Alignment Issue: Right Handed, Lined Up Left of Target When I Think I’m Square

DLev45 · August 25, 2020

25 minutes ago, Millbrook said:

Am I understanding the part in bold correctly - that you are trying to have the club face and feet pointing at the target? If you align your feet to the target then you will be aiming to the right.

Your feet and club face are like 2 railway tracks - they are parallel. The club face is aligned at the target (along the right rail track), the feet and shoulders (assuming a square stance) will point to a point parallel left of target (along the left rail track).

https://golfstateofmind.com/alignment-important-thing-every-golf-shot/

No, not trying to point feet at target. Squaring clubface to intermediate point and then feet to clubface. Not trying to point feet at target. It's easy to misinterpret when putting into words.

Here is what I do, to be clear, as a right-handed, right-eye dominant golfer

1. Stand behind the ball and look down the target line and pick an intermediate point 6-inches to a foot in front of the ball.

2. Take a step or two to the left from still behind the ball, keeping my eyes on the intermediate point.

3. Walk into the ball diagonally from left-to-right, keeping my eyes on the intermediate point.

4. Take a step towards the ball with my RIGHT (trail) foot, LEFT (lead) foot still well open to the target line.

5. With that RIGHT (trail) foot forward and my LEFT (lead) foot back, align the clubface to the intermediate point with my LEFT (lead) hand.

6. Move my RIGHT (trail) foot back and my LEFT (lead) foot forward to square my stance to my clubface, which has already been set.

Per my spotter, when I complete my routine and tell them that I have the face aimed at the target and my stance square to my face, both my stance and my face are pointed left of where I think they are.

We did a blind study with an alignment stick. I didn't pick the target. My spotter did. Here was that process:

1. I closed my eyes and my spotter put down an alignment stick pointing at a target downrange.

2. I opened my eyes and never looked up from the ground while lining up to the alignment stick.

3. I aligned my face to the alignment stick and my stance to my face.

4. I was finally allowed to look up, and he told me where the alignment stick was pointing. To me, visually, the target was over my left shoulder, almost behind it. It felt like I was aimed 10-15 yards right of where he said the stick was pointing. I felt like I was going to have to hit a pull to get it there.

Edited August 25, 2020 by DLev45

DLev45 · August 25, 2020

6 minutes ago, rich_s2 said:

I have always aimed right of target. If I don't pick out a spot and just set my feet where I think they should be, I am aimed 15 degree right.

You are in the majority, @rich_s2. Every article or post I could find about right-handers being misaligned involved aiming bias to the right and how to fix it. I couldn't find anything on a right-hander with a left-aim bias. That's why I started this thread instead of piggy-backing an old one.

rich_s2 · August 25, 2020

1 minute ago, DLev45 said:

You are in the majority, @rich_s2. Every article or post I could find about right-handers being misaligned involved aiming bias to the right and how to fix it. I couldn't find anything on a right-hander with a left-aim bias. That's why I started this thread instead of piggy-backing an old one.

going to guess it just depends on which eye is dominant. I think its called parallax issue due to our eyes being next to each other. Guessing the fix is the same though.

Millbrook · August 25, 2020

Have you checked whether your knees, hips and shoulders are all square and pointing in the right direction?

riffybeats · May 7

On 6/3/2020 at 6:05 AM, roundersmitty said:

I was noticing alignment issues with me at the range yesterday. I aimed at a flag 152 away, put the face of the club 90 degrees to the stick....looks like I was aimed 12 yards left. I am left eye dominant and my ball position with all clubs except driver is directly under my left eye. Lining up striking balls like this made me feel like I was open stanced hitting pushes...when in reality I was square hitting straight shots.

when I come in to address all shots except for my putter, body and head is tilted to the right. Not sure if a better set up it to try address the club square by standing Straight and not tilting head. Or if I should just aim about 5 degrees my perceived left which will bring me square.

Yeah, I'm a left-handed player and I'm right-eye dominant. It's good for the swing, but I feel like it's really messing with my alignment as of late. I tend to be all over the place when it comes to feet alignment, but most recently, I've been back on the pull-fade route, where my swing is out-to-in, cutting across the ball. I've gotten one lesson in my life and when the instructor aligned my feet for me, I felt extremely closed and that the ball was in the back of my stance. Optics are fascinating and I'd love to get this figured out 🙂

Lefthook · May 7

Mind you, your back swing dynamics could be a factor here. What's too open for one guy could be perfect for the next guy.

It is very possible to hit laser straight shots from closed, neutral and open stance. You need to find out what stance works for you and prevent it from drifting.