You're Correct!

Every single golfer on the planet, whether a beginning golfer or professionals on the tour, is forever finding ways to improve their golf swings but in particular their swing paths and club face angles at impact.

There are three different swing paths:

• In to out
• Out to in
• Straight

These swing paths determine which shape of shot the ball will have once struck, but it depends on these three face angles:

• Open
• Closed
• Straight

If a player approaches the ball from an in to out path then they will be aiming to hit a draw shape which is when the club face is closed to the swing path but open to the target, starting the ball right and moving it from right to left in the air. Bad shots can include a:

• Push Shot - where the club face is square to the in to out path creating a straight shot right of target
• Hook Shot - When the club face is closed to the target and swing path
• Push Slice Shot - When the club face is open to the target and swing path starting the ball right and curving further right

A player who swings the club from an out to in swing path will look to fade the ball but the bad shots can be:

• A slice - This is when the club face is open to the target and swing path starting the ball left of the target and finishing right of the target
• A pull - This is when the club face is square to the out to in path creating a straight shot which can go too far as the face can be de-lofted at impact.
• Pull hook - This shot is extremely detrimental and is when the club face is closed to the path and target, starting left and curving further left.

These swing paths are the most common, and although they create some beautiful shots, they can also be very close to hitting some really round destroying shots. This is what makes practising so important to your improvement and development in golf.

Custom fitting in drivers is widely available and it should be certainly something you take advantage of because it can be the difference of 10-20 yards or hitting more fairways through better accuracy. Regardless of the technology, a players swing fundamentals should still be good enough to hit good drives.

Swing speed is often debated and many believe they swing too fast, however, slowing the swing down will have similar implications as your timing will be erratic and cause an array of shots.

The correct ball position should be inside the left heel at address, however, many golfers put the ball too far back in the stance causing a steepened angle of attack which creates too much spin at impact. This sends the ball high into the air, potentially missing the fairways depending on the swing path.