Ball Position
It is my sincere hope that our most recent newsletter campaign regarding golf's fundamentals has your game heating up as much as the weather! Based on the acronym G.A.P.B.S. used at our school to identify these five basic concepts, we have put some fire in your Grip, Aim, and Posture and now turn our attention to the letter B, or Ball Position. When effective ball striking becomes elusive, instead of trying to fix your swing, concern yourself with where you are playing the golf ball in your stance.
This month's discussion has nothing to do with uneven lies or a golfer's desire to manipulate trajectory. This article reflects a full swing with the golf ball resting on a level lie. Therefore, assuming this ideal scenario of a perfect lie, only one true ball position is desirable from your driver through your lob wedge. You will never hear me preaching to play the ball position back in your stance with a short iron, then move the ball to the middle of your stance with a hybrid or mid iron, then play the ball position forward with your driver. No Way! Under the law of the lever, thank you Mr. Homer Kelley author of The Golfing Machine, one ball position is correct and much easier. Here is why:
Let us think of the golf swing as a pendulum complete with a fulcrum (for a right handed golfer this is the left shoulder hinge arrangement), an arm or a radius to swing (for a right handed golfer the left arm and the shaft), and finally a mass on the end of the radius (the club head). Under the law of the lever, as you allow the pendulum to swing, the low point of the orbiting mass (the club head) is always opposite the fulcrum (the left shoulder hinge arrangement). No matter what length the arm is (long arm driver or short arm lob wedge) the low point is still opposite the hinge!
So where do you play the ball position in a full swing off of a level lie with each club from driver through the lob wedge? Experiment with 2 to 4 inches in back of your lead heel. Once you find your hot spot or the ball position that most frequently surrenders solid contact, stop experimenting! One ball position will instantly help clean up poor impact alignments. Next month we will discuss the proper stance width to facilitate the short, mid, and long clubs in the bag.
Ted Frick
Owner/Director of Instruction
Classic Swing Golf School
2005 Carolinas PGA Section Teacher of the Year
TPI Level 1 Certified Golf Fitness Instructor
G.S.E.D., The Golfing Machine
[email protected]
For more of Ted's classic tips,