SHANKS!!!

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By Tony W

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  • 22 Replies
  1. Tony W

    Tony W
    Solvang, CA

    Help!  After a great round yesterday I went out today to the practice tee and . . . Shanks!  I'm hoping it will just go away

  2. Mike C

    Mike C
    Dallas, TX

    Have had this happen before myself a couple of times and it was always a setup issue.  Spend a sometime with your local pro and he should be able to diagnose the issue pretty quickly.  For me, it was setting up too close to the ball.  Simple fix and, there you go, pure strikes again.

     

    I find personally I lapse into small changes that I cannot see myself.  Having another person evaluate you generally works best for me.  It always surprises me how a little tweak her or there can make a big difference.

  3. Tony W

    Tony W
    Solvang, CA

    Thanks Mike

  4. Fred Closs

    Fred Closs
    Denton, TX

    Tony, if you still are dealing with "hosel rockets", often they are caused from standing too far from the ball and/or putting too much weight toward your toes at setup. This can force you to start down with your arms and swing "over the top" to be able to reach the ball. Check to see if you feel as if you are reaching for the ball at set up. After that, stop trying to hit the ball so hard and make certain you start down with your hips.

  5. Lou G

    Lou G
    San Diego, CA

    Shanks are caused by a few things.

    1.  Too close to the ball

    2.  Loss of balance by setting up too far from bal

    3. Coming over the top.

    4.  Standing too upright cause what APPEARS to be a shank.

     

     

  6. Chuck Z

    Chuck Z
    Mt Pleasant, SC

    Military

    Fred C said:

    Tony, if you still are dealing with "hosel rockets", often they are caused from standing too far from the ball and/or putting too much weight toward your toes at setup. This can force you to start down with your arms and swing "over the top" to be able to reach the ball. Check to see if you feel as if you are reaching for the ball at set up. After that, stop trying to hit the ball so hard and make certain you start down with your hips.

    Fred make good sense and that is what my teaching pro told me plus he said I was aiming too much to the right. Additionally, the guys in our league refer to them as the Chucks, they do not like that s word......they yell three instead of four because they know it is a chuck....inside joke.....my pro straightened me out.....the pro also, said to stop thinking about it so much and hit the ball.... :-)
  7. Curtis M

    Curtis M
    moline, IL

    Put all your items in your left pocket, flip your hat around, put a tee behind your left ear, and tie your left shoe tighter.   That should help!

  8. Tony W

    Tony W
    Solvang, CA

    Love it!  If it's good enough for Tin Cup it's good enough for me. 

  9. Charles R. B

    Charles R. B
    Scotia, NY

    Shanking or hitting with the hosel is caused by coming down from outside to in and when you do the clubface stays open and the first thing that makes contact is the heel or hosel. Raymond Floyd used to say you can never stand too close to the ball.  Couple things for thought, two knuckle grip, make sure the V`s between thumb and first fingers are pkointed at the back shoulder, and take the clubhead back and through on the target line for as long as you can. Concentrate on coming into the back of the ball from the inside, and no more shanks!

  10. bigearnucsd

    bigearnucsd
    rancho cucamonga, CA

    i've been battling shanks too. i'd get 1 shank every few rounds. I've researched google, youtube, forums and they all got great explanation and drills but the problem for me is it seems almost impossible to erase that shank muscle memory.

    Latest thing that worked for me was little wider stance. i think my stance was too narrow, making it easier to sway and get off the swinging plane.  i think the wider stance created more stable base helping me to stay on plane.  

  11. NEVER repeat NEVER use the S- word

  12. John L

    John L
    Dewey, OK

    I see you asking for help on the shanks but not exactly sure what shank is but i would give this advice. start hitting pitching wedges. find your swing then progress back up the food chain. I had a great teacher before that built my swing from the ground up using a pw. he did this so that any time it started falling apart i could go back to the pw. i would say grab a few alignment rods if you dont have any. the one thats on your foot line mark where the ball should be  and on the second one mark how far the ball should be away from you. place the second rod about 6-8 inches behind the ball so your not hiting it then hit a bucket of wedge shots start with half swings and work your way back up to full swings. you'll be making solid contact with the ball in no time.

    cheers greens and fairways

    simba

  13. AC RixRox

    AC RixRox
    saratoga springs, NY

    GOOD AVICE! My DAD Taught me the same way. He wasn't a pro but he made a truck load of money on the golf course.
  14. Put 2 balls down. Set up the club face on the ball that is furthest away from you and then swing to hit the ball that is closer to you.

    This will help cure the "S"  issue really fast.

  15. DaveB

    DaveB
    Otisville, NY

    When I shank a shot, I find that, for me, it's more from leading with the heel of my left hand at impact and not releasing the club enough to square the club face at impact, so I'm throwing the hosel of the club right into the ball instead of a square club face. A few practice swings accentuating a good release of the club head at the impact point helps to fix it for me.

    Good luck!

  16. Ryan D.

    Ryan D.
    Tulsa, OK

    So, I just came off from a few weeks of this...

    When I went to lesson, the ONLY thing I was doing wrong was I had too much weight on my toes throughout the swing.

    When I say too much weight, I mean, it wasn't even noticeable to me that I even had weight on my toes. Try and stand more flat footed or even barely on the heels. When you finish your swing, try to finish with most weight on the leading foots heel. This is what has cured me.

  17. There is some good advice in this thread. I will throw in two more thoughts on what is debatably the most frustrating thing in golf. First, lay down an alignment stick outside the ball along the target line and hit the ball without hitting the alignment stick. Second, make sure your weight gets to your right heel on the backswing and to the left heel on the follow though for a right handed golfer. Solved...with practice.
  18. Bob T

    Bob T
    East Otis, MA

    Swing from the inside with the face more open.  It worked for me!!!!!

  19. PRO V

    PRO V
    golf course

    Tony, I've found it's a mental lapse due to stress, pressure or lack of focus.  Work through it on the range if possible or just refocus on the course and concentrate on the basic fundamentals.  They will disappear!

  20. tdogg21

    tdogg21
    Chambersburg, PA

    When I've had problems, it almost always comes down to my tempo.  I found just going to the driving range with a mid iron and just taking easy swings.  Focus on making a smooth swing and don't worry about where it goes.  

  21. Keith M

    Keith M
    Acworth, GA

    tdogg21 said:

    When I've had problems, it almost always comes down to my tempo.  I found just going to the driving range with a mid iron and just taking easy swings.  Focus on making a smooth swing and don't worry about where it goes.  

    Same here.  Almost all of my shanks are on chips when I try to get too cute with the ball and decelerate to impact.  Stay aggressive and the shanks don't happen.  The others are from rushing too much on the range after a bad shot.  Instead of taking a breath, resetting my setup, I tend to throw another ball down and swing out of anger.  Stupid mistakes on my part.

  22. Tyson M

    Tyson M
    paducah, KY

    My nickname is Shankmaster

  23. Michael JC

    Michael JC
    Orwell, VT

    Shanks, hosel rockets can be extremely scary. I generally get them hitting practice wedges at home.

    I just try not to panic, and keep on swinging. I believe it is something minor in my set up.

    Since you had a great round, the swing is in there. Just have to find it.

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