# Hooking long irons and hybrid



## turkish (Mar 22, 2016)

So this is an issue I sometimes have but not all the time- wondering if there are any drills to help. Occasionally happens with 5 iron but more so 4 iron and hybrid

I'm pretty sure it's just face angle and because ball position is further up in stance it's happening so toe of club is turning over too soon in the arc. I've tried weakening my grip with these clubs and does help a bit but would rather not be tinkering with grip for every club.

My normal shot for mid irons is a draw.

I've thought of moving ball nearer middle but that in itself usually brings contact issues as I come in too steep with the longer clubs.


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## One Planer (Mar 22, 2016)

Does the ball start straight or to the right before hooking?


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## turkish (Mar 22, 2016)

Can be both- sometimes starts straight then hooks, sometimes starts slightly right then overdraw hooks. When I hit it good though it is generally just straight


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## fundy (Mar 22, 2016)

imo you need to take a look at your swing path (relative to your club face), likely you are coming too much in to out with a club face which is closed to this path. personally would go and see a pro, if not then get on a launch monitor


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## the_coach (Mar 22, 2016)

turkish said:



			So this is an issue I sometimes have but not all the time- wondering if there are any drills to help. Occasionally happens with 5 iron but more so 4 iron and hybrid

I'm pretty sure it's just face angle and because ball position is further up in stance it's happening so toe of club is turning over too soon in the arc. I've tried weakening my grip with these clubs and does help a bit but would rather not be tinkering with grip for every club.

My normal shot for mid irons is a draw.

I've thought of moving ball nearer middle but that in itself usually brings contact issues as I come in too steep with the longer clubs.
		
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where in the normal run of set-up is the ball position with 5i, 4i, hybrid, metals?

somewhere in the swing action there's a tendency to have a bigger degree of difference between the face angle direction at impact and the path - pretty much as a general observation after folks been playing a while there's not too much variance in the swing path through shots but there can be for a bunch of reasons more variance in the face angle direction at impact that's what tilts the ball axis to get the right to lefts

been for lessons recently and been working on anything particular? had any recent sessions on a LM to know what the ball park club delivery #'s are?

don't mean to post on here but do you video the practice sessions to study to get a handle on what is exactly happening during the swing? - speaking to this as what may be thought (feel to real) is happening during the motion could well not be the case - re the thoughts of maybes coming in too steep with the longer irons/hybrid

often times the real route cause of destructive left to rights stem back to the hold on the handle and the orientation of the shaft (counter-clockwise twists) so where the face angle is 'looking' as the club is taken away - this means instinctively certain compenstations are instinctively factored in during the transition to stop the clubface looking leftfield at impact - sometimes all timed a ways good so reasonable shot outcome and sometimes not so 'hooks'

the major compensation often times I see to these kinda grip and shaft twists on the ways to the top is a tendency to 'stand up' so early extend to have the hands high into impact swinging in some degree in to out in order to have the shaft angle vertically steeper (that does necessarily mean it's a 'steep' AoA) so holding off 'release' so be able to try to have the face looking right or square - as a more 'normal' near address shaft angle at impact with 'release' will put the left to right flight in, unless the hold/grip, shaft 'twist' issues have been addressed 

would say would need to have a close look at exactly how the handle lies in the hands, & ideally seeing around 2 knuckles on lead hand with the trail hand feeling 'on top' of the handle not 'under' - so both hands 'v's point to around the trail ear

would shoot some vid from dtl with smart phone/or camera at around hip/hand height and directly behind the hands/handle
if using a golf app draw line on the tush line, top of head, address shaft angle - look to see at impact has tush moved off the line, head higher than line, shaft angle a deal steeper with higher hands - if so you now have something tangible to work through 

- shoot some face on vid too as if the above not the case check to see are the arms/hands being rolled clockwise in the takeback opening the face angle with some lateral sway off of the ball with not so much body turn in the motion - if so instinctively there will be the opposite active arm and hand action to rotate it all back counter-clockwise through impact which is a ways difficult to time consistently - but again seeing whats going on will give a direction to what needs to be done to help change stuff

'feel to real' without reliable 'evidence' of what's truly happening is why so many folks get caught up in the same kinda circular conundrums  - leading to lesson gets 'fixed' through the lesson/s but then the practice sessions not monitored well old habits creep back and back on the similar track of issues


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## turkish (Mar 22, 2016)

Thanks Coach; I have been getting lessons but I tend to only work on one thing at once with them due to limited practice time and right now my short game is what I need to practice most. I will try and get a swing up DTL and face on in next week or so


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## the_coach (Mar 22, 2016)

turkish said:



			Thanks Coach; I have been getting lessons but I tend to only work on one thing at once with them due to limited practice time and right now my short game is what I need to practice most. I will try and get a swing up DTL and face on in next week or so
		
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little ways of a misunderstanding 

my speaking to recording the swing in practice was for you look at and then to be better able to identify what could part of the hooks issue or what you might be able to rule out - with a bunch of stuff to start over that would be worth checking through in relation to the swing motion and the 'right to lefts'
(but for sure you could also post video up if you've a mind to)

in general it's a ways important to video the practice for that person then to have tangible evidence of what is actually happening in the swing as opposed to just perceptions, video it with alignment sticks down so there is clearer identification reference points of aim to target, body lines, posture etc - as practice alone just relying on the 'feel' of working to a Pro's lesson guidance is very often times misleading - all too often folks think they are working to 'new patterns' of maybe grip, set-up, swing motions when that in reality is not really happening as stuff has more returned to the comfortable norm


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## BrizoH71 (Mar 23, 2016)

I suffered a similar problem with my long irons and hybrid, which my pro put down to my pulling the club inside the line through impact. He's been working with me to try to feel as if I'm throwing the club-head down the line after the ball.


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