Where to aim to strike the ball...

[keiko]

Re: Where to aim to strike the ball...

This is an addition to my last post. Another way to think of the backswing is "elbows up" and the downswing is"elbows down", what this does is create the "tray position" at the top where the right arm is bent at 90 degrees and the left arm is fairly straight(note: to achieve a fuller backswing, it will be necessary for you to pivot your left shoulder over your right instep-take an old shaft and when you have turned as far as you think you can, take the shaft and line it up with your left shoulder, hopefully, it will point down to your right foot). Once you have completed your backswing(I like to catch the clubhead out of the corner of my left eye), just allow your elbows to drop down like you are chopping wood or backslapping someone. The Clubhead follows the hands which are ahead-way ahead-nearing impact.
If you can't hit the ball doing this, you may need to reposition the ball.
All of this assumes you don't sway, you flex your left knee in at the ball during the backswing, you keep your left heel down but roll your left foot onto its inner instep, your have not changed your spine angle, you have kept your head relatively still, you have transferred your weight to your right instep on the backswing and back onto your left toe on the downswing, that your grip is about a 3 on a scale of 10, that you have allowed your left wrist to cock while allowing your right wrist to hinge, and that you finish your swing showing your butt and the cleats on your right shoe to the crowd watching in awe behind you.
As one can see, golf is no easy undertaking. If one were to consciously think of all of the above while attempting to hit a shot, one wouldn't come close to striking the ball. So what's one to do.
Well, one must practice a few things at a time, until one has a swing.
Much of what I am stating will come naturally assuming you start out with the proper fundamentals. Like a house, one must have a solid foundation before moving to the first floor.
Unfortunately, few have natural talent so for therest of us, it takes patience, practice, feel, sound lessons, and the will to do it.

I think the slant of the swing arc determines this for each club. Short irons are more directly behind the ball all the way to 4 o'clock for the driver.

[BrianW]

Re: Where to aim to strike the ball...

Not at all trying to be a contrarian here Brian. I'm just trying to be as plainly accurate as possible.

If you are going to hit the inside half of the golf ball relative to the target line (for those of you who don't know the target line is a line drawn directly from the center of the ball to the target) then the clubface MUST be open relative to the target line.

If you are going to hit the inside half of the golf ball relative to YOU the player, the clubface MUST be open relative to YOU the player at impact.

The only way that we could in any way say that the clubface would be in a closed position and hit the inside half of the ball is if we change the perspective we are talking about in mid sentence.

You can strike the inside half of the golf ball relative to the target line, with a closed clubface relative to the player.

IMO that just makes the whole thing very murky. It's easier IMO to just say the clubface has to be open to hit the inside of the ball.


As an addendum, one dimple on the ball is somewhere around 6-8 degree's of the ball's circumference. Ergo hitting the inside half of the ball by a dimple results in a miss that is approximately 10-15 yards offline for every 100 yards the ball travels. That's assuming a straight line with no fade or draw spin.

It is possible to hit the ball out right by moving it back in your stance, likewise you can move it left by positioning it forward. I prefer to do this when bending the ball around an object.