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  1. #1
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    Closed face or open face takeaway?

    I am new to this forum, so please forgive me if this topic has been talked to death already ...

    I am currently rebuiling my swing thru lessons and tons of reading. I was a HACKER in every sense until I took the game serious and have managed to get my USGA HDCP down to 14 (and that is honest.. no mullys, gimmes .. we play by the rules).

    I am struggling with whick takeaway to use. The closed face style seems to be safer, but it more unconfortable and misses are usually BIG hooks or thin contact. The open face style feels more natural but if my timing is off, the misses are nasty push-slices. I think I hit the ball further with the open face since the hands are more active and contact is purer but the misses are worse and the ball flight seems to be a bit higher than I'd like

    Should I keep trying the open face, or just use the closed face and develop it a bit more until it becomes comfortable? My goal is to get as close to scratch as I can.

  2. #2
    daveperk Guest
    What really matters is what path the club is on at takeaway. Most of the pullhooks are hit not because the face is closed per se but because the swing path is coming down from outside to in COMBINED with a bit of closed face...

    I really got control of my iron shots when I realized that I have to push, stretch, widen the backswing, take it back so far along the target line that it feels as if I'm OUTSIDE that line.. from there, I can 'drop it in the slot', so it comes down to the right path and goes through the ball either straight or slightly inside to outside...

    I used to take it back too far inside, and my upper body couldn't hold it there so it would come down further outside than it went up. Now I am the reverse.

    If I take it back with a 'closed' (square) clubface, I hit straight balls... if open, I hit slight fades... the secret is, as always, getting the clubhead on the right path.

    "active hands" are not nearly as important as the swing path itself. You can change a shot a little with active hands, i.e. draw or 'hold off' to fade, but the culprit for the really wild ones is always the swing path. open face plus outside to in path equals banana slice, closed face and outside-in path equals pull or pull hook.

  3. #3
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    the path of the club controls where the ball will start,left of target right of target etc. your hands will control draw, fade, etc thats why you can hit a fade even if your path is inside out.

  4. #4
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    Quote Originally Posted by DENNIS7180GOLF
    the path of the club controls where the ball will start,left of target right of target etc. your hands will control draw, fade, etc thats why you can hit a fade even if your path is inside out.
    not realy where the ball starts is actually a pretty complex thing... its a combination of path, plane, clubface, and AOA..

  5. #5
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    Quote Originally Posted by pingman360
    not realy where the ball starts is actually a pretty complex thing... its a combination of path, plane, clubface, and AOA..
    if you swing inside out how can the face hve anything to do with where the ball starts? if the face is closed it will start right and hook if it is open it will start right and fade.

  6. #6
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    Wouldn't you want to try to keep the face square to the swing plane on your back swing and for that mater all the time?

    I try to not have any club face manipulation. I try to take the club straight back on plane, cock my wrist on plane, and come straight back at the ball on plane. The only time I manipulate the swing is to hit a fade or a draw. I do this by concentrating on my finish position not the back swing position or impact position - hands are high for a fade, low for a draw.

  7. #7
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    Quote Originally Posted by DENNIS7180GOLF
    if you swing inside out how can the face hve anything to do with where the ball starts? if the face is closed it will start right and hook if it is open it will start right and fade.
    the face controls where the ball is going to start more than the path... but primarily it is a combination of the two

  8. #8

    club takeaway

    Hey, I've been there. Try to keep things simple - straight and square. Presuming your swingpath is acceptable, you should start with the club square. If you can't get results that way, you likely have one of two problems:
    1) tempo and transition are too fast (most likely)
    2) too tight a grip. If you grip too tight, there's no release and the timing gets off. If this is the case simply loosening your grip will likely gain you 20-30 yards immediately.

  9. #9
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    i agree with poe, i like to have my face square or at halfway back toe straight up. i make a couple small backswings stopping halfway back and checking the toe. that's just me. Pretty sure that all the pros try to get a square clubface also.

    Omen.. good luck
    Omen, the GR standard by which all GOLFERS will be measured.

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