To put it simply, a stock shot is a shape of shot that you can rely on whether that be a fade or a draw.

The best golfers in the world have had a stock shot. For example…

• Jack Nicklaus – fade
• Ben Hogan – fade
• Lee Trevino – fade
• Nick Price – draw
• Berhard Langer – draw
• Tom Lehman – draw
• Bobby Jones – draw

So why would such great players not just hit the ball straight?

Simply because it’s virtually impossible to hit straight shots. Jack Nicklaus has been quoted as saying he’s only ever hit 3 straight golf shots in all his life.

And he’s one of the best golfers who has ever lived!

So what chance do you and me have of hitting straight golf shots consistently?

Obviously very little to none.

The reason it’s virtually impossible to hit perfectly straight golf shots is because the clubhead is traveling very fast and at impact the clubhead has to be moving exactly along your target line. And I mean exactly, it can’t be a fraction of an inch off. Equally the clubface has to be perfectly square when it contacts the ball. Also, you need to hit the ball directly out of the center of the clubface.

But then, even if you achieved all of this you would probably have wind to deal with which would put some sidespin on your ball.

Now the theory with choosing a stock shot is that it will help you to have greater consistency from one shot to the next. So to hit either a draw or a fade you need to put sidespin on the ball. And to do this you need to contact the ball with a glancing or crosscutting blow.

Here is a practical example of why you need to pick a shape of shot that you can hit consistently.

Let’s say you’re faced with a 5-iron to a green. The pin is on the left side of the green just 10 feet from the fringe. So if your stock shot was a fade you could aim at the pin and if you fluked a dead straight golf shot your ball would be right on the pin. If on the other hand you hit your standard fade shot you would probably end up about 10 feet to the right of the hole with a good chance at holing the putt. But if you had a bit more of a fade than you liked then you might end up 20-30 feet to the right of the hole.

That’s smart golf.

So you have to make a decision which way your normal golf shot (your stock shot) is going to fly. And you only have two options:

1. A fade.
2. A draw.

Now there are pro’s and con’s to both shape of shots, and let’s look at some.

The Fade

A fade is a shot that curves slightly from left to right.

Fade Example

• This shot is easier to control than a draw in my opinion.
• It flies higher and lands softer.
• If a lack of distance is a problem for you then this is probably not the best shape of shot.

The Draw

A draw is a shot that curves slightly from right to left.

Draw Example

So you have to make a choice as to which shape of shot you want to hit.

The major factors in making this choice are height and length. If you play on a course that often requires high shots to stop the ball then the fade will be better at doing this. If on the other hand you need to play a lot of lower shots then a draw is better. Then if you play a golf course that is very, very long and you struggle with distance then a draw will give you more distance. For a shorter tighter course, then a fade will do better.

The bottom line is you have to weigh up what will work better for you.

Now by doing this it doesn’t mean that you can’t hit the other shape of shot. It just means that most of your shots will curve one way, and you’ll know that is going to happen before you play the shot.

OK, let’s say you’ve chosen to play a draw shot as your stock shot.

How are you going to make sure you hit a draw shot consistently?

Well, you’re not going to change anything with your swing. Hopefully you’ve grooved a good solid swing by now. o you’re going to achieve a draw shape of shot by adjusting your setup. Here’s what you need to do.

When you’re standing behind your ball I want you to visualize a straight line from your ball to your ultimate target. Then pick out an initial, intermediate target from your ball to your target. This initial, intermediate target should be about 2-3 feet in front of your ball.

Now, you’re going to pick another intermediate target to the right of your first one. Once you have this second, intermediate target you then use that to setup to your shot.

So you setup your body parallel to the second intermediate target. And by doing this all parts of your body will be aligned to the right of your ultimate target. Here is a picture showing you this setup…

Now the only other adjustment you need to make is to square the clubface up to where you want your ball to finish. So for this example, you would have to close the clubface a fraction so that is pointing at the initial intermediate target. Here is a closeup picture of this…

So there you go, that’s the two main things you have to change in your setup to hit a draw (or fade for that matter).

