Hooking...badly!

[AmandaJR]

So I've been in good form of late. Played yesterday and a few under handicap on a new course. Couple of drives were a bit too strong a draw but manageable and nothing seemingly to worry about. Played today in an Open at Wellingborough and started nicely with a run of pars and good birdie chances on all of them - faster greens than I'm used to!!

Somewhere around the 7th hole I hit my first borderline hook drive, followed by a similar shape fairway wood. Next drive was a hook good and proper as were many thereafter - fairway woods similar. At this point we're talking proper high hooks - starting right of target and veering wildly across the sky and then ground into trouble! Irons had gone off a bit too (thins mainly). All strikes toe side of middle. Wondered if I'd lost some width/steepness on the way back and that thought worked for a hole or two but not for long. Kept trying to feel a really neutral strike - in other words trying not to draw the ball but things got worse! Played the 17th hole completely on the 2nd fairway and somehow scramble a par. Stood on the 18th and all the trouble on the left so no way was my driver coming out. Had to wait a while so tried to feel a bit more steepness in my practice swings - perhaps it had got too flat again as I could sometimes feel a sense of a hook happening by the time I've started the downswing. Took my shot (4 wood) and a straight pull towards the trees guarding the hazard - no hook spin though! Took a provisional and this time stood quite open and hit a nice high push/fade I guess - right side and no trouble anyhow.

I'm now wondering if it's a simple thing as setting up too much for a draw, left hip not clearing scenario which feels an easy fix OR is it swing too flat/too around me????

Any thoughts/advice oh expert ones? Ta...

 

[SocketRocket]

When I get a little hooky which is normally accompanied by thins and tops it tends to be as you suggest Amanda, swing plane getting very flat. To recover I try to take the club back higher over my left shoulder.

 

[fundy]

Ultimately its going to be caused by an in to out path with the clubface closed to that path, just a case of finding out whats causing that. As you say could be the hips not clearing quick enough and then the hands taking over and flipping the club.

I have spent the last few weeks trying to realign my path, partly by trying to ensure the hips are firing and partly with a feeling of swinging left, but holding the club off (keeping the heel ahead of the toe) which keeps the hands less active too. Bit of a trade off but long term trying to hit more with body rotation than by rescuing it with the hands

 

[AmandaJR]

When I get a little hooky which is normally accompanied by thins and tops it tends to be as you suggest Amanda, swing plane getting very flat. To recover I try to take the club back higher over my left shoulder.

I did wonder if the thinned irons were a symptom of the same problem. Certainly the practice swings I took on the last tee trying to feel the club less around me felt different enough to suggest I was far from that!

 

[AmandaJR]

Ultimately its going to be caused by an in to out path with the clubface closed to that path, just a case of finding out whats causing that. As you say could be the hips not clearing quick enough and then the hands taking over and flipping the club.

I have spent the last few weeks trying to realign my path, partly by trying to ensure the hips are firing and partly with a feeling of swinging left, but holding the club off (keeping the heel ahead of the toe) which keeps the hands less active too. Bit of a trade off but long term trying to hit more with body rotation than by rescuing it with the hands

On the course I was desperately trying to hit out to the right more at impact but now realise (I think) that would increase the amount of hook spin??

 

[SocketRocket]

I did wonder if the thinned irons were a symptom of the same problem. Certainly the practice swings I took on the last tee trying to feel the club less around me felt different enough to suggest I was far from that!

Ooops! should have said right shoulder

 

[fundy]

On the course I was desperately trying to hit out to the right more at impact but now realise (I think) that would increase the amount of hook spin??

Yes this effectively the road I have been down the last year or so, fighting a hook by trying to hit it further to the right. All you actually do is make the make the path even more in to out and the only way to counteract that become to flips the hands to square the clubface (otherwise you would be hit big blocks right). It sounds counter productive but if you're hitting big hooks you need to try and swing more left than right (but without flipping the hands or you get a nasty double cross pull hook lol)

 

[garyinderry]

sounds like toe hits with the driver. check you impact points on the face. :thup:

 

[GasMan]

Easy way to cure this. Get some foam pipe insulation and secure it with some tees parallel to the target line just outside the ball. Hit some balls like this and in not hitting the insulation you can't hook it. You can do this with an alignment stick but if you hit it you can do yourself or someone else a serious mischief. I use this method to practise different shot shapes aligning the insulation accordingly.

 

[AmandaJR]

sounds like toe hits with the driver. check you impact points on the face. :thup:

Some were for sure - the worst ones. But some smack in the middle...

 

[AmandaJR]

Easy way to cure this. Get some foam pipe insulation and secure it with some tees parallel to the target line just outside the ball. Hit some balls like this and in not hitting the insulation you can't hook it. You can do this with an alignment stick but if you hit it you can do yourself or someone else a serious mischief. I use this method to practise different shot shapes aligning the insulation accordingly.

Just outside the ball on the target side or backswing side?

 

[garyinderry]

Some were for sure - the worst ones. But some smack in the middle...

those toe hits will definitely put a load of hook shape on the shot!

 

[AmandaJR]

those toe hits will definitely put a load of hook shape on the shot!

Agreed. Not sure why they were happening either!

 

[bobmac]

Get off your back foot

 

[garyinderry]

sounds like a mix of toe hits, swinging too far out to the right and face closed relative to the that path.


im a hook machine. it can be all these things, plus as bob will say, "check your grip"!

 

[garyinderry]

lol, there he is . hi bob! :thup:

 

[AmandaJR]

Get off your back foot

So not clearing left side you think?

 

[bobmac]

So not clearing left side you think?

No, leaving the weight on the back foot too long.
That causes the shots you described.

 

[AmandaJR]

No, leaving the weight on the back foot too long.
That causes the shots you described.

Including toe strikes?

 

[bobmac]

Including toe strikes?

Definitely