Hooking the ball....

Hi the past 4-5 games i have been hooking the ball every time with my driver,it starts low and stays low and gradually off to the left,im riht handed by the way.

Whats the reason for hooking the ball.

OVERACTIVE HANDS. This is the the cause 90 percent of the time. Your hand action could also be ok but you might have limited hip/torso movement. Make sure you are clearing your hips out of the way.

I am currently working on removing hand action from my swing as well and I can tell you that it is a difficult process, but something you will need to do to play consistently.

To hook the ball:

1. Sharp inside to outside path (check your divots)
2. Club face closed at impact (check your divots)

Normally, #2 is a greater impact.


The divots are the tell tell signs. Obviously not on your driver, but see if you can see this with your longer clubs. (Drivers don't impart the same backspin therefore have more issues with seeing hooks or slices.)

Which way are your divots pointing and cutting (in aggregate)? If they are point left to right, then you have #1.

How are your divots being cut? Square? If they are starting on the left, then you are closing. (This assumes you have clubs that are adjusted with the right lie!)

The great Ben Hogan said, "I hate a hook. It nauseates me. I could vomit when I see one."

To correct this, Hogan went to a weak left hand grip with a short left thumb position. We aren't all Hogan, and his swing clearly isn't today's modern swing. So your mileage may vary.

I would suggest video tape with somebody who really knows his stuff.

Finally, if all your divots are fine, and you still have this problem, then I would suggest that you are teeing differently. What you have sounds almost like a "duck hook." On the driver, you can change this via teeing back a bit and/or clearing the hips.

Theo

why does a short left thumb prevent a hook?

because you say it starts low and stays low then you are coming over the top with a closed club face. Could be that you have too much angle in the left wrsit at set up. make sure the left wrist is uncocked at set up, HAVE NO ANGLE AT ALL IN THE LEFT WRIST, this is VERY VERY VERY VERY important

Shootin'

Okay, you've forced me to open my John Jacob's (as in THE John Jacobs) book. I guess that I should have looked this up before posting. (Sorry, everybody!)

Jacob states:

"Hogan's weak left hand fgrip also incoported a short left thumb position. I've found that a short left thumb promotes a hook in most club golfers, but Hogan felt that it help him stop hooking. I would maintain that Hogan is the exception as far as the this rule is concerned."

Jacob does agree some hookers need a weak grip. Please strike Hogan's comments on short left thumb, as I would take Jacob any day over what worked for Hogan on his own swing!

Theo

sometimes I ask questions when i know the answers,
a short left thumb promotes a shorter back swing and allows less time for the club to square
and you go ahead and take john jacobs, he could not swing like hogan and hogan knew more about the golf swing

Right well i only hook the driver , and sometimes the woods,but only when there on tees for some reason.

My divots if i take one are about the size of a mobile phone and point straight to where ever i am aiming.

Also when you say i have to mich angle in my left wrist at setup,what does this mean exactly.

I think my clubface is closed,but my swing has a wide arc and i start it properly,just wondering when my club is at the top of the backswing should the whole of the clubface be showing.

ty

look at the picture in the upper left of these four, see how the right wrist looks uncocked? Now if the right wrist is cocked then there would be more angle between the shaft and the arms, you dont want more angle so you want your wrists to look like this http://www.golf-tuition-online.com/v...4&d=1146197170

Shootin,

I don't know if I really like those set of pics as I have been working really hard on mainting my right wrist angle towards impact. In those pics, the right wrist is practically flat. Seems like this would only contibute to the likelihood of a hook.

my purpose for referrencing those pictures was to show address hands. but they are pretty good at impact too.
the pictures on the left side are set up
the pictures on the right side are impact or clsoe to it
he has forward shaft lean at impact and a cupped right wrist so he is ok there, he could have more forward shaft lean and more cup, but those impact allignments are pretty good. My guess would be that the bottom right picture is maybe 1-2 inches after impact

Do you even know who John Jacobs was? You are making my head explode.

Theo

you make my head explode. You are on this site, giving all this advice, dont even know the difference between cupped and cocked, by your own admission can only fantasize about being a six handicap, and post the exact same dribble that is not the real root of the cause. A perfect example would be Jbrunk asking about not enough hip rotation and you say his hip rotation is fine. His stance with an iron is too wide and more then likely gets wider with the woods, which too wide of a stance encourages swaying. Another example would be in this thread if the guy has a duck hook you suggest teeing the ball back????? THis guy has said his ball flight is low so OBVIOUSLY it is already too far back, he is coming over the top with a closed club face. So by taking your advice he cam tee the ball back even more so he can go to his sons little league practice and hit them grounders all day for feilding practice. If you truly understand as much as you think you do you would realize MOST ALL SWING FLAWS START AT SET UP, and if you would fix your closed stance among other things you might be able to turn six handicap into a reality. Theo, if you humble yourself you might learn a little something
BTW, Yes I know who he is, he writes a decent book, nothing special, but Hogans book has been considered BY MANY players to be the equal to a golfing Bible.

Firstly understand that a hook starts straight then goes left. If your ball is not doing this what I am about to say is not the reason behind your troubles. According to my locl pro (who plays off +3) 90% of time a hook is caused by an overly strong grip(too many knuckles showing on left hand, presuming your right handed). I had exactly the same problem and he fixed me in a jiffy by telling me this.

so how many knuckles should be showing on my left hand?