Man oh man, my driver hook was driving me nuts. Every time I teed it up, that ball would start okay, then just dart hard left like it was running from me. So yesterday, I grabbed my clubs and decided I was gonna figure this hook thing out once and for all. Here’s exactly what went down.

how do you correct a hook in golf? Best drills to stop hooking your driver.

Starting Point: Pure Frustration

First up, I just hit a few normal shots. Yep, the hook was there alright. Felt like I was trying to steer the clubface closed right before hitting the ball – almost squeezing the grip too hard. Made my swing feel forced and tense. Not good.

What I noticed:

  • My grip felt too strong – like my hands were rolled way too far to the right on the handle.
  • At the top, my club was pointing way left (or for me as a right-hander, closed). Felt weirdly shut.
  • Coming down, I was yanking the handle down and inside, basically chopping across the ball left-to-right. Ugly sound.

The Fixes I Tried

Alright, time to experiment.

Drill 1: Weakening That Death Grip

First, I worked on my left hand grip. I literally rolled it back towards the target a bit. At first, it felt SUPER weak and awkward, like the club was unstable. Hit a bunch of easy half-swings just feeling that change. Started hitting pushes right – way better than a hook! Progress.

how do you correct a hook in golf? Best drills to stop hooking your driver.

Drill 2: Keeping My Trail Elbow Closer

I know swinging too far inside causes trouble. So, for my next few shots, I focused on keeping my right elbow tucked a bit closer to my body on the downswing. Felt smoother, less like I was reaching way around my back. This helped me stop chopping across it. Fewer hooks, more straighter balls.

Drill 3: The “Knuckles Down” Feel

how do you correct a hook in golf? Best drills to stop hooking your driver.

Heard this tip – trying to get the knuckles of my lead hand pointing more towards the turf right after impact. Sounds fancy, but basically it felt like I was keeping the back of my left hand facing the sky longer through the ball. This stopped my hands from flipping over too fast and closing that face. This one took reps. Hit a bucket just focusing on this feel. Result? Ball started flying straighter, even a gentle fade sometimes. Yes!

Putting It Together

Started combining things. Weaker grip feel + keeping that right elbow closer + knuckles down. Had to really exaggerate it at first. Hit some shots fat, some thin, but gradually… boom. The big curve to the left started disappearing. Shots were getting higher too, instead of those low hooks that dive-bombed the turf.

Big Lightbulb Moment:

It wasn’t about trying to force the clubface open somehow. It was mostly about stopping the stuff that made it slam closed: death grip, super inside swing path, flipping hands. Fix those, and the ball just went where I aimed without twisting off the planet.

Final Thoughts

It ain’t perfect yet, gotta keep practicing this new feel. But man, finally seeing that ball fly straighter off the tee instead of doing the big banana curve into the trees? Feels amazing. Key takeaway: stop trying to muscle it and fix the basics. The grip change felt awkward as heck at first, but wow, did it help. Those three drills – grip, elbow, knuckles – are my new pre-driver routine now. Give them a shot if that hook’s killing your game too. Call it a day.

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