Miss The Forest For The Trees – How To Shape Your Shots

Hopefully you have already worked on shaping your shots before.

I think even beginners can learn a lot about swing mechanics, if they just try to curve some balls into different directions for some time.

The classic situation for a hook or a slice you can read about in many golf books is being in front of a tree.

Although you are very rarely inthose situations and most players are better off by just chipping the ball into a better position, this is ideal to learn about shaping your shots.

So if you have a tree somewhere near the practice tee where you practice this situation, go there.

Otherwise you just have to imagine the setting on the driving range which is not as powerfull.

Position yourself in front of the tree and start working on your long game.

You want to hook and slice balls deliberately around the (imaginary) tree. You also want to produce shots with different trajectories.

Try shooting below the branches and then over the whole tree.

To measure your trajectories you can also use buildings or trees in the distance.

You will be surprised how a simple obstacle like a tree makes you focus more and controlling your shots a lot easier.

Because of the visual cue your mind will react automatically to the obstacle and almost force you to hit around it.

Remember to curve your balls deliberately, you have to adjust your stance and your grip. An open stance and a weaker grip is ideal for producing a slice.

A closed stance with a stronger grip is ideal for a hook. If you think about it, it is simple.

If your body points to the left and your clubface is slightly open at impact, your golf ball should curve from left to right.

If you do it the other way around (body to the right, clubface closed), your ball should curve from right to left.

• Position yourself in front of a tree and work on shaping your shots and different trajectories.