As golfers we all know that one of the keys to great golf shots is hitting the ball out of the middle of the golf club.
And the more consistently you can do this the better ball striker you’ll be.
Now I haven’t seen any data comparing the impact pattern on long shots to actual handicap but I have for putting. In Dave Pelz’s Putting Bible he tested golfers impact pattern for putting and arranged the results according to handicap. He found that the higher the handicap the golfer the more inconsistently they struck the ball out of the center of the putter.
Like I said before, I haven’t seen any data like this for the long game but my guess would be the results would be the same, i.e. the better the ball striker the more often they’ll hit the sweetpot. (As a side note I remember playing with Michael Campbell (the 2005 U.S. Open champ) and looking at his irons and they had a worn spot right in the middle of the clubface.)
So that got me thinking….
If you used some impact tape on a driver and you find that you’re hitting the ball all over the clubface, which naturally is not the desired outcome, what are you going to do about it?
What would you do to try and get your impact pattern as close as possible to the center of the clubface — consistently?
I believe finding the answer to that one question could lead to tremendous improvement in ball striking.
So please think about this and put your thoughts below on what you believe it would take to improve the impact pattern on your golf shots. I look forward to reading your ideas. 
March 5th, 2009 at 1:55 am
great post nick! personally I believe most golfers can’t improve this aspect much. it is all about hand eye co-ordination. the reason the top pro’s are at the level they are is because of better hand eye co-ordination over us average joes. you either have it or you don’t. that’s my 2 cents.
March 5th, 2009 at 2:00 am
I’ve used impact tape in the past so I know I hit the ball all over the clubface. Knowing this hasn’t helped my golf game one bit. Over the years I’ve tried changing my swing to try and get more consistency but nothing I try seems to help me improve my ball striking consistency. Unfortunatly maybe Joe is right on this one! Hope not. Look forward to hearing what others have to say on this issue as it’s gotta be so important.
March 5th, 2009 at 2:05 am
Fascinating post Mr Bayley. To be perfectly frank, I have never thought about impact much at all. But you must be right in terms of the importance. Just at a loss right now to think how I would go about improving my no doubt dreadful impact patterns. I hope others may shed some light on this. I will check back often.
March 5th, 2009 at 2:06 am
I think there are a number of things that can be done. First of all – check the fitting of your clubs. The lie angle could be incorrect, the wrong shaft is being used, etc. Secondly, it could be your address at the ball – if you are too far from the ball and you have stretch your arms at address, the natural movement of the downswing, will bring your arms closer to your body, resulting in you hitting with the toe of the club face. I think its a great idea to put tape on your club face and see where you statistically strike the ball more often. A PGA pro should be able to easiliy identify where the error is occuring. That’s my 3 cents.
March 5th, 2009 at 2:19 am
A big NO for Joe´s opinion, which sounds far too fatalistic to me.
A look in Malcom Gladwell´s book “Outliers.The Story od Success” tells us,that the “God given talent” is not unimportant,but ” 10 000 hours
exercise” is the basement for excellent and gives nearly everybody a good chance.
Being optimistic and having fun, by the way, is much more valuable than
trying to reach Tiger Woods.
Gert
March 5th, 2009 at 2:22 am
Nick,
You are absolutely correct in that hitting at the same sweet spot every time regardless of the club, will result in better scores and better hits. But how many amateurs have the time and patience to hit hundreds of balls daily to improve. The more you swing, the more you will improve your hits. But even the pros mishit every now and then. The difference between them and us is that we would like to have their mishits. If you hit every shot on the sweet spot, you would be a very rich man on the tour.
March 5th, 2009 at 2:23 am
Guys
I disagree with Joe above. It really is about focus and concentration. I too have been thinking about impact, as this winter I have really focussed on my game in an effort to get from 13 down into single figures. Actually part of the inspiration came from Dave Pelz but his “Short Game Bible.” I now have 5 wedges in my bag! and I am already scoring in single figures just got ot post a card or two! Back to my comment. This is what I did.
I thought about hitting a nail with a hammer first. Initially a big nail with an ordinary hammer with a small swing then moved to a smaller nail with a longer swing and so on. Obviously the smaller the nail and the longer the swing initially it was hard but after a while it was easy with practise.
From there I coloured half a golf ball black, tee’d it up with the black side as my target impact area and really focussed on that. Then gradually over time I reduced the black coloured side through a series of smaller circles eventually arriving at a black circle the size of a UK 5p on the back of the ball. In a period of about 4 weeks I had really improve my ball striking and added about 7-10% on my carry distance!
March 5th, 2009 at 2:24 am
I believe that keeping your left arm very close to your body helps, having said this, a pro is a pro and an amateur is an amateur.
Good golf.
Antoine
March 5th, 2009 at 2:28 am
Having golf clubs fitted to the correct length and lie.
March 5th, 2009 at 2:32 am
Bingo Nick!!
You have hit upon the biggest reason that 80 some odd percent of golfers can’t break 100!. Pros are pros because they can strike the ball the same way all the time. CONSISTANCY!!
