As my dad, Butch, likes to say, there are many ways to build consistency in this game. It doesn’t matter what your swing looks like. The key is to learn how to manage the clubface, make center contact and repeat it.
Many players struggle with the dreaded slice. The ball starts left and then curves wildly to the right. Do that enough times and you are bound to start missing to the left as well, which then leaves you with a dreaded double miss. For most players, the slice happens when the path gets too out-to-in and the face is open at impact. Most players who do this try to change everything and chase draws. But if your path is already left, why not chase a power fade instead? The fix to go from slice to Dustin Johnson’s power fade is to make sure both the path and face are working left through the ball.
Lay two alignment sticks on the ground, like you see me doing to the right: one pointing toward the target, the other on the left representing your club’s ideal path postimpact. If your clubface is pointing between the two, the ball will start left and fade back. A solid and stable clubface at impact will give you better control over your ballflight and more confidence the next time you tee it up.
Claude Harmon III is the host of GOLF.com’s “Off Course with Claude Harmon” podcast, a GOLF Top 100 Teacher and the director of instruction at the Butch Harmon Floridian in Palm City, Fla.
