waaay right

Question
Eddie, once a round I hit a shot on a 45 off the tee. I think it's a block. What causes it and do you have a drill to stop it. Thanks for your time.

Answer
Hi Ken:

A shot that goes off on a 45 degree angle straight right is called a shank.  The ball is struck with the hosel (neck) of the club.  Look at the club or clubs you do that with and check out the marks on the neck of the club.  So when a round surface (hosel) meets a round surface (ball), it will not go straight.  It squirts off to the right, and I mean straight right, like you said at a 45.  

Things to check:

First and foremost:  are you too close to the ball.  Go ahead and hit a few shots and simply back up away from the ball about 1 or 2 inches and see if that helps.  

Second:  Too much hand action through impact area.  When the club is moving into the hitting area, if you try to manipulate the clubhead in any fashion to hit the ball, it will force the clubhead out and around the ball just enough so the contact is made on the hosel.  So hit some small shots with quiet hands and see if you don't catch it more in the center of the face.  

Third:  Check your balance.  Usually, I see students shift their weight down into their left toe (right handed golfers) as they swing the club forward.  If your weight shifts out towards your toe, you will move out over the ball just enough to hit it on the hosel.  So, practice hitting some shots being very aware of your feet and your balance on them during the swing.  You should move your weight from the inside of the right foot (instep) to the outside of the left foot (middle of foot to heel) and at the finish position, you should be able to see a couple of spikes under your left toe.  Make several practice swings to feel how your weight should move in a golf swing.  

That is how to fix a shank.  Any more questions, feel free to ask.  

Eddie Kilthau
PGA Member