Extremely fed up with hooks/pulls/hook-pulls

[inc0gnito]

Been playing less than a year and pulls/hooks and hook pulls make up 90% of my iron shots. And I mean BIG hooks and pulls. Driver I can get straight most of the time with frequent strong fades. Chipping and pitching is ok except frequent pulls.

Its really getting me down. I’ve watched countless videos and get excited about heading to the course or range but most times it still ends up being the problem above.

Occasionally I get times and days where I’ll get it going straight and it just ‘feels’ right. But most times no matter what I do it ends the same way. Thing is, it often doesn’t feel right even at address. I find it hard to really explain the feel I have but it’s as if the weight of the club head feels wrong, and the only way I feel comfortable is when the club face is almost pointing to the floor! When it feels right at address it typically goes ok.

I’ve attached picture of my grip. It’s something I’ve found difficult to feel comfortable with (maybe I have boney hands or something!). Also note that when I try to play with the face more open, it feels wrong too. Like I’m going to hit the ball with the butt of the club.

Until i I can get a pro to look at it, what might the problem be? I’m certain if I can feel better at address it’d make a big difference to the rest of the strike.

 

[Tommo21]

No good on here.....get to a good pro ASAP.

 

[sawtooth]

Been playing less than a year and pulls/hooks and hook pulls make up 90% of my iron shots. And I mean BIG hooks and pulls. Driver I can get straight most of the time with frequent strong fades. Chipping and pitching is ok except frequent pulls.

Its really getting me down. I’ve watched countless videos and get excited about heading to the course or range but most times it still ends up being the problem above.

Occasionally I get times and days where I’ll get it going straight and it just ‘feels’ right. But most times no matter what I do it ends the same way. Thing is, it often doesn’t feel right even at address. I find it hard to really explain the feel I have but it’s as if the weight of the club head feels wrong, and the only way I feel comfortable is when the club face is almost pointing to the floor! When it feels right at address it typically goes ok.

I’ve attached picture of my grip. It’s something I’ve found difficult to feel comfortable with (maybe I have boney hands or something!). Also note that when I try to play with the face more open, it feels wrong too. Like I’m going to hit the ball with the butt of the club.

Until i I can get a pro to look at it, what might the problem be? I’m certain if I can feel better at address it’d make a big difference to the rest of the strike.

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I reckon that I can stop you hooking the ball in 2 minutes, but if I tell you how you must first promise to give it a try.🤔

 

[ademac]

No good on here.....get to a good pro ASAP.

Couldnt agree more.
Dont fill your head with amateurs opinions, get to a pro and let him have a look.

 

[Jamesbrown]

Get to a pro for a lesson.
If I have a direction fault, I’m usually told to hit it the opposite way mind.

 

[User101]

Asking advice from anyone is no bad idea, but doing so over the t'internet on a problem isn't great, you really need someone who can actually see what you're doing.

 

[inc0gnito]

I reckon that I can stop you hooking the ball in 2 minutes, but if I tell you how you must first promise to give it a try.樂

Deal.

Couldnt agree more.
Dont fill your head with amateurs opinions, get to a pro and let him have a look.

Its something to try before I see a pro. Times a bit tight between work and the baby. I will soon enough.

 

[ScienceBoy]

I made a few simple fixes with my pro and sorted a hook I developed with iron shots.

You should go see a pro like mine

 

[Foxholer]

No good on here.....get to a good pro ASAP.

This! Make it a priority! But make sure you don't simply get sucked in to simply being another source of income - insist on some sort of plan (and goals) that you can measure progress (which may not always be as quick/easy as you want) against!

However, that grip does seem to be excessively 'strong' - something that is likely to encourage pulls/hooks.

If you want a book, as opposed to using a Pro, the classic book to sort out/get back to basics is Ben Hogan's 'Five Lessons'! It's pretty much timeless and based on his gradual discoveries for exactly the problem you seem to be having!

 

[HomerJSimpson]

Lesson. Get it sorted in properly. Work on the drills (if any), trust it on the course and don;'t go back to the old way no matter how badly you play to start with. Good luck and hope you get it sorted

 

[sawtooth]

Find a 2litre drink bottle, cut off both ends and then slide sleeve over your left arm.

Hit some shots with it on, you will be able to hit near full shots with it on, Ive played whole rounds wearing it before when I sufffered hooks.

I found it impossible to hit a hook with it.

After some practice hit some shots without it on and you will remember how it feels to have a fairly straight left arm.

My hunch is that you are bending the left arm and/or are going back too far.

You can buy a proper golf aid that costs money , no need, this works just as well.

 

[inc0gnito]

Pro near my work does 4 lessons for £100. Worth every penny if i walk away with a comfortable strike.

Ill check out out the book too, though I think I’ll get a few lessons first. I think I really need some visual feedback to see if what I think I’m doing is actually what I’m doing.

