There’s no substitute for hard work, but as golfers will attest, there’s also nothing that compares to a good swing thought. Something clean and simple, that that you can take to the course and help you hit better shots.
As part of our driver issue in the March edition of GOLF Magazine, we wanted to lean into that, so we put out a call to our prestigious group of GOLF Top 100 Teachers with a simple query: In one sentence, what’s a swing thought, tip, or feeling you would tell a golfer who wants to hit better drives?
The answers came pouring in, and they were gems. But before going any further, a quick word of advice: It’s probably best to stay away from trying all of these at once. We don’t want you getting confused. Instead, scroll through, find one that speaks to you, and use it to send the ball down the fairway like never before.
One-sentence tips to hit better drives
- “Learn to hit up on the ball.” — Micheal Jacobs
- “Straighten your legs and move the grip upward.” — Nick Clearwater
- “Slow is smooth and smooth is fast.” — Jerry King
- “Make a loud swoosh with the shaft to sweep the ball off of the tee with the face pointing in the direction you want to launch the ball.” — Dom DiJulia
- “Feel like your club, arms, and body get to your finish at the same time.” — Tony Ruggiero
- “Take one full-speed rehearsal swing and maintain your balance for 3 seconds.” — John Elliot
- “Place an alignment stick against your lead heel so it’s pointing at the ball, then hit balls.” — Ed Ibarguen
- “Hover the driver for a smoother and lower one piece takeaway, like Jack Nicklaus and Greg Norman.” — Michael Hunt
- “Create 40-yard-wide fairways on the range so your practice represents game-like conditions.” — Tim Cooke
- “Learn to stand to the ball in excellent posture and develop a bulletproof routine to maintain consistent alignment and distance from the ball.” – Justin Parsons
- “Feel like you hit a tennis forehand, top spin style.” — John Dunigan
- “Start with your right shoulder back at address, get it further back in the backswing, keep it back going into to impact.” — Brian Manzella
- “Free it up and let go!” — Josh Zander
- “Drive the face of the club through the ball like a hammer drives a nail into lumber.” — Jeff Smith
- “Hold your trophy finish.” — Kate Tempesta
- “Work on hitting the center of the clubface. It’s undefeated!” — Shaun Webb
- “Swing the driver with the same rhythm and timing of your 7-iron.” — VJ Trolio
- “Grab a dry-erase marker, mark the center of the face, and hit balls until the mark is gone.” — Bernie Najar
- “Hitting up and out on every tee shot while pushing off your left side will produce a very nice draw bias.” — Dana Dahlquist
- “Give up on the fantasy of hitting it straight, embracing your curve and learning how to manage it.” — Brady Riggs
- “Learn to do the ordinary fundamentals extraordinarily well!” — Jason Baile
- “Choose a shorter-length driver, with more loft than you think” — Kevin Kirk
- “Focus on solid contact; off-center strikes will change the spin axis of the ball and this makes the ball curve.” — Matt Killen
- “Know your scatter pattern for your driver and if the landing area fits, send it!” — Jim Murphy
- “Make sure half the ball is teed above the top of the driver, and try to keep the tee in the ground as you swing.” — Tim Mahoney
- “Pause at the top before you start your downswing.” — Don Sargent Jr.
- “Tilt your spine away from the target, which will shallow the swing path and create an ascending blow.” — Carol Presinger
- “Hit the ball, but leave the tee in the ground.” — Wayne Flint
- “Soften your hands and arms, make loaded turn in the backswing, then unwind.” — Krista Dunton
- “Stand tall to the ball, ya’ll!” — Joe Hallett
- “Stand on the tee box and visualize the fairway being an ocean, and see your ball splash.” — Rick Grayson
- “Make lots of slow motion swings.” — Bryan Gathright
- “Get your driver fit by a reputable fitter.” — Todd Sones
- “Feel like the back stays fully turned at the start of the downswing; this creates space for the hands and arms to move down to impact.” — Michael Hebron
- “Strive for center contact and work to increase your hand speed through impact.” — Suzy Whaley
- “When you do a driver fitting, make sure the location of contact is factored into the loft and shaft selection.” — Allen Terrell
- “Swing without fear (this doesn’t mean hard as you can, it means swinging without tension).” — Steve Bosdosh
- “It’s all about impact, you must have your body in position to deliver a solid hit.” — Ted Sheftic
- “Curve your ball predominantly one direction.” — Mike Bender
- “Stop trying to hit it hard and start trying to ‘rhythm’ the cover off the ball.” — Martin Chuck
- “Get external with your trail shoulder, and rotate your body.” — George Gankas
- “Practice hitting your driver different distances with a full swing.” — Scott Munroe
- “Try to set up the same way each time.” — Bryan Lebedevitch
- “It’s all about set up and speed; bow from your hips and drop your trail shoulder at address.” — Kellie Stenzel
- “Spray the face of your driver to see your impact point.” — James Leitz
- “Keep your head behind the ball as you deliver your driver from the inside.” — Cheryl Anderson
- “Keep your swing low and deep at the top and it will come down shallow and inside-out.” — Dr. Jim Suttie
- “On your backswing, turn your front shoulder behind the ball and swing without fearing where the ball might go.” — Kevin Weeks
- “Tee it lower to guarantee more fairways hit, like Nick Price and Tiger Woods did in their prime years.” — Andrew Park
- “Make full-length swings at a slow speed focusing on center contact, and slowly add speed from there.” — EJ Pfister
- “Think of the golf ball is a nail, and like hammering a nail, hammer the nail square on the head!” — EA Tischler
- “Practice on the narrowest hole you can find for accuracy, and work on making the fastest practice swings you can for speed.” — Brian Mogg
- “Know what your body can and can’t do so you’re able to adjust in your set up for those dysfunctions first.” — Debbie Doniger
- “I’ve never seen good drivers of the ball with poor setup, so make sure your setup is perfect.” — Kevin Sprecher
- “Our bodies change daily. When you are warming up on the range, find the shot shape for that day, embrace it, and play it.” — Lou Guzzi
- “Find an intermediate target for alignment and then hit the ball without looking back up to the target as is usually done.” — Eric Alpenfels
- “Think of the clubhead moving along the ground for a long time. That produces a flat spot at the bottom of the arc to help deliver the energy squarely into the ball.” — Chris O’Connell
- “Learn the difference between hitting up on the ball versus down.” — Jeff Leishman
- “Get in the gym regularly and perform several sets of medicine ball wall throws, from both sides.” — James Sieckmann
- “There’s no substitute for practice. Players understand the importance of driving the ball effectively, but rarely dedicate enough time to this aspect of the game.” — Jeffry Smith