The average weekend guy will never be able to do the same swing all the time because he/she is not playing everyday all year round, like the pros. Most of us are lucky to be able to play every weekend. That
is the Major difference in golfers. Time on the course or range to work out the ‘bugs’ in your swing. The more time, probably the better your swing. One round every or every other week, just doesn’t allow
for alot of improvement. The cost is also getting prohibitive for some. The weekend golfer will never improve that much over the course of a season. The one or two good shots and the love of the game, is what brings us back. Hitting a great drive down the middle 2 or 3 times,or chipping a shot within inches of a hole is what it’s all about. Trying not to get frustrated when your ball screams off to the right or left into the woods is a challenge. But, even if we lose 3 or 4 balls a round we all still want to be ‘Tiger’ and be able to fist pump that ‘chip in’ from the bunker that I did once!!
‘JUST FOR THE LOVE OF THE GAME’
March 5th, 2009 at 2:42 am
Very interesting blog Nick.At my local driving range the balls are washed before being put back through the issuing machine. They come out wet at times and consequently mark the club head. Maybe we should wet the practice balls on the range. However, it will involve checking and dreying the club head after each shot.
I have also noticed some older professionals lined the ball up not out of the middle of the club. Presumably they found this practice easier than a swing change.
Hopefully, two ways readers can chaeck or vary their impact position.
March 5th, 2009 at 2:54 am
Hi Nick,
Surely the place where the ball hits the club face is a reflection of the swing. My concern when hitting the ball is trying to reproduce the same swing every time – by doing so I will be hitting the ball with the same part of the club face.
Just bought a new set of irons and were custom fitted. Impact pattern on the my old set were central, but a bit wayward with the new set, but am beginning to get the more consistent pattern as I become used to the new set.
Many factors will influence the wear pattern, but the interaction of ball and club face can be determined and changed further up the kinematic chain.
Clearly the more reproducible and the more honed the swing – the the more concentrated the impact pattern.
Great blog.
Gus
March 5th, 2009 at 3:06 am
Great thought Nick. As we are at the beginning of the season here in the UK, its time to go back to basics. In winter/Spring conditions you are not going to hit 275 yard drives. To tune up for the forthcoming season, I am looking at building up my swing in small parts. One piece take away, full shoulder turn, start with a 3/4 swing, trying to get a balanced finish. I am not looking for distance at all. That will come on the months ahead. I think a lot of golfers either just do the same things week in week out, or go to the range and just hit a buck of balls full pelt. To get better at this game you need a structured practice regime, and build slowly.
Paul
March 5th, 2009 at 3:09 am
Interesting can of worms to open!
OK then here is my take on the subject.
I started playing golf at the ripe old age of 57. My son got me into the game. He hits a ball a long way but often not very straight!
I resigned myself to learn how to hit the ball straight as I could see that to do otherwise costs shots.
Now I am nearly 60. Fortunately I am reasonably fit except for a “bad neck” a weak left shoulder joint and a bad back at times.
I say all this to paint the picture. I can rotate reasonably well though.
At first the ball went all over the place. Then I put my mind to work.
Bearing in mind my physical problems I found ways of getting to hit the ball straight with the various clubs that I use.
The most important thing in my opinion for a “reasonably consistent” game is placing the club at the correct angles at address and not allowing the club to twist throughout the whole of the swing. Surely it’s obvious that unless the club is at the correct angles at MOI then the ball wont go anywhere! To develop this train of thought meant my swinging the club at very slow speed, slow motion in fact, to see how the clubhead arrives at the ball.I found that I need to “close the clubface” a little at address. It’s all basic stuff really but how many golfers do these checks.
This meant that I have developed my own style of grip to prevent the club twisting during the swing. I found that the “conventional interlocking grip” did not suit me so I now use my own “Mickey Mouse” grip. It works for me. Oh I forgot to mention that I damaged some fingers of my right hand a while ago and the interlocking grip is painful anyway!
I have never had nor intend to have a golf lesson.
My reasoning behind this “self teaching” aproach is this, ” How can a fit experienced pro, perhaps 6 foot plus, possibly have any idea what it’s like to be a 5′6″ older guy with physical limitations? Well he can’t! I am not in any way knocking good golf teachers. If I were young and fit I would be thinking differently. I see youngsters that have had lessons swinging and hitting the ball sooooo sweetly. I am envious!
I have learned to hit the ball by trying to work out the dynamics of ball striking. It isn’t rocket science but does take a lot of thinking about and experimenting.
How I went about it was to have a club to hand at my workshop and try to hit small rolled up bits of discarded masking tape about the size of my thumbnail. My reasoning was this “If I can hit such a small object consistently then I should be able to hit a golf ball!
It worked!!! But not without going through the processes I outlined above.
My son at 37 will not take a blind bit of notice of me and blames elements of his swing when his shots go off target.
He is now getting really pissy because I am hitting the ball straight and getting a fair distance despite “doing it all wrong” while he struggles at times. This despite lots of lessons.
I rarely “shank” the ball. It comes out of the middle most times. My main fault is lifting my head to soon. Something a lot of golfers do.I am working on that.
