Squaring the clubface at impact sounds easy in principle, but when it comes down to putting it to practice, it’s one of the trickier things for many amateurs to do. This is one reason why so many mid-to-high handicappers can’t help but frequently slice or hook.
This is where having good clubface awareness comes into play, as this will be the single-most important adjustment when trying to improve your ball-striking. And while there are plenty of golf training aids out there that can help, a short-term solution to practice your clubface awareness is by simply using a piece of tape.
Sure, it sounds too good to be true, but GOLF Top 100 Teacher John Scott Rattan shows you how (and why!) this little trick actually works.
How tape can help improve your clubface awareness
“Whether I’m providing feedback to a player or recommending a training aid,” he says, “I always go back to something I learned from fellow GOLF Top 100 Teacher, John Dunigan: ‘Whoever does the work, does the learning.’
“In the photo below, I’ve placed blue electrical tape on the center of the shaft, leaving half of the shaft silver, and the other half blue.
“So what’s the purpose of doing this? To be blunt, I see too many amateur golfers creating a clubface position in the backswing where it becomes too open, which often leads to using too much loft at impact.
“By placing tape on the shaft, though, we’re able to hide the silver part of the shaft, leaving only the blue tape to see in each position.
“On the takeaway, the goal is to see the blue tape on top of the shaft. This will represent a square clubface orientation; or an even stronger position. At the top, I see more blue tape than silver on the shaft. This means that my trail wrist is in extension and the lead wrist is flexing.
“At impact, I want to see as much blue tape as possible. This allows me to feel what my hands would have to do to deloft the club, which helps create a dynamic impact position.
“Creating clubface awareness like this is vital to learning and owning the movements on your own. As the player, you’re doing the work on managing the clubface, and therefore, will learn to develop solid fundamentals for improved ball-striking ability.”