• Body Alignment
• Clubface alignment

Once you have changed these factors you then simply need to swing along the line you’ve setup. And in the example I’ve just given you that would mean that your swing path will be swinging out to the right of your target. The ball should then curve from right to left because at impact the clubface should be slightly closed and your swing path is in to out.

To hit a fade you simply need to reverse those instructions that I just gave you for a draw. Remember, you simply have to change your body alignment to your final target and then align your clubface to your final target. After doing this you then simply have to swing along your alignment line.

Now there are some other things that will help you to hit one shape of shot or the other. Here they are:<

So the main things you need to adjust are your alignment and cluface positioning at setup to help you hit a stock shot consistently. And the other things I’ve mentioned above are things you can try to help you hit a better and more consistent stock shot.

The bottom line of this lesson is that you need to pick one shape of shot that you can almost certainly always hit. Then make the necessary setup changes and learn to hit that shape of shot consistently. When you do that you’ll have much greater ball striking consistency and consequently much more fun playing golf.

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In short, do something different.  Remember if you do the same things, expect the same results.  To gain in golf confidence you’ve got to do new and different things.  When you’re practicing you should simulate action playing conditions where you lack confidence.  For example, if you tend to miss short putts under pressure then practice 3 footers and have a goal of holing 20 in a row.

When you get to the 15th putt and on you’ll start to feel the pressure you feel on the course, but once you’ve achieved your goal your confidence will increase and that’s at least a start.  Next you can model yourself on a pro that you admire and would love to play like.  Imagine you’re that person as you’re playing your shots.

Watch this pro hit shots that you’re having trouble with and become very aware of their technique and how they’re using their body.  Once you’ve formed this image simply try to copy it, and keep doing this until you become more confident and it won’t take long.

Another great way to build your confidence is to “Act” confident.  Now how would a confident person act?  Would they walk slowly and move hesitantly.  Of course they wouldn’t!  A confident person would walk strongly with their head up, and move their body with the assurance that they know what they’re doing.  So you must do the same.  Play a little game called “Act as if.”  Act as if you’re confident, even if you’re not.

Talk to yourself confidently.  Instead of saying “that was a horrible shot”, say “that shot was not up to my potential, but the next one I’ll do better,” and then walk up to the next shot expecting to get better and you will.

Sometimes when you feel unconfident you may label this as ‘lacking confidence’ and this is not helping.  Anytime you feel you’re lacking in confidence, change the name of this feeling to “keen to do well,” or “excited about being here,” or “expecting the best.”  Simply make up your own terms and change your labels.  If you say you’re sick, you’re going to feel sick and the same principal applies in golf.

To boost your confidence you should work on your physical body.  Do some exercise, get strong because it’s common knowledge that the fitter you are the better mentally you’ll be.  So do regular exercise and you will feel better, no matter what.

Lastly, give each shot your best.  If you do that, then at least you can come off the course proud that you’ve done your best and you can look people straight in the eye and say that.  This will help your confidence no end and this combined with the other techniques I’ve given you will certainly improve your confidence.  They can’t do anything else, but they’ll only work if you do them.  So like the Nike ad slogan says, “Just do it!”

Sadly most golfers imagine what they don’t want to do which creates a game full with frustration.

If you seriously want to improve your golf game then you’ll take a short time before each and every shot to imagine what you want for your golf shot.

This is not new advice and Jack Nicklaus is probably the best example of the power of visualization.  He has said many times…

“I have not hit a shot, not even in practice, without first clearly imagining the result.”

You must do the same if you want to play to your golf potential more often.

Visualization is a habit and if you think you’re no good at it, it’s only because you haven’t used this skill much.  Trust me, the more you visualize the better you’ll get.

Also, while you’re standing behind each and every golf shot, visualizing the outcome you want, take some relaxed breathes.  This will help you to relax and with the combination of visualization and relaxation you simply cannot help but improve your golf game.

Keep doing this, but don’t worry about putting, leave that until after your driving range session.

Doing this will certainly make your practice time more concentrated and focus you on what you should be doing when playing on the golf course.  And when you get to the golf course you’ll feel as though you’ve played the shots before so that should relieve some pressure as well.

If you have any questions about curing fat golf shots just ask below.