All of this may well be poo-pooed by the traditionalists out there, but I have taken the trouble to tell it how I see it in the hope that someone just like me might get some hope to improve their game by using their head and not the driving range!!!
I still have much to learn but boy do I enjoy it!
March 5th, 2009 at 3:12 am
I think that there is definitely a correlation between hitting it in the sweet spot and somewhere near it or not at all. On the odd occassion that I’ve been able to do it, the feel and feedback from your irons or driver is amazing. Firstly one gets the sense that its almost effortless and secondly you can always tell from the sound, it sure sounds sweet. Lately I’ve discovered that slowing my swing (as in not trying to smack the hell out of it) seems to enable me to get closer to that sweet spot, certainly for the driver at any rate. Just working on the irons now
March 5th, 2009 at 3:14 am
Can’t you tell when you hit the sweet spot? Can’t you tell where you hit the club face both by the way it feels and the ball flight? I have often wondered what the value of impact tape is.
I agree with the other responders that knowing whether you are hitting the sweet spot isn’t the problem, it’s how.
March 5th, 2009 at 3:33 am
Great question. It is a problem I have been working on for years with little success so this year I am taking a new approach. Three things I think will help get consistent impact. Consistent grip, consistent posture and most importantly a consistent routine. It not as easy as it sounds t do but it has been helping.
March 5th, 2009 at 3:33 am
Duplication. The abillity to repeat the same motion again and again. Logics seem to imply that in order to hit sweep-spot consistently you must be able to repeat a motion. Like a door “swings” on the hinges. If a hinge is loose and moves randomly the door will “swing” randomly. One of my guiding lines in practicing swing-tips is whether it is a motion I am able to repeat again and again. If the tip has motions that I find it hard to repeat/duplicate then I dis-regard it. Our bodies are different and what we can do with our bodies are different. Thus swing-tips can be good for some and bad for others. Everyone who can tie their own shoelaces can duplicate a motion. You properbly tie your shoelaces with the exact same motions without even thinking about it. The abillity to duplcate a motion is present and I found it wothwile to simple practise duplication and try to avoid motions that I have a hard time duplicating. Maybe thats a way to go about it?
March 5th, 2009 at 3:33 am
nick -
great post. are you going to address the ‘how’?
March 5th, 2009 at 3:38 am
I did put the impact tape on my driver. I did see that I tend to be inconsistent. I hit it all over the place but mainly forward of the sweetspot.
I am a high handicapper. I drive the ball about 210 yards. Once when I hit it perfectly, I went 270. WOW.
My pro golfer friend told me that it cost 12 yards for every 1/8th of an inch you hit it off center. I believe that.
Don’t know what to do about it. I did notice I tend to tee the ball up too high. I see guys with tees that are painted. I try to use my fingers (2 fingers) to measure how deep to plant the tee.
Just a few thoughts
Doug
March 5th, 2009 at 3:46 am
1)Find a pro who still teaches the old fashioned swing
2)Make sure of a good set-up
3)Turn the shoulder comfortably on backswing
4)Pause at top and begin downswing with left hip
5)Keep head behind line of ball
6)Wrap the club around your neck
Get this correct and have yourself fitted with suitable shafts
YOU ARE NOW ON THE HIGHWAY TO IMPROVED BALL STRIKING
March 5th, 2009 at 3:51 am
Nick this is a great question. Pros hit the center more often than amatuers because they have proper swing mechanics, they have great hand eye coordination and they practice ALOT. The way to get consistent contact for the regular fellow is through perfect setup and proper swing mechanics. If you do those things you don’t have to think or try to hit it perfectly in the center you will be pretty close. Think about iron Bryon. Cheers!
March 5th, 2009 at 4:03 am
Dear Nick,
I think it’s relatively easy to find the middle of the clubface consistently, it’s just the majority of people do not have the patience and also practice poorly.
To master a swing – I always recommend to friends of mine that if they want to improve seriously – they should learn how to hit a pitching wedge with a 9 o clock through to 3 o clock follow through using the body rotation to achieve this.
Only after you can consistently flight a wedge correctly should you consider moving on to an eight iron etc…….
Best regards,
Barry in Thailand
March 5th, 2009 at 4:28 am
Holding somewhere between an 11&20 handicap(have not played in a few years),I would think you would need to regrain your swing.Maybe starting with 1/4 swings@30% with impact tape on a 7 iron & slowly progressing to a full swing with adequate power.
March 5th, 2009 at 4:33 am
Nick, May I suggest for a practice routine, placing your driver on the ground as you would before hitting the ball, put a golf tee in the ground at the heel and one at the toe, you can start off leaving a little wiggle room between them. You can either place a tee in the middle and use a ball on top and try to hit the ball without hitting the tee’s at the heel or toe. Or just practice swinging between the tees and not hit them, as you get better you can decrease the distance between the tee’s. If you can do this constantly you will be ready for the PGA
Don
March 5th, 2009 at 4:56 am
I believe that I do pretty good with hitting the ball in the center of the club head. However, what I think can be more important and something that can improve ones ball striking is controlling the path of the club. In the winter, as it is now, with the New Jersey beaches pretty much deserted I often take an 8 iron and half a dozen balls and walk along the beach for a couple of hours hitting balls from one end to the other. With the ocean on one side and sand dunes on the other hitting the ball straight is critical. In addition to alignment,loose grip and tempo one must be cognizant of the clubs path at impact. A slight roundness to the golf swing a impact caused by the wrist rotating in a horizontal diection rather than vertical at impact will result in a shot 20-30 yards off the target line. I would be interested in your thoughts.
