Get Your Setup Right for the Right Club

Every time you setup to hit a ball you need the right plan in your mind.  You are either planning to LAUNCH with your driver by hitting up or you are trying to POWER off the deck with all of your fairway clubs. You can’t afford to mix these up or you will pop-up your drives and top your fairway shots.  Positioning your ball forward for drives and centering your ball for fairway shots is easy to do but your mind also should focus on the right swing ANGLE OF ATTACK.

Too often we generate power off our back foot when we drive and then repeat the same swing and fall back when we are mishitting a fairway shot with a wood or iron.  We have all read articles where you can’t tell if the author is writing about a LAUNCH or a POWER shot (off the deck).  Make sure you tee up and tilt your shoulders 20 degrees to launch your drives.  It’s the best way to shorten the course.

EARLY EXTENSION Will Kill Your Launch AND Power Shots

Completing your swing by SPRINGING up with your knees will kill your driver or fairway shots.  Don’t do it.  I’m only making this statement to ensure that you don’t misunderstand the launch with your driver.  You still need to let your shoulder tilt and let your limited loft driver do the work.  Use the point of impact off the tee to allow your driver’s trajectory angle take care of the distance.

Tiger Woods Described How He Controls Launch Angle with Irons

He uses the same swing to launch his irons at different heights ONLY by adjusting the ball position in his stance. Of course, his drives are all completed with a forward ball position which is teed up.  (He even out-drove Rory McIlroy at the 2023 Genesis Tournament, so he isn’t losing his touch.)

For low to high iron shots Tiger demonstrates his technique with 3 balls in a row.  The middle ball in the center of his stance is for normal iron shots with a normal follow-through.  The back ball is for low shots where he wants to feel like his is finishing his swing at his waist.  For high shots all he does in move 1 ball forward of his normal position and finishes his swing with his hands high over the top of my head.”

Tiger sets up with his ball back in his stance for low pitch shots to let his ball roll out to his target.

These setup descriptions all require subtle changes.  That’s why your golf game may not be perfect.  The pros have swing coaches to watch for their mistakes.  I learned this when my professional instructor told me to swing more from the inside in order to keep the face of my club open.  BINGO!  I have a whole new game.

Watch your ball flight to spot clues for your swing mistakes.  Practice with GOLFSTR+ to sort out 6 corrections for your driver, fairway and putting swings.  Buy one today at www.GOLFSTR.com