1. You are setting up too close to the ball,

2. You are moving your body toward the golf ball during your downswing, or

3. Your club is swinging out toward the ball on the downswing generally because of a too flat swing.

All of these result in a shank.  So how do we fix it?

Well first of all, when you setup to a shot make sure that your hands are a good distance away from your body.  When your hands are too close to your body at address you’ll have little space to swing the club back to the ball and this will sometimes cause a shank.  A good distance to have the hands away from your body is about a hand-span between the butt end of the club and your body.

Another common reason why golfers shank a shot is because they are trying to keep their head down and end up exaggerating and moving the head towards the ball, which of course moves the entire body towards the ball and this means the club moves out towards the ball.

If you are “trying” to keep your head down then you’re asking for trouble, because when golfers, and people in general, “try” to do anything it causes tension. If you think you are doing this or even if you don’t I suggest you give this short exercise a try!

First of all don’t “try” to keep your head down, but what you can do is hit balls while being aware of any head movement.  Simply watch and give a score to your head movement.  Have 0 as the bench mark for no head movement during the swing, +10 as a lot of head movement towards the ball, and –10 as a lot of head movement away from the ball. Now hit balls and notice your head movement and score each swing as to how much head movement you have.  Don’t “try” to stop it just be aware and score each swing.  For reasons you don’t need to know or understand just by doing this your head movement will dramatically decrease without you “trying” to do it.

Another good way to reduce head movement is to setup to an imaginary shot with your head resting on a wall (do this without a club).  Now simply make the motions with your arms as if you’re holding a club and swinging.  Your head should stay where it was at address for pretty much the entire swing.  Keep repeating this for as long a period as you like.  You can never do this too much.

The second most common reason for a shank is because a golfer has a too flat backswing.  And if your backswing is too flat it will be very hard for you to bring the clubface back into the ball on the downswing because the hosel will be leading into the ball. But probably the best drill I can give you to stop a shank is to place a shoe box or something similar just outside the toe of the club at address like this…

Shank Box Fix Drill

Once this is setup you simply have to hit shots as normal, but obviously if you come down into the ball with the clubface out towards the ball at all then you’ll hit the box.  This drill is great because it gives you instant feedback as to whether or not you’re swinging down correctly.  All you have to do is come on the inside and miss the box!

One last drill to fix a shank is to place a tee just inside the ball so it’s directly in front of your hosel.  When you swing the idea is to make an effort to hit the tee and if you do you’ll hit the ball squarely, but if you miss the tee then you’ve hit the ball with the hosel, so aim for the tee. Here’s a summary of what you should do to get rid of your shanks once and for all.

1. Check how far you’re standing from the ball.  Make sure it’s about a hand-span away from your body.

2. Do the head movement awareness exercise as well as resting your head against a wall and making imaginary swings at a ball with your arms while keeping the head where it was at address.

3. Test to see the flatness of your swing by swinging up against a wall.  Keep doing this until you can consistently miss the wall with your backswing.

4. Place a shoe box just outside the toe of your club so it’s pointing at your target line and swing.  If you hit the box on the downswing then that will give you instant feedback that you moved the club away from you.  So all you have to do is keep swinging while attempting to miss the box.

5. Place a tee just inside the ball so it’s in front of your hosel and swing while trying to hit the tee on the downswing.  If you miss the tee then you’ll shank it, so the objective is to hit the tee which will result in a well hit shot OR at worst a shot hit off the toe of the golf club.

If you follow these guidelines diligently then you’ll get rid of your shank.  I wish you all the best and I know how disheartening shanking shots can be because I’ve been through it myself.  Good luck and if you want any more help to fix a shank ask any questions below.

P.S. If you suffer from the shanks take heart because even the best in the world like Tiger Woods hit a shank now and then.  Watch this video for proof.