Pat
March 5th, 2009 at 5:25 am
Practice, practice, and working on swing tempo….not how hard…how straight!
March 5th, 2009 at 5:30 am
Minimize the hands and wrists and keep the larger trunk muscles in sync with the club face on as close to the same plane as possible I think. Certainly power moves including loading up and firing the club through contact with the hands and wrists adds distance to the drive, but makes hitting the same spot very difficult.
I would also guess the quieter and more rythmic the swing the less deviation from hitting the same spot or close to it each time
March 5th, 2009 at 5:32 am
I think this takes repetition. Just like the basketball player that isn’t that good at file shots, you need to practice. The practice has to start slow with a shorter swing and a concentration on contact or “center of hit”. I took lessons awhile back where this was a major point of the course objectives. On the first day we spent 4 hours (3 in the morning and 1 after lunch) hitting nothing but a sand wedge from various distances. We only varied the length of our back swing (ankle high, mid-calf, knee, waist, etc.). We were given a square target on the green to hit into and you could see a major improvement throughout the morning as our consistency improved and our dispersion got smaller and more accurate. Later during the course we took that drill to all our clubs including the driver. Try hitting a driver 125 to 150 yards with a shorten swing repeated first left of target then right of target, focusing on hitting the ball in the center of the face. This is a geat way to “warm-up” before a round, gertting the feel of “centerness of hit”. Its not magic that makes us better its commitment and practice.
March 5th, 2009 at 5:40 am
I was hitting my driver on the heel. then i realized iwas liningup the club on the sweet spot while on the ground and then lifting it up toswing on plane. i started ling up onthe toe alttle bit and started hitting it in the sweet spot.
March 5th, 2009 at 5:50 am
I think we have use driver with stiff shaft for this or with steel shaft for consistancy.
March 5th, 2009 at 5:55 am
pros are very consistent with ball position, set up, alignment, posture, etc. This pre shot consistency, along with great hand eye, and much practice has to contribute.
March 5th, 2009 at 6:15 am
3/5/09
When I hit the ball straight it is usually the result of the left hand being in control of the swing through impact. I don’t guarantee that this has hit the ball in the exact center of the clubface, but if the ball has gone straight to my target, I don’t particularly care exactly where there ball has been contacted. Perfection might be great, but I will take what I get.
All I work on is the consistent feeling of the left hand going through the ball toward my target. I am 82 years old, have been playing for 73 years, and have a 10 handicap.
March 5th, 2009 at 6:41 am
My personal opinion on this is that amateurs dont spend enough time on their posture and alignment,if they did i am sure through time their ball striking would improve significantly.
March 5th, 2009 at 6:42 am
I believe Joe has it right – hand eye co-ordination or the lack there-of is cause and effect.
David
March 5th, 2009 at 6:47 am
Nick, Great stuff! I agree and recently bought a set of forged blades to teach me the very thing you allude to. In 6 mos I took my handicap from a 15 to a 9. I know it was a harsh approach, however it worked because it forced me to hit the ball in the center of the clubface. A little yoga for flexability didn’t hurt either. Keep up the great work!!
alan
March 5th, 2009 at 6:48 am
I have a friend who is a former european tour player and he has that dime sized mark on all his irons. The great ball strikers I have ever seen never seem to lose their balnce and their swings look very simple with little wasted effort, unlike my own.
March 5th, 2009 at 6:52 am
Nice post Nick with some good information, the fact of the matter is you rarely hit the ball dead center. The reason I have found is because of inconsistencies in my swing if you don’t have a consistent swing you are not going to hit the ball consistently anywhere on the club. I have been working on a more consistent swing and have found that I hit the ball a little off center towards the toe. I believe the better my swing path becomes the closer I will get to the center of the club. The funny part about hitting one in the center is does happen on occasion when you just pure one and it is a great feeling and a beautiful thing to see, that’s what keeps me on the journey for the perfect swing. IMO
March 5th, 2009 at 6:55 am
Nice read.When I was teaching I used impact stickers to show students this need for consistancy.Results were allways amazing as to impact and ball flight/distance.I can say that almost every time we could achieve consistant shots were while using only half to 3/4 swings.It seemed the fuller and faster swings couldn’t conform a repeatable pattern in the way a golfer who only used a 1/2 or 3/4 swing. I cant say it was eye hand coordination,suspected it was,but after trying some video taping of their swings during a round,without them knowing,we foud all sorts of body movements at the 2/3 swing that explained most of the mis-hits.And as many instructors know,when you overthink while at address you will lose it .A pro has a better mental game and that is something hard to develope yet keep in control for the average golfer.Just my opinion,golf is the greatest game ever and even the Pros have really bad shots,just less frequently.
