Are you a golfer who often hits your golf club on the ground before hitting the golf ball and often think why it happens?
In fact Studies have shown that around 60-70% of the golfers go through this problem sometimes in their game and later they correct it with practice. Some of them don’t fix it and continue doing this in their shots.
Imagine just doing slight changes in your stance, head position and other alterations can fix your problem and will help you to get better in your game. In this article I am going to give you practical tips on how to stop hitting the ground before the golf ball, perfect stance and drill to completely solve this problem.
Ideal Angle of Approach: For comparison, the average angle of approach for a 6-iron on the PGA Tour is about 4 degrees down. So the goal is to get steeper into the ball.
Technical Insights
Shallow Approach Angle: This is when the club approaches the ball from too shallow of an angle and can cause either of the two undesirable shots as follows.
- Heavy/Fat Shots: The club hits the ground before striking the ball, which leads to a loss of distance and control.
- Thin shots: it hits the ball high on the face of the club, so it’s a low, skimming shot, not too accurate.
Ideal Angle of Approach: For comparison, the average angle of approach for a 6-iron on the PGA Tour is about 4 degrees down. So the goal is to get steeper into the ball.
Common Errors
Hanging back on the rear foot.
Early club release.
Swinging from an inside-out path.
Causes of hitting the ground before the golf ball and their solutions
Hitting the ground before the ball is one of the really frustrating problems, which often is caused by more than one fault in swing. You would understand these problems better in detail, which would lead you to apply good solutions to improve your game. Below are the major causes with expanded descriptions and their corresponding solutions:.
1. Weight distribution
Description: This is where a golfer lingers on his back foot during impact and displaces the weight distribution. It usually leads to “fat shots,” where the club hits the ground before hitting the ball. You cannot have the proper downward strike if you are already back on your rear foot, and you are likely to have inconsistent contact and loss of distance. Proper weight transfer is necessary for making full power and to make the club hit the ball at its right time.
Solution:
- Start with more weight on the front foot: you will want to stand a little forward of level at address, setting up for a better strike. Read more about how golf balls make a difference to better understand their role in distance and control.
- Use Shorter Practice Swings: Instead, focus on making controlled swings that put emphasis on moving your weight forward, helping drive home the feeling of balance.
- Drilling: Set up a weight shift drill. You are going to intentionally shift your weight forward toward your lead side as you swing. You can do this with half swings in order to build muscle memory.
2. Head Turn
Description: Excessive head movement during the swing can destabilize your entire setup and lead to inconsistent strikes. If your head moves up, down, or sideways, it can alter your swing path and timing, making it difficult to achieve solid contact with the ball. A stable head position helps maintain alignment and ensures that your body rotates around a fixed point. With the head turn you should also focus on the right point for good hits.
Solution:
- Keep Your Head Still: Keep your head steady through your whole swing to achieve better consistency.
- Drill: Check your head position on few practice swings using a mirror. This visual feedback will allow you to see whether you are keeping your head steady as you execute your VLS swing.
3. Lower Body Sliding
Description: Lower Body Sliding describes the hips sliding instead of rotating on a swing. Golfers typically hit early with their ground when they slide their hips to the target rather than rotating. The slinging produces a disturbance to balance and timing, producing poor strikes.
Solution:
- Focus on proper hip rotation: Your hips are the ones that should rotate around the spine, not slide horizontally. This way, they can generate more power at the downswing.
- Monitoring Technique: Pay special attention to hip movement in your practice swings and use drills that emphasize correct rotational movement, not sliding laterally.
4. Ball Position
Description: If the ball is too far back in your stance, you will hit behind the ball and make poor contact. You will hit down on it too steeply, or you may hit the ground first. A ball placed too far forward might cause you to hit late in your swing arc.
Solution:
- Ball Position Adjust: Position the ball just forward of center for mid-irons and much further forward for long clubs like drivers. This should position your strike in relation to the swing arc.
- Use alignment sticks. In training, check and then keep the ball aligned right with regard to your specific golf stance.
5. Swing Path Problems
Description: A extremely steep or shallow swing path can cause inconsistent ball contact. Down hitting will be caused when swinging too steep and the shots will be thin when swinging too shallow as you’ll chop through the ball with a shallow swing path.
Solution:
- Maintain Proper Takeaway: Your club should come back straight during the take away phase of your swing and not too far inside or outside.
- Practice Drills: Use the following drills to integrate body and arm movements as one unit. Position sticks along your intended swing path to guide club direction throughout your swing.
6. Early Release (Flipping)
Description: Early Release is defined as the swing where players release their ball too soon, which indicates that it is too short and with a poor swing impact of the ball by the clubs. This produces weak and inconsistent shots due to their early release from the swinging motion.
Solution:
- Maintain a flexed wrist as much as possible at impact; longer time to store more energy in the wrist. Check out the Titleist Pro V1 review for a ball that responds well to controlled impact.
- Drill: Practice wedge drills focusing first on impacting the ball with hands and leading for control on the angle of the clubface at contact.
7. Over-rotated Backswing
Description: Additionally, excessive turn through the backswing will cause your swing plane to be flattened such that you contact the ball in a lousy way. You also become awkward upon returning to the impact position when turning too much.
Solution:
- Keep Club Connected to Your Body When Taking Away: This creates far better control of your swing path.
- Drilling: Take a shorter backswing and grip down to get a better hold of the club and avoid over-rotating for a straighter ball flight.
