Thin Golf Shot Drill 3: Buttons onto ball (Video) - by Pete Styles
Thin Golf Shot Drill 3: Buttons onto ball (Video) - by Pete Styles

Anytime that anybody tells you that you are lifting your head and that’s the reason why you are topping the golf ball, take that piece of advice and disregard it slightly. And think a little bit more about this advice. The advice really is that, if you’re lifting up through the impact area, it’s not your head that’s causing that problem but it’s your chest and spine angle that’s causing that problem. So the spine angle at set up is tilted forwards. Now, if during your impact phase the spine angle isn’t tilted forwards anymore and you've come up, that’s the reason why you are topping the golf ball. Now your friends will see your head going up and they will tell you that your lifting you head. But in reality, it’s not the head that’s the problem, but actually keeping the head down as you think your trying to do a good job of keeping your head down because that’s what your mates told you. That would cause you more problems with your spine angle.

So all you need to focus on keeping the spine angle down through impact. That effectively keeps your head at the right level and makes the contact much easier and stops you topping off thinning the golf ball. So the focus really here is the buttons on your shirt. Keep your buttons tied on to the golf ball. So my set up position, I feel that my buttons on my chest are being pulled over to the top of the ball. Then make my swing and at the impact area I focus on keeping my buttons pulled forwards and not letting my buttons come up and start to follow through too early. If I start to follow through too early, chances are I will top the golf ball. So it’s buttons onto the golf ball that really makes a good contact position. So stay down, buttons over the top of the ball here and then I will come up through the impact area into my follow through. And the strike that I get in the golf ball now is much better due to being focused on keeping my buttons over the top of the ball. So it’s not lifting your head as the problem. It’s lifting your buttons keep them down over the top of the golf ball, good side strike with the chest and then up to the finish. Practice after the drawing range, lots of practice rings on the golf course and that will help eradicate your topping your thin shots as well.

 2012-11-28

Anytime that anybody tells you that you are lifting your head and that’s the reason why you are topping the golf ball, take that piece of advice and disregard it slightly. And think a little bit more about this advice. The advice really is that, if you’re lifting up through the impact area, it’s not your head that’s causing that problem but it’s your chest and spine angle that’s causing that problem. So the spine angle at set up is tilted forwards. Now, if during your impact phase the spine angle isn’t tilted forwards anymore and you've come up, that’s the reason why you are topping the golf ball. Now your friends will see your head going up and they will tell you that your lifting you head. But in reality, it’s not the head that’s the problem, but actually keeping the head down as you think your trying to do a good job of keeping your head down because that’s what your mates told you. That would cause you more problems with your spine angle.

So all you need to focus on keeping the spine angle down through impact. That effectively keeps your head at the right level and makes the contact much easier and stops you topping off thinning the golf ball. So the focus really here is the buttons on your shirt. Keep your buttons tied on to the golf ball. So my set up position, I feel that my buttons on my chest are being pulled over to the top of the ball. Then make my swing and at the impact area I focus on keeping my buttons pulled forwards and not letting my buttons come up and start to follow through too early. If I start to follow through too early, chances are I will top the golf ball. So it’s buttons onto the golf ball that really makes a good contact position. So stay down, buttons over the top of the ball here and then I will come up through the impact area into my follow through. And the strike that I get in the golf ball now is much better due to being focused on keeping my buttons over the top of the ball.
So it’s not lifting your head as the problem. It’s lifting your buttons keep them down over the top of the golf ball, good side strike with the chest and then up to the finish. Practice after the drawing range, lots of practice rings on the golf course and that will help eradicate your topping your thin shots as well.