March 5th, 2009 at 7:14 am
It all goes back to basics and good swing mechanics. Balance, timing and rhythm. While working with Ben Witter, we put impact tape on our drivers and drew a circle the size of a quarter right on the sweetspot. Ben, who is one of the longest hitters in the world was never outside the circle. My worst shots were at the edges of the circle but never outside of it. It’s all about maintaining your core and center of balance – along with your spine angle. Even though Curtis Strange won back-to-back US Opens with a 6 inch lateral movement, he returned to “near” his original address position at impact (head slightly back). I can’t believe that all the great tour pros have exceptional hand-eye coordination (Tiger does, obviously). If you swing in balance, with a good core and maintain your spine angle – and the hands do not dominate your swing – all will be right at impact. Nick P. senior mini-tour pro…
March 5th, 2009 at 7:24 am
I think the major cause of not consistently hitting the ball with the center of the clubface is excessive swing speed. What golfer hasn’t had the experience of intentionally slowing his swing down and then hitting the ball as far or even farther than when swinging harder. Many pros claim to swing at only 80-85 percent of full power. But I think most amateurs, especially high-handicappers, swing all out in order to get maximum power. I’ve read articles in some of the golf magazines that recommend a shorter back swing, claiming you will hit the ball just as far. I think that’s because they control the clubface better. Anyone can check this out for themselves by using impact tape and comparing patterns produced by hitting the ball with their full swing as opposed to a shorter, maybe three-quarter, swing. The harder a golfer swings, the more exact his timing and coordination must be.
March 5th, 2009 at 7:24 am
Three things that will improve ball striking – consistant set up, consistant set up, consistant set up!
gary
March 5th, 2009 at 7:35 am
It seems to me that tempo, balance, and swing path are the keys to center face ball striking. Tempo helps to maintain control of the club, hence the face; balance maintains position relative to the location of the ball at rest; swing path keeps the club on plane throughout the entire exercise. I don’t think you can improve just one without also paying attention to the other 2.
March 5th, 2009 at 8:05 am
That’s a good question Nick. I believe that Nick P. is correct when he alludes to balance, timing and good swing mechanics, which involve a good grip and posture. Because without them, you don’t even stand a chance of hitting the ball correctly, never mind the sweet spot. As was mentioned before, most people go to the range and beat balls with no thought or purpose and they think it’s a way of improving their swings. Keep up the good work.
Bob
March 5th, 2009 at 8:39 am
Interesting that you posted on this subject now. At my last trip to the practice range, I found a strip of impact tape in my bag and used it. I found that I was consistently hitting on the hosel side of the club face. So I kept setting up farther and farther from the ball, wiht no improvement.
Then I had an epiphany of sorts. I discovered that it isn’t enough to set up with the ball in the center of the club face because your habitual swing will just naturally adjust and strike the ball in the same old place. What worked for me was focusing my vision on the side of the ball closest to me and actually TRYING to hit that spot on the downswing.
Now I can’t wait to get out on the course and try it—as soon as it stops raining every damn day!
March 5th, 2009 at 9:43 am
I think two things are needed:
1. Golf specific strength exercise to enable maintaining a proper posture throughout the swing. If your legs,back,shoulder and core muscles are not strong enough to keep you in posture, you will be inconsistant in ball stricking.
2. With #1 a given, practice, practice, practice over an over again of a proper swing plane w/o concern for distance. Start with abbreviated (half swings)until consistant and increase to 3/4 swings until consistant and then full swings at 70% etc.
These take time and effort. That’s what make them the pros!!
March 5th, 2009 at 11:10 am
Hi Nick ;I am a senior golfer. Some time ago cleaning my irons I realize the impact area being displaced to the toe, more the longer the irons. The same with the Driver.By taking an adress position closer at the ball, impact tape and practice, I improved my ball striking dramatially. I think most handicap golfers almost NEVER hit the sweetspot with medium and long irons and seldom with the Driver too. Many are not even aware of it. Only by focusing on finding the sweet spot more times than not,I dropped my handicap from 16 to 12 in 3 months.
March 5th, 2009 at 12:03 pm
I believe pros because of natural athletic abilities plus the fact that they practice more and play more games, end up hitting the sweet spot more often. My theory comes from observing the people who have ugly-looking swings. Even if they don’t have the ‘perfect-looking’ swings, they still are able to hit the ball however not consistently. I imagine it’s all about muscle memory. With the proper technique and enough practice, the body will respond and be able to be more consistent.
March 5th, 2009 at 12:50 pm
Nick, good observation that ball striking is an important factor.
The hand/eye coordination thing is a learned thing. It takes lots of practice to attain good hitting. Think of the baseball player. He/she has to practice at hitting the ball to get the bat in the right place at the right time. Try starting out as Paul B suggests and do partial swing parts. Do them slowly as to get used to where the club face ends up at impact. Once you get to the point of seeing where the face meets the ball, then hit a few with a slow swing and see where the ball flies and maybe you might fix some other issues as well. This has worked for me when I start up the playing season.
