Release the Club Fully to Remain Shank-Free (Video) - by Pete Styles
Release the Club Fully to Remain Shank-Free (Video) - by Pete Styles

So the last part of why people might be shanking the golf ball, it’s the sign that they don’t release the club fully. Really we want to try and release that club fully to show that we’ve confidence in the action that we’re making and to bring the golf club back to a square position for a good centered strike. So like some golfers, they’re not confident to what they’re doing, either in terms of they’re scared of the shank. Maybe they’re not focused on the target enough or even the fact that they don’t have the right club and therefore they can’t commit to hitting shots. Often we see golfers shank the ball when they’re hitting the sort of half shots, bit of a delicate shot.

They very rarely shank the ball when they’re really committed to hitting it well. So as we address the golf ball, we know we want to be the right distance away. We know we don’t want to be swaying into the golf ball. We’ve already covered those two points in the two previous clips. Now looking at the setting up the right distance, we’ve got to good turn through but it’s very important that we don’t hold on to the golf club as we hit it and we’re scared about it. So make sure you got the right club. So measure yard, work out your landing zone and then choose the appropriate club for that and then commit to that club. Don’t sort of half hit it and second guess yourself. You’ve picked the right club, utilize it and commit with it. Then in the address position, we’re going to work hard on keeping an eye down on the golf ball and not trying to get up and out of the shot too early and check if you’re shanking it. Again, that’s lacking in confidence. And the last thing we want to do is really focus on finishing fully to our target. Don’t forget this is a target oriented game. We’ve got to fully finish to the target. We’re not trying to second guess our swing positions during the backswing. We should have done a lot on the driving range. As we’re setting up to the ball now, it’s going to be big full turn through to your target nice and balanced rather than slightly nervous, awkward, held-off position, thinking too much about technique. And that sounds like an awful lot to ingrain but try and work on this on the driving range. So you’re the right distance away, you lose your sway and you’re turning through nice and committed. Then when you go on the golf course and play, as long as you’ve selected the right club and you’re confident with that, you should have the ability to fully release the golf club through to target and see long shots landing straight and high on the green rather than shanking off sideways. And hopefully if you’ve incorporated those three elements into your game and into your practice routines, we should start to reduce those shanks and get rid of them completely and start enjoying the game a little bit more. 2015-08-11

So the last part of why people might be shanking the golf ball, it’s the sign that they don’t release the club fully. Really we want to try and release that club fully to show that we’ve confidence in the action that we’re making and to bring the golf club back to a square position for a good centered strike. So like some golfers, they’re not confident to what they’re doing, either in terms of they’re scared of the shank. Maybe they’re not focused on the target enough or even the fact that they don’t have the right club and therefore they can’t commit to hitting shots. Often we see golfers shank the ball when they’re hitting the sort of half shots, bit of a delicate shot.

They very rarely shank the ball when they’re really committed to hitting it well. So as we address the golf ball, we know we want to be the right distance away. We know we don’t want to be swaying into the golf ball. We’ve already covered those two points in the two previous clips. Now looking at the setting up the right distance, we’ve got to good turn through but it’s very important that we don’t hold on to the golf club as we hit it and we’re scared about it. So make sure you got the right club.

So measure yard, work out your landing zone and then choose the appropriate club for that and then commit to that club. Don’t sort of half hit it and second guess yourself. You’ve picked the right club, utilize it and commit with it. Then in the address position, we’re going to work hard on keeping an eye down on the golf ball and not trying to get up and out of the shot too early and check if you’re shanking it.

Again, that’s lacking in confidence. And the last thing we want to do is really focus on finishing fully to our target. Don’t forget this is a target oriented game. We’ve got to fully finish to the target. We’re not trying to second guess our swing positions during the backswing. We should have done a lot on the driving range. As we’re setting up to the ball now, it’s going to be big full turn through to your target nice and balanced rather than slightly nervous, awkward, held-off position, thinking too much about technique.

And that sounds like an awful lot to ingrain but try and work on this on the driving range. So you’re the right distance away, you lose your sway and you’re turning through nice and committed. Then when you go on the golf course and play, as long as you’ve selected the right club and you’re confident with that, you should have the ability to fully release the golf club through to target and see long shots landing straight and high on the green rather than shanking off sideways. And hopefully if you’ve incorporated those three elements into your game and into your practice routines, we should start to reduce those shanks and get rid of them completely and start enjoying the game a little bit more.