For simplicity, all advice on actual swings or drills is provided from a right handed perspective.
I just finished a lesson with a long time student that was having some problems – namely that he was hitting a fade with most of his clubs when his preferred ball flight is a two to five yard draw.
I observed him hit several balls and determined that everything was OK except for his swing path.
I teach all of my students to maintain an inside to inside swing path for their standard swings. This means that during the downswing the clubhead approaches the ball from inside their aimline, the club extends outward to the aimline along their swing circle radius, then it swings left, inside the aimline.
Inside to inside.
This student had developed a very slight outside to inside swingpath, so I set up a training station to help him feel the correct swingpath. You can duplicate this training station during your practice to help you groove a good swingpath as well as to monitor your ballstriking.
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Above is the setup for a swing path station using three 48″ driveway markers, a 14″ piece of a pool noodle, and a tee in the outside center of the pool noodle to secure it to the ground.
The two parallel rods are used to define your aimline and body alignment lines, the rod running perpendicular to them is marking the ball position to check the divot start point. I had been using the ball marking rod for a ballstriking drill before I added the pool noodle. With the pool noodle in place you can actually use the end of the pool noodle to define the back of the ball and to monitor your divot start point.
The pool noodle makes your downswsing attack the ball from the inside, not outside in or down the line.
This station is another example of task constraint training, where you use a training aid to give you physical feedback. If your swingpath is outside in or down the line when you use this setup, you’ll hit the pool noodle.
After doing some ballstriking drills first, he used this station for about twenty swings and his gentle draw returned, with the added bonus of improved ballstriking by paying attention to where his divots started.
If your swingpath is sloppy, try this setup. You can use it at home without balls just to groove your path. It’s well worth the very minor expense and a little effort.
Try it, you’ll like it!
Comments: ttucker@rochester.rr.com
Love your practice, own your swing, own your health,
Tom