March 5th, 2009 at 1:16 pm
I really think that hitting the sweetspot all the time if not most of the time is about getting the swing plane in the ’sweetspot’ if you know what I mean. So before you start worrying about hitting the ball in the sweetspot, get your backswing sorted out first and foremost. Start by getting rid of two things, the overswing and the incorrect swing plane. Before too long you will start experiencing sweetness with every ball you hit.
March 5th, 2009 at 1:50 pm
It seems to me that from the physical side of the problem the answer lies in using less moving parts during the golf swing, ie, simplify your golf swing. On the mental side, we need to let go of the killer instinct and trust in the physics involved in making a solid swing.
March 5th, 2009 at 2:41 pm
I hadn’t thought much about this problem until now. i think the first step in correct ball striking is to analyze where you are now and then thru trial and error make suttle swing changes and ascertain if the scatter pattern has improved or not. I agree with harris. The change has to come from correcting flaws in your swing. i.e. one piece takeaway, swing plane, balance, spine angle, ball position etc. I look forward for your comments about this problem..
March 5th, 2009 at 2:54 pm
as a genuine hacker i realise balance is the key to good striking and it is probably the hardest for one to keel consistent. So your set up proceedures are critical for consistency
March 5th, 2009 at 3:15 pm
Taking up where you started – with putting – I find that although hitting the sweet spot with this club should be easy, certainly compared with longer clubs, it isn’t. Improvement for me comes with feed-back. You know when you have done it and your brain tries to repeat it. I think it is the same with the longer clubs – it is part of the total feed-back that comes with hitting the ball correctly. But of course the longer the club the more the variables and I agree with Harris that you have to get everything else right first.
March 5th, 2009 at 3:20 pm
Hi Nick -
I hit it all over the clubface and would love to learn how to hit it consistently in the sweetspot. I do have one suggestion, though – you can save yourself some money by using duct tape instead of impact tape. The ball will leave a very clear impression on the tape, and it is easily removed from the club face. I use it on my driver and irons, and it works quite well.
March 5th, 2009 at 4:41 pm
I think you hit on a critical issue – hitting the sweet spot. How many times are we fat or thin in our hits? I am convinced that it can be improved by concentrating on seeing the ball being hit. I believe this is the way to eventually find the middle of the club in a consistent manner. Easy to say – hard to do.
March 5th, 2009 at 5:05 pm
If you want to hit the sweet spot more often one of the most important points that many make a mistake in is the take away. Your mind set is I have a ball, I want it to go along ways, I have a club so beat it to death. Most people if you watch them when they take the club away from the ball they do it with their hands and arms, then make the shoulders do something. The shoulder take the club back with the arms and hands in one movement. The take away is to be done slow– why hurry to the top of the swing to stop fast and reverse direction and take your club of plane. If you want to be good at golf do it slow and easy without effort and make your body turn hit the ball for you not your hands and arms only. With this you will hit the sweet spot more often then you think.
March 5th, 2009 at 5:40 pm
I am a very high hadicap 30+ and I know this is because I have very poor contact,but being able to fix that is something I can’t seem to solve. It is frustrating because I have played every other sport and was above average, so I don’t know if it is eye-hand coordination, focus, or swing too hard and completely out of control. I have tried slow half swings and still cannot make consistent contact with the sweet spot.
March 5th, 2009 at 7:02 pm
I was given a couple of drills for hitting the sweetspot when I was learning the game 50 years ago. Uh-huh FIFTY. #1- Set up a “wiffle” style practice ball between 2 tees planted just far enough apart to allow your pitching wedge to pass through. Make short pitch shot swings through the “gate” until you can consistently miss the tees and put a good strike on the “ball”. GRADUALLY progress until you’re using a smooth full pitching wedge swing and don’t hit the tees. #2- Go through the process again FROM THE BEGINNING, but use a real ball. #3- When you’re proficient with the real ball move up to a 6 iron, then a 3 iron (or hybrid), then 3 wood and finally the driver. If you hit a stumbling block back up to your last successful level and give it a bit more time. The second “drill” was to play ping-pong left handedly. Being a natural “righty”, this improved my hand-eye coordination dramatically in short order. Stil do both of these from time to time and still hit it in the face pretty consistently. Good luck.
March 5th, 2009 at 7:18 pm
There seems to be a number of comments that this is linked to eye hand coordination. While I have to believe that is true I suspect it also comes from a consistent swing path. If I am over the top one swing and inside out the next I would expect that I am likely hitting the club face in different locations. Club builders use impact tape all the time to see if the person being fitted as a general area they are hitting the ball on the club face. Then attempts can be made to help compensate for this. I’m not sure that an average players eye hand coordination is that bad (by average I mean say a 10 – 12 handicap). I think these players often don’t practice enough and often have poor course management skills. So I think anything that can be done to create a constant swing will give the potential with a proper fitting to improve consistency on where on the face the ball is hit. This is obviously my unscientific thoughts supported more by lots of reading about building clubs. Just so someone doesn’t think I am trying to pump custom fit clubs I only build clubs for myself for fun. I have no profit motivate in these thoughts.
