By Paul Myers
There are plenty of professional golfers that prefer a fade as their go-to shot. It can be easier for some of them to control a fade than a draw. Despite that, most amateurs strive to hit a draw because it is seen as a ‘pro’ shot. And there is something to it – hitting a draw can mean you are in a good position and attacking the ball confidently from the inside. A well-struck draw can mean added yards in addition to a nice, controlled flight into the fairway or onto the green. In reality, it might surprise you to know that a great number of pros actually use draws as their preferred stock shot.
Balance Can Help
Before you start worrying about your club path and face angle (which are obviously important) as you come into the ball when you try to hitting a draw, make sure you are in balance. Without balance, all of the good mechanics in the world might not save you and you may never be able to consistently produce the same flight swing after swing.
Good balance during the backswing goes a long way toward setting the table for a consistently successful draw.
Let the Club Release
If you remain in good balance during your backswing and have no other glaring technical flaws, this can help you be in a good position on the way down into the ball. However, things can still go wrong if you let them. In order to follow through on your draw and see the ball turn nicely from right to left (for a right-handed player), you will likely want to let the club release through the hitting zone. Some golfers put themselves in a good position to hit a draw, only to back off at the last second and hold on to the club at impact. If you don’t allow the club to release, a shot that is blocked out to the right could be a possible outcome.
If you are having trouble getting the club to release fully, you might try making some practice swings with just your right hand on the club (for a right-handed golfer). By making one-handed swings, it’s possible to get a feel for the momentum of the club through the hit, and how it wants to release up into a full finish position. After a few swings, put your other hand back on the club and try hitting a few balls. Hopefully, that feeling will carry through to your normal swing and you can see the ball flight that you have been working towards start to appear.
You don’t have to hit a draw to be a good golfer. Plenty of good players have succeeded by hitting a fade instead of hitting a draw as their main weapon to get around the course. With that said, it is nice to have a draw in the bag when you need it – and many good golfers find that they prefer to hit the draw more often than not. Spend some time working on hit both draws and fades on the driving range, and it will soon become clear to you which one you are more adept at, and which should be your ball flight of choice for your stock shot.
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