is seen as a shot hit by better players but to me a true fade is preferable. Has anyone else here made a similar switch concerning their primary ball flight shape?

The problem with a draw/hook as a miss is that it can go hot. It's typically low and has a lot of run. I think it is a myth that it is a preferred shot. I think the case is most beginner/high-handicappers slice the ball (reflective of swing faults that mostly involve bad or no turning of the body). Hence, the thinking is good is the opposite of slicing (hook or draw). The problem is you can have plenty of swing faults but teach yourself to draw if that is the only outcome you want. To get good at the game, it helps to be able to work the ball either way, but the key is being consistent. A slight draw or fade is no big deal, and no inherent harm either way. Ultimately, you want to be able to hit both shots and a lot of times it will be dictated by lie and other conditions like the wind, green, fairway tilt or other hazards.

[whatwoodtigerdo]

The problem with a draw/hook as a miss is that it can go hot. It's typically low and has a lot of run. I think it is a myth that it is a preferred shot. I think the case is most beginner/high-handicappers slice the ball (reflective of swing faults that mostly involve bad or no turning of the body). Hence, the thinking is good is the opposite of slicing (hook or draw). The problem is you can have plenty of swing faults but teach yourself to draw if that is the only outcome you want. To get good at the game, it helps to be able to work the ball either way, but the key is being consistent. A slight draw or fade is no big deal, and no inherent harm either way. Ultimately, you want to be able to hit both shots and a lot of times it will be dictated by lie and other conditions like the wind, green, fairway tilt or other hazards.

The first part @mvmac explained. If you aim up the right side you are eliminating misses to the left with it. Sure sometimes when I hook the ball it will go OB or get lost but most of the time it is just down the left rough and still runs big time so I don't lose tons of distance. What does that soft slice do when someone misses when trying to fade. Usually from what I see is even if it is playable it is a high ballooning soft shot that doesn't go far and usually leaves a much longer shot on the next shot. Which brings me to the 2nd part, I think a draw is promoted because it is usually a longer shot and rolls more. I know when I first got lessons and switched I feel a lot more power in my swing and hit it further. I don't play much of a draw with my iron game though, just a slight one.

To the OP, what are you going to do when the fade turns into a slice? Change back to a draw? In my opinion, what you need to do is figure out what causes the hooks instead of just switching. It will make you that much better to know why you are missing so you always know how to fix it. I hook because I get my club face closed big time at set up and I already come from way inside the ball. Or sometimes it's because I don't swing enough to right field after I make impact which causes me to follow through real low and left. So without seeing your swing maybe tweak your club face a little to more square or slightly open at impact and try to make sure you swing through to right field and finish high. But I am not a pro or even that good just letting you know how I stop hooks.

[WUTiger]

A guy named Jack Nicklaus won 18 professional majors with a fade is what I would tell your friends. Really a fade is a lot more easier shot to control and it usually will fly higher and stop faster so with approach shots it's probably the better shot.

Jack Nicklaus in Golf My Way ....

Chap. 8 is called: Why I Always Played the Fade - and Now Sometimes Play the Draw.

Nicklaus learned to be versatile... you need to go the other way sometimes. One side only can hurt: Rocco Mediate plays only the draw, and lost a U.S. Open playoff against Tiger with a leftward drive on a dogleg right Par 4.

[iacas]

Nicklaus learned to be versatile... you need to go the other way sometimes. One side only can hurt: Rocco Mediate plays only the draw, and lost a U.S. Open playoff against Tiger with a leftward drive on a dogleg right Par 4.

And Tiger played a fade the entire week, regardless of which direction the tee shot went.

Rocco hit the first fairway earlier that day, while Tiger missed it playing a fade.

Rocco lost because he hit a bad shot, not because he plays a draw.

[jbishop15]

A guy named Jack Nicklaus won 18 professional majors with a fade is what I would tell your friends. Really a fade is a lot more easier shot to control and it usually will fly higher and stop faster so with approach shots it's probably the better shot.

Fade's don't necessarily stop faster than any other shot shape, nor is it any easier to control.

I play a pull-fade with my woods and a push-draw with my irons. Like mvmac said, just find a shot shape you are comfortable with.

[rehmwa]

I play a pull-fade with my woods and a push-draw with my irons.

that's me....not necessarily that I 'play' it that way, more so because that's the way my swing goes with least effort.

I have to really exaggerate club path to get my driver to draw, but it's doable.....

It's still nice to be able to shape an alternate hit once in a while, but I'm finding that the more effective my 'stock' shots get, the less I find myself in positions that require a shot that deviates from it.....

[flopster]

Fade's don't necessarily stop faster than any other shot shape, nor is it any easier to control.

I play a pull-fade with my woods and a push-draw with my irons. Like mvmac said, just find a shot shape you are comfortable with.

Why do they not stop quicker? Unless it's a surface that slopes away from the shot a fade will stop faster by virtue of being hit higher on average. In reality a player would be better off with a draw off the tee and a fade for the scoring clubs and I'm not alone with this belief many of the scratch and + hdcp players I play with agree with this. Ultimately the golf course will decide what is the best shot shape by the hole design but on average I would play with that type of strategy if I could, I play a draw with all shots unless there is no other option though.

[cipher]

Why do they not stop quicker? Unless it's a surface that slopes away from the shot a fade will stop faster by virtue of being hit higher on average. In reality a player would be better off with a draw off the tee and a fade for the scoring clubs and I'm not alone with this belief many of the scratch and + hdcp players I play with agree with this. Ultimately the golf course will decide what is the best shot shape by the hole design but on average I would play with that type of strategy if I could, I play a draw with all shots unless there is no other option though.

I feel I get high draw irons to stop the fastest myself.  Faster than the rare occasion when I am forced to play a fade.  I don't think it really matters, too much, like Mike said the most important thing is to "own" your pattern.  I fade my driver and fairway wood.  I naturally draw my irons but my wedges I naturally fade a tiny bit.  I seldom ever have to go away from my shot shape with each club.  It is extremely rare that I have to do so, the golf course very rarely decides this.