Instruction

Developing A Draw

June 30, 2015
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Beatriz Recari is a three-time winner on the LPGA Tour.

For as long as I've been playing golf, the shot I look to hit first is a draw. Even before I swing, I see the ball tracking right to left through the sky and dropping onto my target. I can't help it. The draw, it just feels athletic and powerful. If this shot suits your eye, too, I'd like to share a few tips for drawing the ball with your irons. These are things I still work on with my coach, Jorge Parada, and I've found them to be a big help when my irons won't do what I want them to do. Let's see if we can get you hitting a draw.

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1. YOUR DRAW STARTS HERE

There are several ways to play a draw, but to do it consistently, there's only one way to start: Get in a relaxed, ready position at address. Add some flex to your knees, and let your arms hang freely under your shoulders. Most important, hold onto the club without a lot of tension. If you feel like you're squeezing the grip and your forearms are tight, you won't be able to make the free-flowing motion needed to draw the ball.

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2. STABILIZE THE RIGHT LEG

I try to feel pressure on the inside part of my right foot as I swing back. If my knee shifts back and the weight goes to the outside of the foot, I'll have to re-establish that leg in a stable position before I can push off of it in the downswing. That push creates clubhead speed and encourages a draw-producing swing path from inside the target line. If you stabilize that leg, your swing will be more efficient and easier to repeat.

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3. GET THE CLUB BACK

Sometimes I rush to the downswing before finishing the backswing. When you get too quick like that, things go off track. I'll struggle to swing down on an in-to-out path and to close the clubface a little in relation to that path in time for impact. If you don't do both, you won't hit a draw. I'm very visual, so to correct that issue, I try to turn my left shoulder under my chin at the top. Then I know I've finished the backswing.

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4. SHIFT, THEN ROTATE

The downswing is a blend of vertical, rotational and lateral movements. You need to do all three, but you should get things started by bumping the hips laterally toward the target. This puts a little kink in your right side and helps shallow the club's swing plane, setting up an inside approach. From there, just keep rotating the hips, upper body, then the club through impact. You'll curve the shot from right to left and drop it on the flag. Sound good?