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left eye
I am left eye and right handed and golf right handed. I have been having trouble hitting the ball square. It's very frustrating. Could this be as a result of being left eyed? It there anybody else having this problem and what did you do about it?
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Re: left eye
Hi Joan, and welcome to GTO.
By square, do you mean solidly? Or do you mean directionally on line?
Myself I'm left eye-left hand dominant and play right handed. I've noticed, especially on putts, that I'll line up totally wrong if I don't close my right eye. Closing my non-dominant eye forces me to setup properly. -
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JOAN-I lost sight in my right-dominant eye-and had a horrible time. I finally found a spot to look at that was about four inches behind the ball and hit it perfectly. After several months of doing this I noticed that my left eye found out where the ball was and I began hitting it squarely looking at the top of the ball. My advice-try looking different places-outside the ball a little, in front, in back, etc. notice where the club touches down and adjust from there. Draw line in the dirt and try to hit it-see where the clubs touches down and then move to the ball. Good luck-GeneComment
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joan, you are unusual in that most people that are right handed are also right eye dominant. it apparently matters more on putting, but the same drill can be used on the tee. line the ball logo up so it is pointing at your target and line up square to this, it may not 'appear' you are square but you are , try this , hope it helps..Comment
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Re: left eye
Thanks Gene, I'll give that a try. I'm sure there are a lot of people with this same problem but don't realize it. I even tried left handed clubs and did great seeing the ball but couldn't get distance as I could playing right.
I hit ok most of the time but I'm just not getting full impact. I don't hear a lot of discussion about this but I think it has a hugh impact on ones ability to golf. I wonder if Phil M. golfs left handed and if he is left eyed because I know he is a right-hander.
Anyway, thanks again for your tip and sorry to hear about your eye.
JoanComment
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Interesting post as I learned I am a left eye dominant right handed golfer. It really is a huge variable to consider, especially when putting.Comment
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SCHwak,
Somedays I really struggle with my putting and when it is one of those days,
I'll squat down behind the ball and line up the ball to the hole with a straight line put on the ball. All of the balls that I use have writing on the ball that forms a straight line and I use that. It's kind of a pain to mess with because sometimes the ball won't sit still and it takes time to get it right, but once you have it right then you just have to trust it. I can't tell you how many times after lining it up, standing above it now, I'll adjust it a little and then miss it by the amount I adjusted it... it's so hard to trust sometimes because it looks so far off.
It's seeing the ball when I swing where I'm having trouble. I often top it because I think my club is on the upswing when I contact the ball.
Have you ever seen Lorena Ochoa's swing? She looks like she is left eye and she has found a way to compensate and the result is a better swing than being right eye. Sometimes a disadvantage can turn into an advantage. Ha.Comment
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Actually this is not as abnormal as you think. Jack Nicklaus forced himself to be left eye dominant, by turning his head slightly to the right to start his swing, this effectively blocked the ball from view with his right eye (nose will be in the way).
As to putting...this is why it is vital to have your eyes directly over the ball and parallel to the target line, when you turn your head to look at the hole your eyes will remain on the line. If you are standing to upright and eyes not over the line, your view is skewed, and turning your head to look at the line will have one eye or the other closer to the line, dependent on which is dominant, this can have a big effect. However when your eyes are over the ball and parallel, it makes no difference.Comment
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Re: left eye
That makes sense about the putting. But why would Jack Nicklaus force himself to be left eye dominate? I'm thinking you can really get the club back if your using your left eye... maybe its an advantage after all.Comment
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I can't say for sure he was doing that for eye dominance, I think it had more to do with getting his chin out of the way to allow for a better turn. But the point I was making is...left eye dominance is not a bad thing. In Jack's case he forced it, with the chin move. Aside from the alignment issue, I don't think it makes a big difference. Putting Yes, full swing No. Your preshot can more then make up for any eye dom. issues.Comment
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I'm impressed that Jack could do that.
I think many people who are left eye dominate and golfing right handed have a tendency to top the ball and have a larger learning curve. Topping because the apex of the swing is coming before the ball. Golf instruction is given with the assumption that the person is right eyed and right handed. After years of frustration, I think some of us finally learn how to compensate maybe even turn it into an advantage.Comment
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Watch the pro tour, there are many players that have that head turn thing. Most do it during the swing, rather then before the swing at address. Jack was just really pronounced. Look at some of the old Bobby Jones films, he did the same thing. The thing to be careful of..is how you turn the head, the eyes still need to remain parallel to the target line. If you simply turn the head to the right your eye line will be skewed, and will tend to make you swing too far to the inside, if you do it correctly, it will allow you to make a bigger shoulder turn, a byproduct is the ball will be shielded from the right eye.Comment
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Thanks Navy, you've been really helpful. I never knew that keeping the eyes parallel to the target line was so critical. I'm really glad you mentioned it because I would probably make that mistake. Thanks again.Comment
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I was giving a lesson to this guy once a few years ago, he was mad as hell because no matter what he did, he couldn't fade the ball, he had a weak grip, shoulders, hips and feet lined up left...swing..... ball went left and still had a draw...lol...I took one look at him and said ... ya but you eyes are parallel to the target, not left..which caused him to start his swing inside vise outside the ball target line, changed his eye line, nice little fade,,he was amazed. It really is amazing how your perception of the backswing is so controlled by how you see the club moving back, even if your not specifically looking at it, you just naturally swing with the eye line, lol...I have had people close their right eye and swing and they pull the ball, close the left eye and they push it, why does that happen, no idea...lol...but swinging with one eye closed is hard to do.Comment
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Your student must have been thrilled to be able to finally do it and have it be such a simple adjustment. He would have had his eyes parallel to the target forever had you not seen it... not an easy thing to figure out.
Well you've given me confidence about my left eye. I might be able to use it to my advantage. I probably need to work on being consistent on my set up because I have no idea why I can't get solid contact.Comment
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