Aim. There are many misconceptions on how to properly aim at the target in golf. The rule of thumb for targeting is to ensure your club face is positioned correctly. We generally get confused between body alignment and club alignment. Some individuals worry too much about their alignment and in the end get many lines moving in different directions. It’s also important to know, that past injuries can dramatically affect how a golfer aims. That’s why, it’s very important to have the club face aligned properly. Our bodies have a great way to compensate for these past injuries to make the ball travel toward the target.
Alignment and targeting go hand in hand. Targeting the club face correctly will ensure your body gets aligned correctly. One of the biggest flaws in this process, is that many golfers believe that their feet and shoulders should be aligned directly at the target. This is untrue. The proper set up position is to have the club face aligned at the desired target with your feet and shoulders set parallel to the target line.
Below are a three tips to help you get the club face aimed at your target properly.
A pre-shot routine is very important to develop. Everyone has unique habits before hitting a shot. However, if you ever notice a professional, their pre-shot routine is very consistent and second nature. It’s something they’ve done for many years and their routines always revolve around targeting and alignment. Amateur golfers all have pre-shot routines but many are unfocused, quick and in some cases very over complicated. The basis of a sound pre-shot routine is the target. The only way to pick a target is to stand behind the ball and get a big picture of the shot at hand. Your target should be very precise. It shouldn’t be the green, but rather a portion of the green. When targeting the flag, try narrowing your focus to the screw on the very top of the flag. If we target the green and we miss, our shot will not be that close to the hole. If we narrow our focus on a target, and we miss, the shot will still be relatively close to where we intended the ball to finish. The next step after we’ve selected a very precise target is to walk into the shot and align our club face at that target. Remember, no one is perfect and if you’re comfortable with where the club face is aligned, just go with it.
Tip #2 Club face first, Feet Second
To continue from Tip #1, it’s very important to ensure our club face is aligned correctly during our pre-shot routine. Once we’ve accomplished a square club face, we can than jockey our feet into position. Comfort is King and many people prefer stepping in with one foot and then the other. Others prefer to step in with both feet and then position them correctly according to the club face. When it comes to a pre-shot routine, just be consistent and comfortable. The major component to look for once you’re ready to hit the shot is to make sure your feet alignment is parallel to where the club face is aimed. Once this is achieved take one last look at the target, bring your eyes back to the ball and let the shot go.
Tip #3 Back of the Hand Facing Target
If we are still having problems aligning our club face correctly, one thing to keep in mind is that the back of the left hand (right hand for left handed golfers) should be facing our target. The left hand ultimately controls the clubface. If the back of this hand is pointing left or right or upwards, generally speaking the club face is in a similar position. It’s a simple check to take look down and see the left hand and clubface. Make adjustments accordingly or you can just back away and start the pre-shot routine over again.
Tip #4 Rotate Your Neck, Not Your Shoulders
A common flaw when golfers are getting ready to hit a shot is to lift up and rotate their shoulders in order to see their target. This creates two areas of concern. First you don’t get a great perception of the target line and you often lose sight of your preliminary target. Second, it raises your arms up and more often than not gets your club face off the target. It’s very important that once you get aligned properly, that you get in the habit of rotating your neck instead of your shoulders to view your target. What this neck rotation does is sends your eyes down the target line. If you feel like you don’t see the target, it likely means you’re aligned incorrectly. Back away and start over. This will give you a great perception of how you aim.
