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While this may seem like a simple drill, training "impact fix" for the driver is a great way to reinforce proper orientations and build spatial awareness. The reasons for doing this drill with several different clubs can be summarized by this anecdote:
Jon Rahm, former World No. 1, has an attack angle with his 9-iron that is 9 degrees "down"; his driver attack angle is 5 degrees "up". This means he can vary his attack angle by up to 14 degrees between just (2) different shots.
Ultimately, this variation in attack angle is necessary for producing optimal launch conditions with every club in the bag. However, if we do not understand the changes in body movements & release patterns that create this dynamic ability, we are going to have a hard time playing consistently with the irons & driver.
Playlists: Find Your Best Swing Quickly, Start Here, Beginner Program
Tags: Driver, Impact, Concept, Beginner
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This is the driver impact fix.
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The driver impact fix is looking at the difference between the setup and impact.
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Similar to the iron version, where if I choke up like it was an iron, with the iron version
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if we do the merry-go-round, our hands get a few inches or four inches or closer to the target,
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they get a little bit higher, face gets a little bit more close, and we feel this kind of
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shaft lean that helps give us really solid contact.
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Well, with the driver, one of the interesting things is when we do this impact fix,
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you'll notice that at start position it's on the ground, and then if I go to impact
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position, it's actually going to be off the ground.
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So it goes from here, more to there.
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And what you'll see is the hands don't move as much, the shaft will move around a little bit,
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but the hands don't move as much with the driver as they will with the iron.
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So it's also answers a member question that's basically, okay, if we set up with the driver
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on the ground and we tee the ball halfway up the face, what is it that actually adjust
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the driver so that you then hit it just above center?
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Because with the iron, we're trying to make contact about the fourth group up with the driver,
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you're trying to make contact, just above center and just slightly, you know, millimeter
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towards the heel.
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So just above center, just towards the heel, but pretty much in the middle of the club,
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just like that.
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Okay, well, when I start with it on the ground, I'm going to have certain amount of
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bending my arms.
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Well when I get to impact that right arm is typically going to be bent about 45 degrees
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or so, 40 degrees somewhere in that zone.
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So if here, let's say it's 20 degrees bent at setup, well that means I'm going to bend
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it 20 degrees more.
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That puts the driver back behind me a little bit like this.
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And then when I change my body position, when I go from here back to impact, my upper body
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is actually going to be one to two inches behind where it started.
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So that combination of, I'm set up here and then at impact, I'm a little bit further back
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and the right arm is a little bit more bent.
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That brings the driver up off the ground.
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And that gives me basically the position so that then when I extend my arms through, you'll
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see that it has a nice flat bottom of the swing, club faces already, very square, feels
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very stable, pointing at the target, but the arm extension is through the ball instead of
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at it.
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But the two big differences are with the iron, we get an inch or so closer to the golf ball,
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as we rotate through and our hands get four inches or so in front of the golf ball
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at impact, that helps create the shaft lean.
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Well, hands are in a similar position compared to the body, but the body is further back
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in a little bit more rotated inside bent, that helps keep this right arm bent longer.
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And those two combinations being a little bit further back and the arm more bent elevate
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the driver off the ground.
