Q: Preston:
I typically hit a power fade off the tee with Driver and 3 wood but hit my irons fairly straight. Lately I have been hitting a slice off the tee with my driver, a pull off the tee with my 3 wood, and a fade with my irons. How can I get my consistent fade back on the tee?

A: David Kraus (South Florida Section):
Preston, not being able to see your swing, let's see if we can help you. The first thing I would look at because of your inconsistencies and different shot patterns with different clubs is to look at your setup, specifically ball position. Assuming that you set up square and parallel to your target line, if your ball gets too far forward with the driver the club is moving left and if the face is slightly open this will cause a left to right movement of the ball. Since you are pulling the 3-wood this is probably because the face is square to the path of the club - so if the club is moving left and the face is square to that path the ball will go straight left. With the irons, the left to right movement is less pronounced because the clubs are shorter and the plane is more upright than with the longer fairway woods or driver. So, try to be aware of where the ball is in your stance. My general rule of thumb is middle for the short irons, halfway between middle and left heel for mid and long irons, hybrids, and fairway woods, and off the left heel with the driver. How do you get consistent position? Try this. As you take your stance keep your feet together even with the ball. If you have a short iron, take a small step left with the left foot and an equal step right with right. The ball should be in the middle. For the longer clubs, it's a smaller step to the left but a bigger step to the right. And for the driver, just step to the right with the right foot and leave the left where it is. Now the ball is off the left heel. Hope this helps.

Q: jerry:
My iron game is decent but I spray it off the tee. Duck hook, block right......I've been told I have a reverse pivot. How do I ensure that I get my weight back to the left side on the downswing and not leave it on the back foot?

Thank you!

A: Jerry Elwell (Southern California Section):
Jerry,

Try something first before I answer your main question. Go down on your grip until you touch the shaft. Hit a couple of balls there and then move your hands up to the middle of the grip and do two sots, and then a couple of shots at the end. You are probably playing with a driver that is too long for you. I would think you will do much better in the first or second position than in the last with the club held at the end.

Now to the weight shift issue. I would test you to see which leg is stronger. Try to stand on just your right foot with the left foot up off the ground - arms out to the side to help balance you. Then try it on the left foot.

You probably have a balance issue that makes it difficult to move to the back foot and then to the forward foot.

On a personal note - years ago I found I was having a tough time getting back to the ball after making a good turn. It is the maturing process. So I set up in my Contact Position (you would call it Impact)so I had my weight on the left leg, my hands were ahead of the ball, and my shaft angle was perfect. I then just swung the club back and turned my shoulders and did not move my lower body at all and swung through and my shots started carrying further and the shots were more solid and strighter.

Obvious to me was the need to take all of the tension out of my body. You probably have a large portion of tension in your set up and then swing that leads to your reverse pivot.

I would have you doing a lot of swings trying this before you add a ball to get in the way of your swing.

Enjoy the new Swing!

Make A Lot of Birdies,

Dr. Jerry Elwell

Q: Levon:
I'm having difficulty using my driver off the tee. Only about 1 in 5 of my shots go a decent distance ... the others seem to skid along the ground without getting any loft. Can you help?

A: Jerry Elwell (Southern California Section):
Levon,

The first thing I would have you do is to test you for the length of the driver. Go down on the grip until you touch the shaft. Try 2 balls at that length. Then go in the middle of the grip and try 2 balls. Then go the end of the club and try 2 balls.

I would think that you will do much better with the shorter length. I had a player come in for a club fitting years ago and he kept topping the shots. I did this test and I eventually had him hitting it about 210 yards.

Try this and enjoy the journey in learning.

Make A Lot of Birdies,

Dr. Jerry Elwell

Q: Gene DeNardi:
I know a strong grip will promote closing the face at impact creating a hook. What else should I do to promote a nice draw with the driver?

A: John P. Henry (South Florida Section):
Hell Gene,

A nice draw is caused by a slightly closed clubface at impact. As you mentioned, a stronger grip can help promote a draw. To hit a controlled draw, you might consider this gameplan: At the address position, many advanced players will align their body (feet, hips and shoulders) in the direction that they want the ball to start out, and aim their clubface where they want the final shot to end up. That method addresses the initial flight of the ball as well as the end result.

Q: Chris Winder:
Do the current drivers (large head/thin face) get "weak" after use? That is, does the COR decrease over time with a consequent loss of distance?

A: Ronald Miller (Southern Texas Section):
Metal of any kind has a fatigue factor. Most of the metals used in the top of the line drivers will not fatigue to any degree for many years. Fatigue will definitely cause a loss of COR, so if you're looking for a reason to tell your wife you nee a new driver, just tell her the face on your driver has fatigued.