Attention slicers! If you struggle with a nagging left-to-right ball flight (or right-to-left for you lefties), there’s a simple move to get your club more on plane and contact the ball with a square clubface, and it has everything to do with the position of your lead wrist at the top of your backswing.
In a phrase, keep it “flat.” True, some players have forged great careers on Tour by “cupping” their lead wrist at the top (technically called “extension”), but all of them eventually get that wrist back to neutral or even a little flexed (or “bowed”) on the way back down to the ball.
Keep in mind that I’m talking about Tour players here. For the weekend golfer, an excessively cupped lead wrist requires a lot of extra movement and difficult to time compensations. I recommend starting with a neutral grip — one that’s not excessively strong or weak and allows you to freely hinge your wrists on the way to the top. If you hinge them in a manner that causes your lead wrist to cup, you’re creating a potential problem (above, left).
Instead, hinge with a flat lead wrist (above, right). You should be able to slide a ruler under your glove without pinching your forearm. But make sure you still hinge. What you’ll find is that a flatter lead wrist at the top helps direct the club on plane instead of over the top — the move that’s likely causing your slice. Make some slow-motion swings to feel how the club moves differently on the way down. If the club is behind your hands halfway down, you’re on your way to straighter shots.
Trillium Rose is a GOLF Top 100 Teacher who teaches at Woodmont CC in Rockville, Md.
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