8. Poor Weight Transfer
Description: Failure to transfer weight during the swing appropriately may cause hitting behind the ball or failure to produce enough power. Proper weight transfer is a requirement for effective carry-through of a strike.
Solution:
- Shift Weight to Left Side Quicker During Downswing: Stress this acceleration as you start your downswing.
- Practice Step Drills: Practice the proper transfer of weight by including step drills in your practice, which will imprint this vital movement.
9. Inadequate Installation and Alignment
Description: Misalignment at set-up can make for inconsistent swing mechanics as well as a poor contact of the ball. Lack of alignment with the target line results in both directions and quality of strikes.
Solution:
- Align to shoot with your stance toward your target. Position your hips, feet, and shoulder toward your target for successful shooting.
- Drills With Alignment Sticks: Drill frequently with alignment sticks drawn from your target line. The outcome is a consistent set-up and alignment every time you address the ball.
How to Stop hitting the ground before the golf ball
Not a nice feeling hitting the ground before the ball. Practice and changes will come to rectify this. Here are some perfect strategies that can help you to swing better for cleaner contact and better games.
1. Use alignment sticks
The alignment sticks are critical tools in terms of the ball position and foot placement.
Use: Position one parallel to your target line on the ground and place another parallel to indicate your feet alignment. This is a great visual tool to keep your setup aligned correctly and in proper position for your swing.
2. Heads Position Workout
Technique: Maintain a strong head position-the foundation for consistent ball striking.
Practice at home with a mirror to get an idea of the movement in your head during swings. Keep your head firm while swinging, which keeps the body balanced and the hands in control.
3. Maintains Swing Speed
Tip: One of the ways to avoid hitting behind the ball is to keep the swing speed through impact.
Action: You hit through the ball instead of bracing on it as you hit. This will give you a solid hit on it. Also keep hitting golf balls at the same rate to practice swing speed and keep it consistent.
4. Weight Transfer Activities
Objective: Weight transfer is required for a clean strike.
Drilling: Practice taking some of your weight forward with your downswing by starting in a balanced setup address position with the intent to swing all the way through but with some of your weight shifting toward your lead foot.
5. Verify lead wrist extension
Key: The leading wrist should bend at impact so the clubface can control.
Tip: Practice holding this wrist position during your swings to avoid the fat shots and improve the consistency of contact with the ball.
6. Not excessive shaft lean
Advice: More shaft lean at impact is required, but over-treatment will result in early ground contact.
Modification: You want to make sure the shaft lean is right for what shot you’re hitting and balance between solidity, which is good contact, but not too much lean.
Effective Drills for Improving Your Golf Swing
Improving your golf swing requires focused practice and the right techniques. Here are some effective drills that can help you develop better contact with the ball and enhance your overall performance on the course.
1. Half and Three-Quarter Swings
Purpose: These controlled swings help you focus on making a descending strike, which is essential for solid ball contact.
How to Practice:
- Set up a tee peg in front of the ball, about 2-3 inches away.
- Practice half and three-quarter swings, aiming to strike the tee peg before hitting the ball.
- This drill encourages a proper angle of approach, promoting a downward strike that leads to cleaner contact and improved distance control
2. Coin Drill
Purpose: The coin drill promotes forward weight transfer, a critical component of effective ball striking.
How to Practice:
- Place a coin approximately 6 inches in front of your golf ball.
- As you swing, aim to make contact with the ball first and then hit the coin afterward.
This drill helps reinforce the feeling of shifting your weight forward during the downswing, ensuring that you maintain balance and power through impact.
3. Step Drill
Purpose: The step drill is designed to ingrain a natural weight shift and improve your swing tempo.
How to Practice:
- Start in your normal address position, but take a small step back with your lead foot (left foot for right-handed golfers).
- As you initiate your downswing, step forward with your lead foot while simultaneously beginning your swing.
This movement encourages proper weight transfer from your back foot to your front foot, promoting a more fluid and balanced swing.
4. Professional Instruction
Purpose: Seek lessons to get tailored feedback and further your practice effectively. Additionally, understanding what a golf scramble is can provide insight into team play formats that might alter your swing approach..
How to Benefit:
- A professional can assess your swing mechanics, identify areas for improvement, and offer targeted drills that align with your goals.
Regular lessons can help you stay accountable and motivated while ensuring that you are practicing effectively
Practicing for Long-Term Improvement
That is how one would go about improving their game for the long term.
Focus short game
Spend extra time practicing short game in order to get a feel for having solid contact. This develops consistency in shots and countless golfers in the golf community have told me that they get great results from it making their golf game better on the golf course.
Experimentation
Try different swings and clubs to find one that works for you. Most golfers at the lesson tee desperate with improvements; however, experiments are the keys to break-throughs.
Standard Pre-Shot Routine
Establish a pre-shot routine that proves to be consistent. Some golfers disregard this, but it may just be the difference in how you hit the golf ball.
Conclusion
These drills and techniques will be placed on the correct way toward an perfect ball position while reducing hitting into the ground before the ball. It is only by consistently practicing these that you would realize more time spent with same swing and attention in set up.
Keep in mind, the golf ball isn’t just a target but an item you are trying to drive by, and it takes cautionable handling. So go put on your favorite golf shirt, keep comfortable and relish this experience.
Wait for your self on improving; do not mind shaking from time to time until when techniques become correct. All commitment will result in being on consistency and enjoyable moments when golfing.