 

[inc0gnito]

I reckon that I can stop you hooking the ball in 2 minutes, but if I tell you how you must first promise to give it a try.樂

Find a 2litre drink bottle, cut off both ends and then slide sleeve over your left arm.

Hit some shots with it on, you will be able to hit near full shots with it on, Ive played whole rounds wearing it before when I sufffered hooks.

I found it impossible to hit a hook with it.

After some practice hit some shots without it on and you will remember how it feels to have a fairly straight left arm.

My hunch is that you are bending the left arm and/or are going back too far.

You can buy a proper golf aid that costs money , no need, this works just as well.

Haha. Interesting tactic. I’ll give it a go. Though some arm bend is normal isn’t it?

 

[sawtooth]

Haha. Interesting tactic. I’ll give it a go. Though some arm bend is normal isn’t it?

Yes you will still be able to flex your arm slightly with it (at least I was able to to) and you will be able to take the club back normally and hit decent shots wearing it.

It does curtail your follow through a bit but its only a simple drill to give you a feeling of having a near straight leading arm. Bet most of us amateurs bend or collapse that arm way too much - I know I did when I first started out.

Anyway try it and cover the sleeve up if you feel self consicous about it and then report back with your findings - good , bad or indifferent.:thup:

 

[PJ87]

Eco others who say get to a pro asap

Only thing I notice is the grip. That’s how my pro wants my grip to be. Strong. I fade the ball and when it’s strong it straightens me out.. so could try weakening the grip slightly

 

[bobmac]

Your swing is out to in and your grip is too strong.
QED

 

[User101]

Your swing is out to in and your grip is too strong.
QED

Mark Crossfield has been commenting on the strong grip a few times recently and has pretty much poo poo'd the strong grip/hook the ball theory as old style thinking. Says there are plenty of guys playing on tour with strong grips regularly hitting fades as their go to shot.

 

[bobmac]

Mark Crossfield has been commenting on the strong grip a few times recently and has pretty much poo poo'd the strong grip/hook the ball theory as old style thinking.

The laws of physics haven't changed.

Says there are plenty of guys playing on tour with strong grips regularly hitting fades as their go to shot.

With all respect, the OP has been playing less than a year so probably doesn't yet have the same ability to control the clubface through impact as the tour pros do.
And most of the tour pros don't have an excessively out to in swing

 

[User101]

With all respect, the OP has been playing less than a year so probably doesn't yet have the same ability to control the clubface through impact as the tour pros do.
And most of the tour pros don't have an excessively out to in swing

fair point.

 

[the_coach]

Been playing less than a year and pulls/hooks and hook pulls make up 90% of my iron shots. And I mean BIG hooks and pulls. Driver I can get straight most of the time with frequent strong fades. Chipping and pitching is ok except frequent pulls.

Its really getting me down. I’ve watched countless videos and get excited about heading to the course or range but most times it still ends up being the problem above.

Occasionally I get times and days where I’ll get it going straight and it just ‘feels’ right. But most times no matter what I do it ends the same way. Thing is, it often doesn’t feel right even at address. I find it hard to really explain the feel I have but it’s as if the weight of the club head feels wrong, and the only way I feel comfortable is when the club face is almost pointing to the floor! When it feels right at address it typically goes ok.

I’ve attached picture of my grip. It’s something I’ve found difficult to feel comfortable with (maybe I have boney hands or something!). Also note that when I try to play with the face more open, it feels wrong too. Like I’m going to hit the ball with the butt of the club.

Until i I can get a pro to look at it, what might the problem be? I’m certain if I can feel better at address it’d make a big difference to the rest of the strike.

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if you can even afford to take just one lesson then go soon as you are able

then the grip hold can get tweaked some while also having a couple of new ideas around the swing shape & club path & face angle through the ball

in the lead hand currently the handle is a tad too high up in the palm & the handle also too diagonal so too much an echo of the lifeline that's goin to make setting the angles (hands/wrists) into the backswing a tad problematic
plus trail hand a tad too under the grip so strong

with the lead hand a good ball park starting position is to think how you would pick a heavy suitcase up with that hand - it order to be able to pick the case up the suitcase handle would have to lie further down in the hand nearer the bottom of the fingers & also lie more at 90º to the hand not lie so diagonal along the lifeline so the last 3 fingers of the lead hand would be more at 90º to that case handle - same is true of the golf club handle as to where & how it lies in the lead hand more at 90º to the hand & lower down more along the pads in the palm at the bottom of the fingers

with the grip hold as it is currently it's goin to affect how the club starts back & maybes the hands/handle at swing start have to more move out & then roll over & maybes the shaft goes back too much inside - that will play into how the downswing sequence starts - which all affects the downswing 'path' the travel of the clubhead & the face angle through impact

but without seeing the swing impossible to say for sure what's really goin down in the swing motion itself

but if true pull hooks so starting a bunch leftfield of target & turning further leftfield then as has been already said the club is traveling from out to in

quickest easy fix is to get to see the pga pro soon as