Driver Face At Setup

[Robert O' Keeffe]

I wonder if someone could tell me what is right or wrong regarding the driver face at setup. I have always adressed the ball with the clubface square, i.e. not at an angle. Looking at the set up of some pros they seem to leave the club head sit on the ground which shows the clubhead square. but sitting back as if it will come into the ball from underneath rather than face on. Since I put this in my adress the ball seems to get more distance, but tends to hook at times, though not too drastically. i am happy with the result for extra distance, but wonder if it is the right thing to keep in the setup. Any info greatly appreciated.
Thanks, Rob

[golfonenemesis]

Re: Driver Face At Setup

Not a pro but I would think ball position has something to do with setting up with face open, square or closed.
You may notice if you set up with face anything but square, you may want to move the ball back a little.

[Timothy Slaught]

Re: Driver Face At Setup

Hello Robert:

Most drivers today are closed about 2 degrees and should remain this way at set up. It should appear that the face is slightly closed at address. In addition to your ball position which is generally in a good spot in line with your left instep for the driver, pay attention to the position (lean) of your shaft. This is best practiced by using a mirror facing you so you can see the correct perspective. The tendency with the closed face drivers, is to try to set them up square which is actually going to be too open at impact. You are defintiely spending your time wisely working on a consistent set-up position with your body and the club. Good swings start there.

Tim

[BrianW]

Re: Driver Face At Setup

Hi Rob,

I think you are referring to the face of the driver sitting on the ground and leaning back as opposed to open or closed.

The important point is that the driver hits the ball on the upswing, it has passed the lowest point of the arc and is starting to rise, it then must get slightly below the centre of the ball and sweep it away on an upward path. If you do this correctly it will create distance.

The hook is a separate issue and is probably caused by you either hitting on an inside to inside path or over rotation of your forearms. Try to hit more inside to slightly out as though you hit through the ball from 4 o clock to 10 o clock with a square clubface.

Regards
Brian