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Cure that golf hook

By: Mister Putt

By far and away the most common fault of the weekend golfer is the dreaded slice. We have all seen it, a hundred yards down the fairway and suddenly the ball turns right and disappears into the undergrowth.There are a thousand books and articles on it, why it happens and how you can cure it.

But what if you have the opposite problem, a hundred yards straight down the fairway and oh..oh exit stage left.This is the classic hook.How do you cure that? I hear you cry.Never fear Mister Putt is here.Like most faults the quickest wayto cure it is to go back to basics.Let me clear up one myth straight away,listen up..Practice Makes Perfect , no, no, no practice makes permanent (Thank you Dave Pelz )If your practice is faulty your golf will be faulty.

The Basics

Grip;Hold the club in your left hand down by your side, arm hanging down relaxed.Lift the club head up so the shaft is parallel to the ground and then lower it to the floor again, do this three times, feeling where the tension is in your arm.
Concentrate on leaving this tension behind.Now bring the club in front of you and at the same time bring your right hand to the club.Now the hard bit , as you close your right hand around the club try not to manipulate it in any way, by which I mean the club should not turn left or right at all.Now you should have a neutral grip, neither hand being dominant.Hookers have a tendency to turn their right hand over the top .The "V"sbetween your thumbs and index fingers should be pointing up to your right ear.You can check this in a mirror.Now with your neutral grip and relaxed arms just swing the club head backwards and forwards in a small arc.This will ease tension.Golf is a moving game and tension is the enemy of motion.Keep swinging in increasingly larger arcs always being aware of any creeping stiffness( tension) in the arms.Do this every day for ten minutes or so.Remember the object is to swing rhythmically are not attempting a 300 yard drive!

Address;You should stand with your feet just under the width of your shoulders ,a slightly narrower stance helps with balance,and helps you swing more rhythmically. Your toes should be level and in line with your shoulders ,again check in a mirror at home and get used to the feeling.You line up to the target line or fractionally left of it.Ball position is level with your left heel.Further back will encourage a hooking shot.This brings us to the last point, weight transfer.

Weight Transfer;Weight transfer refers naturally enough to the transfer or shift of your weight from the right side to the left.(opposite sides for lefties).The backswing requires you to pull your weight onto the back foot and indeed you should feel this in your right thigh and as you swing through the ball that weight must move onto the left leg, if it stays back on the rear leg you will turn the club over and rotate to the left causing the ball to hook.A practice drill I use is to
address an imaginary ball while my left calf is against a low pillar in my garden, as I swing I concentrate on pushing my leg into that pillar.This also forces me to swing in time and finish in a balanced position.Try it.

I hope these tips can help you cure that hook and give you something to do in the bedroom on a rainy day.

Happy thoughts

Mr Putt is a weekend hacker and gives regular private tuition www.golfamateur.co.uk/golf

Additional Info On Golf Today

If you can�t seem to find the time to spend at the driving range and your backyard is too small to practice your golf swing, all hope is not lost thanks to virtual golf. Of course, this is not quite as satisfying as feeling the club strike the ball, but it may be a good solution between trips to the course. As the name suggests, you place a ball on the tee just like you would otherwise, but the ball will not travel outside a certain area. Or, you can opt for a net in which you can hit the ball except you will, obviously, have to hit the net each and every time.
...PGA of America

Passersby
Although they might look somewhat similar, the mechanics of hitting a bunker shot are different than those used to play a chip shot from grass. In the sand, it's actually advantageous to allow the clubhead to pass your hands past impact. This move encourages a higher, softer shot by increasing the clubhead speed and amount of spin that can be created. Due to the unstable nature of sand, think of these shots as more �handsy� than most others in golf.
...Golf Tips magazine

Turning hands counterclockwise on the shaft (weak grip), promotes a left-to-right flight of the ball (slice). Turning hands clockwise (strong grip) promotes a right-to-left flight of the ball (hook).
...Golf Instruction Guide

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