The shanks!!

opinionated3

Hoping to get some help off you folks! Up to 2 weeks ago my short game was fantastic. Anywhere inside 100yds I was well able to get up and down, even confident enough to do mickelson type flop shots over bunkers etc. Then I started shanking the ball terribly. I have no idea what I'm doing wrong. I now dread any type of chip or pitch. It is ruining my scores to the point where yesterday I got so frustrated I nearly walked off the course! Please help! !!!!

e.r

I've got them on and off for a while!!

What works for me is to set up against my garden shed, with the toe a inch back from it.
Then slowly make your swing and on downswing if toe hits shed then that's a shank!!
So try swing without hitting the shed and should get you back on track.

Disclaimer don't use your nice shinny clubs incase of damage!!

bobwilliams

op you need to check youtube for videos on this,you're going to get a lot of different info on here.
It can happen for a number of reasons.
Flipping the club/wrists at the start of your swing.
Gripping too tight which leads to lack of rotation.
Starting your downswing before you've completed your upswing,i.e not setting the club.
Taking your eye off the ball
Concentrating too much on keeping your head down and there are more.

1 simple exercise is hit about 20 chips with a 8 or 9 iron just doing a 3 to 9 swing,ie quarter swing concentrating on rotating the club and focusing on squaring the clubface on impact

christy02

opinionated3 wrote: »

Hoping to get some help off you folks! Up to 2 weeks ago my short game was fantastic. Anywhere inside 100yds I was well able to get up and down, even confident enough to do mickelson type flop shots over bunkers etc. Then I started shanking the ball terribly. I have no idea what I'm doing wrong. I now dread any type of chip or pitch. It is ruining my scores to the point where yesterday I got so frustrated I nearly walked off the course! Please help! !!!!

For me this is mental as much as anything else. Once you hit one or two shanks it is in your head. Now when you stand over a shot of this length you think "bet I am going to shank this".

What you need to think of when you stand over the ball is a short you did hit well and focus on how this shot will come out.

For me issue with duck booking drives, I visualused them flying down the centre of the fairway.

bobwilliams

christy02 wrote: »

For me this is mental as much as anything else. Once you hit one or two shanks it is in your head. Now when you stand over a shot of this length you think "bet I am going to shank this".

What you need to think of when you stand over the ball is a short you did hit well and focus on how this shot will come out.

For me issue with duck booking drives, I visualused them flying down the centre of the fairway.

yes it can be mental but obviously if a player is shanking there is a flaw in the swing so that needs to be pinpointed.

Rikand

Could also be caused by leaning your weight towards your toes during your shot. Sitting with your weight on the back of your heels could help correct it.

other than that, i love the garden shed idea posted above

ForeRight

This thread makes me shiver

BraveDonut

This really helped me:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FcrlRrFReHg

As referenced by Rikand above - keeping your weight back on your heels....

DuckSlice

e.r wrote: »

I've got them on and off for a while!!

What works for me is to set up against my garden shed, with the toe a inch back from it.
Then slowly make your swing and on downswing if toe hits shed then that's a shank!!
So try swing without hitting the shed and should get you back on track.

Disclaimer don't use your nice shinny clubs incase of damage!!

You could just put a tee peg in the ground, save hitting your shed!

Rikand

etxp wrote: »

You could just put a tee peg in the ground, save hitting your shed!

you wouldn't feel so bad hitting a tee peg... The garden shed is much more punishing

opinionated3

Sincere thanks for all replies. Just wondering as well. ... Why not with my long irons? ? It only occurs with my wedge play....

Rikand

opinionated3 wrote: »

Sincere thanks for all replies. Just wondering as well. ... Why not with my long irons? ? It only occurs with my wedge play....

why

is the million dollar question!

you wont know why until you've cured it and even then you might still not know

blue note

I had them before. A bad case of them.

I went for a lesson which cured it. I simply was standing way too close to the ball. I stood back about 6 inches and it was cured.

ssbob

Lads I may be shutting this thread down....,. All you are doing is planting seeds in people's minds :-D

As for the lads giving advice, I always understood the main cause for a shank is standing too close to the ball. Those saying out weight in heels goes against everything I have been thought?

John Divney

Probably early extension, thrusting hips towards the balll, moves arms and body closer to ball, ball now hits hosel instead of centre of the face

BraveDonut

@ssbob - my understanding is that not keeping your weight back on your heels means that you are moving closer to the ball - thus standing too close to the ball at the point of impact

Norfolk Enchants_

ssbob wrote: »

Lads I may be shutting this thread down....,. All you are doing is planting seeds in people's minds :-D

As for the lads giving advice, I always understood the main cause for a shank is standing too close to the ball. Those saying out weight in heels goes against everything I have been thought?

If only life and golf were this simple (unfortuately they are not), there are a hundred and one causes but only one result, i.e the hozel hits the ball first, so one has to start at the result and work back from there, common causes are an over the top swing, an early extension, a weak left or right hand grip, or a combination of those, etc. etc.
OP while the advice here is well meaning it's effectively only a sticky plaster and while it may work in the short term, I'd wager vast amounts of money it won't last, if you're serious about finding the cause and trying to correct it then the best thing to do is go and see a pro and get professional advice.

spacecoyote

hit one with a wedge from 100yrds in Portumna somewhere on the back 9 (think it was around 16)...for which I was swiftly abused by ssbob for mentioning the dreaded word

GreeBo

quick fix on the course, address the ball on the toe!

shanks are horrible, its the most easily repeatable swing in the game....