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How do YOU shape your shots?

Lee Trevino had a great method that helps me. If you want to hit a draw, setup with your hand 3-5 inches forward of where your used to. Fade is 3-5 inches back of where you normally setup.
When you swing your hands will return to "neutral" at contact. If your hands started 3 inches forward of neutral at setup the club face will be slightly closed at impact. The opposite is true for the fade. Didn't believe it at first but it works.
I now use trevino's method combined with the same path adjust clubface theory.


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thepete said:
It has to do with my swing path. I'm not a fan of opening or shutting the clubface. My basic thought contains three things:
1. Hitting a "block" (feels like it) if I want a fade, or make sure I release and roll over properly if I want a draw.
2. I imagine a line from the ball to the hole. Then I just want a feeling of me hitting outside or inside that line depending on if I want a fade or a draw.
3. The finish. I have these images in my head of where I want to be at the end. It helps me with both putting the club on the proper plane after I hit the ball and holding off/rolling over the wrists after impact.
Fade:
_41992374_donald416.jpg

Draw:
rory-mcilroy-ten.jpg


It helps a lot that I'm really flexible.
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That hurts my back just looking at Rory.

I use swing path to shape my shots but if I can hit it straight It better for me. However I tend to fade the ball. I have also been changing my grip some.
 
to shape my shots i just imagine the shot i want to hit the just let my body react and it usually works out pre well :clap:
 
I don't usually try to mess with my ball flight unless it is necessary. I usually draw it, but to fade it, I do more of a out to in, but not even out to in, more like straight through. Kind of hard to explain.
 
My natural shot is pretty straight but for a fade, I start by opening my stance slightly, ball a little forward and swinging outside to in. For the draw I often play with a driver & 3 wood, I just move the ball back a little, close my stance about 15 degrees and swing inside to out. Not as hard as you may think.
 
A couple things about shot shaping. First you have to walk. No one can shape a shot that rides in a cart. Second, you cant have any hybrids in your bag. Everyone knows shot shapers dont use hybrids. Third, you must use blades. Huge cavity back clubs are only good for hitting high, nice straight shots. Who would want that! There you have it.
 
I prefer the Tom Watson approach. That is, slightly open or close your stance and align the blade with the intended target, then swing normally. Remember though, when you close or open the stance, keep the shoulders aligned to the target.
Personally, I move the ball back a couple of inches in my stance when I want a draw in addition to doing the above. It works for me.
 
Accidentally.
 
jt2929 said:
So my question is, how do you guys do it? One of the two above, or something completely different?
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I work the ball both ways .... unintentionally. :(
 
Well drawing the ball is easy for me as it is my natural path. To fade the ball all i do is align my body down the line I want the ball to start on and line my clubface towards my intended target or finishing spot. Then I just take a nice in tempo swing and the ball does what I want it to do. With practice it becomes easier to judge just how much the ball is going to move. I always have been fascinated with curving the ball in fact I started messing around with these shots well before I really should have been. But now the one thing I know is, no matter what is happening in my swing on any given day .. I know exactly why I am doing it and also know what to do to fix it.
 
a lot of great information here for someone just learning the basics of shot shaping (myself). really good stuff that i can't wait for the snow to melt to try out.

also greenshit is the great golf message board name i've ever heard of. well done
 
Natural ball flight is a fade- but started to develop a draw off the tee last year which was nice- when playing well I could work the ball both ways... when not I didn't have a clue.
 
Everytime I think of shot-shaping it reminds me of a demo at my club. I was trying last years Cleveland Launcher and was hitting fades and draws and the sales rep says "Man you can hit every shot! I responed "everyone but straight...which is what I'm trying to do!" LMAO
 
My usual shot shape is a push.
 
When I play with shaping shots I have used what many have discussed here. I will direct the club face where I want the ball to finish and open my stance to fade or close my stance to draw. I will move the ball a tiny but up or back as well depending on which I am trying to execute. I have to admit that I am tempted to try to incorporate the tempo change swing thoughts that Martin Hall discusses as well to see if it actually makes it easier. It does make some sense if you think about it. A little more deliberate on the downswing almost decelerating as a swing thought should encourage a more inside out swing path and it stands to reason that accelerating the downswing as a swing thought should encourage a more outside in swing path.

Although I am a little leery of anything that messes with your tempo the more tools you have the more options you have. I often find that out on the course, there are times when lie (tight or not) and grade (uphill, downhill, sidehill) can make some things feel more or less awkward making it difficult to do exactly the same thing each time. As one poster said, visualizing what you need to do is very important and I wish I could do it as well as the poster can as I cannot just visualize what I want my body to do and make it happen. I have to incorporate some swing thought into the effort as well.
 
Wow, LOTS of good tips here on how to shape shots! I have always just tried to be a straight hitter but on certain days I just tend to draw the ball about 10 yards. But I have been wanting to learn more about how to shape my shots because you never know when it will come in handy. Just a couple of times last year I wanted to draw my 3-wood and all I did was close the face a little bit and it worked perfectly! But I tried closing my face a little bit before with my irons and I shank it, and I tried opening the iron face a few times for a fade and I usually still hit it straight. Anyhow, I'm going to have to try some of these tips shown on here to see if any work for me. Thanks everyone.
 
I tend to hit a natural draw. If I want more right to left shape, I strengthen my grip. If I want left to right shape, I weaken my grip and hold off my release.
 
I tend to just open or close my stance a little. It is something that I am going to work on more this year especially with my driver.
 
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