March 5th, 2009 at 8:25 pm
hi nick
the correct length of your clubs will help to hit the ball
in the middle of the club face
Ray
March 6th, 2009 at 12:02 am
All things considered (Nick P. – Stance /Grip/Posture are sound) – “Aim Small”… Be percise in your training. If you train yourselves to “just” hit the ball in the center of the club face (Driver / Irons) your brain will do just that! The center of todays Driver is about the size of a old 20 dollar gold coin (Yes, i use to dig for gold in them dar hills). And the center of todays Irons are about the size of a Kennedy Half-Dollar. Now, if you train yourselves to focus on a dot (like about this big – O) on the 2nd scoring line of the club face iron. That’s the first part. Part 2: Where on the ball do you want that dot to connect to? On a simmilar dot 1/4″ below the equator of the ball. It’s about reducing your margin of error.
Nick – good article.
March 6th, 2009 at 2:52 am
It’s great to here all opinions of the golf swing, mechanics & even some thought into training and flexibility. All sounds interesting and Nick; yes consistant ball striking is part of the success of the better players.
I’m lucky to have worked with some of the best tour professionals in Australia and I’ve seen most of the best players in world live. Work ethic, talent, focus, strength, flexibility, good diet, mentally strength with total belief & trust are just all part of being a great player.
The key to all of this is to not try but to just believe, trust and just do.
It’s interesting that all golfers ask the question of how to achieve pure timing all of the time. There really isn’t one answer as all good golf coaches know. Everyone thinks differently, we all have different shapes, strengths, flexibility and thankfully we all seek perfection.
The only thing I’d like to offer at this stage is the importance of the basics. Like all sports, if we have an athletic set up, we remain relaxed with absoulutley no tension and ensure our enlignment is spot on we are half way there.
I’d like to talk about pre-shot routines leading into the golf swing but I’ll leave this important part of the golf swing success to another time.
Good Golfing everyone & keep the good work up Nick.
March 6th, 2009 at 3:15 am
Great article Nick, so what’s the answer?
Joe
March 6th, 2009 at 3:24 am
I hope you are allowed to have two goes at this and I also hope that I don’t contradict what I said before. Anyway, today’s events have prompted me to return to the topic.
I had a practice round today, by myself, with this question in mind, and thought I would bore you with the outcome.
I reached the second-last hole, a par 5, and ended up right of the fairway, needing to hit a 7 iron to get over some trees but not go too far into trees on the other side. I sliced the shot into the first lot of trees so dropped another ball and had another go – same result (not only was I alone on the hole but pretty much alone on the course so could get away with this).
After ‘getting’ one of the balls onto the fairway I decided that I needed the practice and would hit another 7 iron even though I was about 160 metres out and didn’t expect to get there. Before hitting I contemplated what I had done wrong previously and what I needed to do to improve. I concluded that I had been struggling for distance all day and had been hitting fairway woods in lieu of short irons like the 7 iron (nothing new there) and that, even though I felt that I had the ball in the correct position in relation to my feet and the soul of the club properly grounded and centered, I had probably taken the 7 iron back on a fairway wood path. I also felt that the lie-angle of the club was important and that, in taking the club away too far from my body, I had returned on who knows what angle of shaft and lie.
Turns out (probably) that I was right as I almost reached the green. Now you are probably thinking ‘What’s so special about a 150 metre 7 iron?’. Well 150 metres is 5 iron territory for me (on a good day) so if I hit a 7 iron 150 metres I have hit the sweet spot, trust me.
Now I am not suggesting that you necessarily need to take the club away closer to your body than is at first intuitive. What I am suggesting is that the back-swing path, as it relates to the lie-angle of the selected club, may be ‘coloured’ by the clubs that you have used previously and that it is critical to hitting the sweet spot.
March 6th, 2009 at 7:37 am
Nick,
Good thoughts for sure. I am not a teacher but from a club fitting standpoint I have used impact tape or spray mark a lot. Everyone is quick to blame the coordination angle or tempo or whatever. What about length, grip size, loft and lie? Even swingweight can move the contact pint in and out. This stuff makes a hugh difference – I know this for absolutley positive.
Mike Phelan
March 6th, 2009 at 10:08 am
I have found that when I found where I was hitting the ball on all my clubs, I tried several things to correct it and the most improved one was I took 3 short back swings than increased to my full swing. I did this with all my clubs, than I checked again 2 months later as my hc droped to single digets I improved 70% with most all my clubs. Make it your goal for the year and it most diffently will help you!
Pat
March 6th, 2009 at 11:07 am
Nick,
I agree with Michael Phelan’s assessment that the proper club fitting can make a big difference. (along with the proper swing mechanics.) One very missed and misunderstood part of club fitting and clubmaking is the spine alignment of the shaft, and how it affects the repeatability in the sweet spot. We have tested this here in our studio. There is a 45% incerease in the average amature’s ability to repeat in the sweet spot when the clubshaft is spine aligned. The low handicapper has better than a 68% increase because of their better swing mechanics and hand/eye co-ordination. Most tour pro’s have their clubs “PURed” by SST and enjoy much better feel and ball striking. Even at their level, they can see and feel a difference.
