Stop coming over the top

1

I’m using a basketball and an alignment stick to highlight the ideal move back into the ball, with the inset showing the dreaded, but common, over-the-top move. Anything right of the basketball’s orange cross is an over-the-top strike; anything left is the slightly inside strike we’re looking for. The over-the-top move often comes from taking the club back too far inside, with the upper body and shoulders dominating the downswing rather than the legs. This throws the club outside and then across the line at impact.

Exaggerate in practice:

It’s really important that you exaggerate these feels in practice, because when it comes to the reality of the course, you won’t actually do it as much as this.

2

You need to rehearse – slowly at first – a nice one-piece move away from the ball, keeping both hands and club outside the alignment stick. From the top, you then initiate the downswing by moving into the lead leg first, which then drags the club slightly behind the body. This keeps the club underneath the alignment stick on the downswing, allowing you to deliver the clubhead slightly from the inside.

3

When it comes to actually hitting shots, I recommend teeing a ball up and placing an old box two to three inches outside it. It acts as a blocker and tells you instantly if you’ve come over the top as you will then obliterate the box! With a correct move, you approach the ball slightly from the inside underneath the alignment stick, miss the box and then rotate back around to a full follow-through position.