I got an email question from Ryan about hitting draws and fades, so I thought I would tackle that subject today. He was confused by all the various methods that he reads – changing the grip, changing the set up, changing the swing path, etc. Specifically, Ryan asked:

What is the correct way to hit a draw or fade? If there is no "right" way, what way do you think would work best for most golfers?

Well, Ryan, the correct way is whatever works for you, but there are certainly many different methods. What I’m going to do is share with you what I think is the easiest way to learn to “work the ball”. But this comes with a warning: If you have a method that is working for you, stay with it. And if you are still trying to figure out how to move the ball north and south, and breaking 85 is still your goal, you probably don’t need to work on this yet.

That all said, here’s what I think is the easy way to approach the process.


I’m a huge fan of playing everything with a fade. I find that for me it’s more consistent and doesn’t move that far, so I can just target down the left side of every fairway, and hold my line out left of every pin and fire away. I got away from that approach to golf a while back and it’s taken me a few years to get back to the old reliable fade. As Lee Trevino said, “You can talk to a fade, but a hook just won’t listen.” This game is so much easier when you know the ball is almost positively going to curve in only one direction.

So, for me, hitting the fade is merely a matter of two things – a weaker grip on the club, and a conscious thought of slowing down the rotation of my hands through impact.

For those of you that want to perfect the fade, here are what I think are the basics:

1. Make sure your hips and shoulders are aligned slightly left of your intended flight line, with your left foot (for RH players) pulled just slightly back from parallel. This allows a more easy rotation of your hips to “get out of the way”, so that your hands can release a little slower through impact.
2. When you take your grip on the club, slightly rotate your hands to the left, so that the “Vs” formed by your thumb and forefinger point to your right shoulder or even your chin.
3. Consciously make an effort to “hold” your hands quiet through impact and release your upper body and legs, rather than “flip” the clubhead with your hands.
4. THINK FADE! I’m a big believer that your body responds to your thoughts, so if you think fade, you’re more likely to hit one.

As you would expect, hitting the draw is almost the opposite of hitting the fade, but I think a draw is harder to control than a fade. A draw can quickly become a snap hook, while a fade rarely turns into a big slice. At least that’s my belief.

But there are times you just need to work the ball right to left, and knowing how is helpful. For me, I’ve worked so hard to groove a consistent fade, working a draw is the hardest thing. But here’s how I do it:

1. I set the club behind the ball and purposely close the face a little, then take my grip on the club, with my hands slightly stronger on the grip (rotated right) than my normal hold on the club.
2. I take an extra few seconds to be careful in my alignment, as I am so conditioned to set up left of the center of the fairway or green. I then make sure that my stance is slightly closed to the new intended target line.
3. My only swing thought is to “quicken” the rotation of my hands through impact, and I slow down my swing pace so that I can be more precise with this. And I keep the body moving to reduce the possibility of that draw turning into a snap hook.
4. AND I THINK “DRAW”!

So, those are my keys to working the ball right or left. I’m sure you guys all have other ideas that work for you, so let’s hear them. Then Ryan can experiment with all that we’ve shared with him and see what works best with his swing.

But I want to re-iterate that working the ball is a two-edged sword. First, learning how will exponentially increase your enjoyment of the game. There is no thrill quite like envisioning a shot that curves right into the fairway or the flag, and then executing it just like you pictured. But you will experience a learning curve trying to achieve this skill that will cost you some shots. It’s your choice, but to me, the great enjoyment of this game is the challenge of exerting complete control over that little white pill. One shot a round that turns out just like you imagined is a huge payoff for me.

OK, guys and gals, share your thoughts with Ryan on “working the ball.”

Terry Koehler is "The Wedge Guy" and President of EIDOLON Golf- The Short Game Company.

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