Karl
March 6th, 2009 at 11:14 am
Nick, it seems to me that all of use are in agreement with respect to hitting the sweet spot.
I find it easy to do with the putter since I cn see just where I am striking the ball. Will have to try the impact tape to validate my thinking and I will do that. Never saw the value of using in on the putter.
with respect to the driver I have used the tape. It proved to me that yes I do hit a lot on the spot bt it also showed me that I do mishit quite a few shots also.
Eye hand corrdination, muscle tenseness, twitch, poor grip, and probably a lot of other things seem to be the cause. I believe it is a combination of all of these. I guess that is just being inconsistent. Maybe if I could hit the driving range for 2 hours every day for a year or so I could become more consistent but I would rather play on the course and struggle with the problem. Thanks for the info, Bill
March 6th, 2009 at 1:23 pm
Nick,
Ball striking it`s the same as kicking a Rugby ball or hitting a Softball or Baseball,it comes down to Timing,control your back swing and just let it go.I changed clubs not that long ago,the new ones do feel a bit heavier not much but noticable,my planes the same but i changed my timing,seems to be working for me my handicaps still coming down, maybe it might help someone else,Happy Hitting Guys.
March 7th, 2009 at 11:20 pm
I believe hitting it on the sweet spot is not as important as the angle of attack into the ball. When you set up to hit your shot if your playing a draw and come out of your swing you can still manage to hit the sweet spot but that balls gonna push way right. If you stay in it long enough to maybe catch the ball a little thin your still gonna get your desired ball flight toward your target.
March 8th, 2009 at 4:41 pm
At the speed the pros swing their clubs, if it is hand to eye coordination, they must have the eyes of a hawk. I would like to believe that muscle memory plays a vital role. August 2009 would be two years I have been playing golf and with my limited experience, having the right stance, grip etc. and the right feel when making the swing, the ball goes where it is suppose to go.
March 9th, 2009 at 1:56 am
If the club head is as small as the sweet spot to make any contact then you must strike the ball within the sweet spot. The answer, then, is smaller club heads rather than larger as is the current trend. Perhaps a practice club with a small club bhead would help.
March 9th, 2009 at 6:23 am
Good debate topic Nick, I tend to agree with Harris on this.The overswing can be a killer as you end up all out of shape on the backswing, which can only be bad for clubhead striking position.It seems an improved plane with a more controlled swing length makes for a more consistent ball strike.I have been trying to work on both of these flaw’s during the closed season and am looking forward to a few improved score’s.
March 9th, 2009 at 1:41 pm
I find that if my striking is not consistent, that gripping down the shaft ,and easing off with the right hand pressure gives me more sweetspot consistency.
March 10th, 2009 at 7:50 pm
Great thoughts from all and I think in general I agree with everyone. But mostly I’ll go with repetitive practice of the basics and finding your own comfortable swing thoughts. For me personally it’s a strong shoulder turn, soft hands and reeling in that trailing elbow. With those three keys I had a very productive trip to the range today. Not perfect by any means but strides ahead of where I left off last year.
March 11th, 2009 at 12:08 pm
As pat logan points out, where you strike the ball with the club is a function of the path of the club at impact. If you want more consistent ball striking, you should have a more repeatable swing path when the club hits the ball. It starts with good fundamentals on the grip, stance, backswing and the downswing. When you have a good path to the ball, then all you have to do is hit thousands of balls on the range to replicate the pros ability to hit it consistently. I personally don’t think you want hand/eye coordination to come into the picture, because that is your mind making small corrections to get the ball where it need to be at impact. I think you want your sub-conscience to adjust everything down to impact with no corrections. And I wish it was all so easy.
March 12th, 2009 at 3:39 am
I used impact tape on my woods the last time I played. Early days yet, but I found I was hitting balls the hosel side of centre – like Bruce. Even when I tried to stand further from the ball it seemed to make no difference. I then tried to set up with the clubhead closer to me than the ball and this did not seem to sort things out. I am told that if anything I stand too far from the ball so do not want to fiddle with setup too much, but have rechecked with Nick’s drill and feel happy with this. I do tend to come ‘over the top’ with my shots so need to tackle this to see if it corrects the off centre hits. Also I need to check if my weight is shifting too much towards my toes on the downswing. I will also try Bruce’s suggestion of trying to hit a spot on the inside rear ofthe ball.
March 15th, 2009 at 2:47 pm
Adding on to my last contribution on the backswing ie a shortend one and a good swing plane which can be achieved by the one-piece-take away, I will now make a contribution on the downswing. Line up 20 balls and hit some pitch shots to say 10 or 20 meters. If you hit some fat, thin or undesirable shots then you most probably used your arms in the downswing in all of the 20 shots. Now line up the 20 balls again for the same distance and this time for the downswing, focus on turning your shoulders. As you turn your shoulders towards the ball the arms will follow naturally allowing the clubface to meet the ball without any arm/hand manipulation. You will find that fat shots will be greatlly reduced or elimanated once and for all. Apply your new found shoulder turn technique with the mid/long irons for sweet contact all the time.