This article was machine-translated from the Korean original. Read the Korean original
Many people spend a lot of time at the driving range practicing to improve their swing form. That isn't wrong. However, one regrettable aspect is that they focus too much on practicing a swing designed to hit the ball straight. No matter how good your swing is, it is impossible to always hit the ball straight.
However, even if my swing is lacking and not perfect, intentionally curving the ball in one direction is much easier than hitting it straight. So, the key point I want to convey today is this: Don't practice hitting the ball straight; practice curving the ball.
01Two things that determine ball flight — Stance and clubface
You only need to remember two things to curve the ball in the direction you want. First, your stance is the ball's starting point, and the clubface is the target. Your stance is the direction you want to launch the ball, and the clubface is the final direction you want to curve it. If you open your stance and open the clubface, the ball starts to the left and curves to the right (fade), and if you close your stance and close the clubface, the ball starts to the right and curves to the left (draw).
02The clubface is made by the left-hand grip.
The second point is the key to today. The opening and closing of the clubface, which determines the ball's trajectory, is not created by the swing or the hands, but by the left-hand grip. If you want to curve the ball to the right, use a weak left-hand grip, and if you want to curve it to the left, use a strong left-hand grip.
The feel of a strong grip is like covering the shaft with your palm. Typically, about three knuckles of the back of your hand are visible, and while the back of your hand isn't facing completely straight ahead, it is positioned significantly toward the front. The V-shape formed by your thumb and index finger points toward your right shoulder. When gripping like this, you get the feeling that the clubface will close at impact rather than open, even without using your hands separately. If you struggle with right-sided misses or hit the ball open instead of square, simply switching to this grip can significantly reduce those errors.
Conversely, with a weak grip, the left thumb is aligned with the shaft, and the back of the hand feels like it is facing the target. One or two knuckles on the back of the hand are visible, and the V-shaped groove points towards the center of your body. When gripping like this, it feels as though the club will hit open if you do not use your hands during impact. For those whose balls drop quickly and curve to the left due to a strong grip that is too tight, simply switching to a weak grip can help you produce a slightly lofted fade shot.
03The right hand just needs to follow the left hand.
Many people wonder what to do with their right hand when changing their left-hand grip. I use a grip where my right hand naturally follows my left. When using a strong grip, the right hand feels like it is supporting from below, while when using a weak grip, the right hand follows the left hand as if covering it. If you maintain a parallel feeling where the thumbs of both hands overlap, it creates a sense of unity in the hands, making it feel much more natural.
04If you decide on your swing type before hitting, your approach to the course changes.
You have likely had the experience on the course where you perfectly aligned yourself with the pin and looked straight at the target, only to feel for some reason that the ball would go to the right or left. In such situations, depending on the hole conditions, you might pull to the left if you are out of bounds or push to the right if the opposite side is uncomfortable—since you are well-aligned, the ball may briefly follow the target line at launch, but ultimately, you are bound to hit a shot that goes away from the target.
However, it is a different story if I can hit a specific ball flight. This is because I can create a shot where the ball starts away from the target but eventually returns to it. Even if the pin is on the right and there is a bunker or water to the right, players with a well-established ball flight actually aim for that bunker or water. This improves both the probability of reaching the green and the probability of avoiding the water. Since I have an in-to-out path, I get a draw even when I just hit it normally, but getting a draw just by hitting it normally is a completely different story from deciding to hit it to the left.
05Today's homework
First, stand facing the mat. Without worrying about the ball's launch or the amount of curve, try experiencing how the ball curves solely by changing your grip, without altering your swing. You need to gain confidence by accumulating the experience of hitting the ball and verifying firsthand that changing your grip really does make the ball curve.
- Three consecutive drawsUntil you successfully hit a ball that curves from left to right, or rather, from right to left, three times in a row
- Drastically changing the gripPlease firmly grip the strong or weak grip with the feeling that you are definitely crossing a certain line.
- Three consecutive fadesIf you successfully hit three consecutive balls that curve in the opposite direction, that makes a total of six, and you will complete today's homework.
It is natural that you won't have a feel for it at first. However, I believe that if you practice consistently for about a month, your golf game will improve to the next level.
