Try these changes employed by one of my best students to get your clubface under control and get rid of that slice (Part 2, Conclusion)

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Drill: Point the Grip at the Ball

Purchase a light plastic pole or wooden dowel, and grip it as above with the pole directly under the spine of the shaft. Swing the club back in slow motion (or half speed) until your left arm is parallel to the ground. At this point, the pole should point right at the ball, which signifies that the shaft is on plane (right). If it points above the ball or outside the target line, then the shaft is “laid off’ and off plane. Repeat 20 to 30 times.

You can also combine this drill with a towel, stretched across your chest and lodged under both armpits, to help you feel the correct connection between your arms and torso on the takeaway. This exercise gives you a visual reference as to what the plane of your shaft should look like halfway back, and teaches you how to sequence the movement of the shaft, arms and torso together out of the starting gate. The more connected you are going back, the more likely you are to return everything together and on-plane at impact, so you can hit straighter, more powerful shots.

All Fingers on Deck

Courtney used to employ an interlocking grip, which means her entire pinky was off the shaft.
For someone with such small hands, this was counterproductive, because the more fingers you put on the grip, the more control you have over the clubface. So I immediately put her in a 10-fin­ger “baseball” grip (left) and strengthened the position of her left hand, so she could see at least two knuckles on that hand at address. If you wear a small-sized glove, this is the grip for you.

Tom Patri is Director of Instruction at Friar’s Head in Riverhead, N.Y., and The Quarry in Naples, Fla.

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Courtney Dampolo is a rising senior on the Boston University women’s golf team.

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Photos by Russell Kirk/GOLFLINKS
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