Alignment Question

Freddie, I have a question regarding alignment on the course. Anyone else can share their thoughts as well because it's something I'm struggling with on the course. When I'm on the range and can use the alignment rods I set up square with my lower body and shoulders.

When I get to the course for whatever stupid freaking reason I keep defaulting to lining up square with my upper body but being really closed with my lower body. It's mainly only with the driver and I'm not entirely sure why. What I have been doing at the range to try engrain proper setup as far as alignment goes is pick my target line with my alignment, back off and go through my pre-shot routine and just focus on why or what is causing me to setup closed on the course and I can't figure it out because it's easy to set up square with my lower body with the alignment rod.

Do you have any suggestions or advice or drills I can use on the course to get me straightened out or is it something I just need to put a little more focus into when I'm playing?

Does it help if you set up square with your feet together and then put them shoulder length apart? That seems to help keep my lower body square to the target.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Keep doing what your doing what your doing, I don't need you beating me next time out.....lol

this drill will be easy for you. Find your target, find an intermediate point 3 to 4 feet in front of the club and the target. Set the club square to the intermediate target. Now set your lower body perpendicular to that square club face. Start with feet, knees, hips, and then shoulders. Once square, look at you target down your shoulder line and pull the trigger. Do this on every shot.

Thanks for going there Jimmy! I've been struggling mightily myself.

Yeah, this has always been a struggle for me as well. As the round goes on, my set up will get more and more closed, and I use the method described by Freddie above for my set up and it still happens.

Adam0304 said:

Does it help if you set up square with your feet together and then put them shoulder length apart? That seems to help keep my lower body square to the target.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Click to expand...

Sure does. I always set the club down first with my feet together, but if I don't really really think about it I just set up with my hips and feet closed when on the course for some dumb reason!

Tadashi70 said:

Keep doing what your doing what your doing, I don't need you beating me next time out.....lol

this drill will be easy for you. Find your target, find an intermediate point 3 to 4 feet in front of the club and the target. Set the club square to the intermediate target. Now set your lower body perpendicular to that square club face. Start with feet, knees, hips, and then shoulders. Once square, look at you target down your shoulder line and pull the trigger. Do this on every shot.

Click to expand...

Will do Freddie Thank you sir! I've never tried the intermediate target before so I will try this tomorrow and see how it works out for me and report back!

T2GRN18 said:

Thanks for going there Jimmy! I've been struggling mightily myself.

Click to expand...

No problemo big dog. No idea why I do this. But I've noticed as the round goes on if I don't really concentrate on the setup I always default back and it's extremely annoying.

v.man said:

Yeah, this has always been a struggle for me as well. As the round goes on, my set up will get more and more closed, and I use the method described by Freddie above for my set up and it still happens.

Click to expand...

Same for me Ken. As the round goes on if my concentration slips even a little bit I default back like an idiot.

I assume you are placing a club on the ground to check your alignment which is a good idea. I will say that your feet are much less important than your shoulder alignment which is a good thing for now. However over time You would like to get everything matching up so that your shoulders and hips are rotating proportional to the aim of the swing.

A pre-shot routine is very important to get your aim and alignment right on the golf course. I go through a 3-step process before every shot.

This aim and alignment video describes how to get setup correctly on the golf course.

GolfInRed said:

I assume you are placing a club on the ground to check your alignment which is a good idea. I will say that your feet are much less important than your shoulder alignment which is a good thing for now. However over time You would like to get everything matching up so that your shoulders and hips are rotating proportional to the aim of the swing.

A pre-shot routine is very important to get your aim and alignment right on the golf course. I go through a 3-step process before every shot.

This aim and alignment video describes how to get setup correctly on the golf course.

Click to expand...

Thanks for the video dude. That's actually how I setup as well. And after watching I think where I get myself in trouble is my "waggle" to get comfortable. I think thats where I'm defaulting to closing my stance.

Looks like I'm not the only one struggling with this. Thanks Jimmy for getting this one going

on the tee, I'll pick my target line, then find a patch of grass or some close mark and place my ball in line with my target line and that mark.

for the driver, once you're ready to step into your shot, set the club behind the ball with your feet together, and the ball in line with your zipper. make sure everything is square. now take a tiny step toward the target with your left foot, and a bigger step away from your target with your right foot, such that your base is as wide as you are comfortable with. so long as your feet are in line parallel to your target line, everything should have stayed square. take a waggle, look at your target, back at the ball, and pull the trigger.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I have been having this issue lately... I usually aim left of my target with a slightly open stance and hit a power fade. Lately, I have been hitting it straight, even a pull draw. My son just told me Wednesday that my set up looked closed. Gonna check that tonight before I play tomorrow...

I have a constant fight with this. My issue is now that I noticed it was a issue and trying to correct it has had a major negative effect on my game. The last two rounds I have focused on lining up square to my club face with a intermediate target. It looks and feels wrong but I swing anyways, sometimes I can pull it off and just swing and make a nice swing, other times my brain tries to fix it to where I think it should be. Today I left the course after 9 holes without finishing up my 18 i had paid for. The main reason is standing over the ball I was all jacked up feeling, I was not sure what was straight or square and I was so concerned about alignment that nothing felt right I did not know where I was aiming, my swing took a dump because of it. I would line up great on one shot and have my buddy ( 2 handicap) check to make sure I was aimed right and I was. the next time I would the exact same thing and be all screwed up. My advice as someone trying to fix the same issue is work on it on the range and beat it into your head there and just take whatever your brain wants to do when you get to the course. I am about 99.9% sure I built a swing around a close stance to help with a big old slice I had when I first started now trying to fix it on the course ruined a few rounds. I talked to a teaching pro and his advice today was to go through my preshot routine on the driving range with a alignment stick behind my heels at address and ling up as I would on the course. then look back and check and see if I am square and fi not adjust from there. He said learning to align on the range with a nice pretty line in front of you makes you dependent on it and your brain will start looking for lines on tee boxes and edges if fairways to use even if you are not wanting to be pointed that way. So I am going to give that a go and see how it turns out. So my small amount of advice is be very careful trying to fix it on the course and just go with what feels right at the time when playing then beat it into your brain on the range.

BIGBALL said:

I have been having this issue lately... I usually aim left of my target with a slightly open stance and hit a power fade. Lately, I have been hitting it straight, even a pull draw. My son just told me Wednesday that my set up looked closed. Gonna check that tonight before I play tomorrow...

Click to expand...

You could also be releasing the club. Not saying tour son is wrong but this sounds like just that.