What Causes Weak Shots to the Right?

Written by Todd in Online Golf Instruction

There are some rather frustrating shots in golf.

Most of these shots are caused by a bad swing path or lack of clubface control.  These shots range from the pull slice, to the push slice and then sometimes the shot that flies weak and to the right.  

All three of these shots have a misaligned clubface and potentially a poor swing path.

The one shot that continues to boggle the mind of many golfers is the shot that flies weak and to the right.  This often results in a shot in a bunker or even worse a water hazard.  

And sometimes it rears its ugly head at the worst times.  Why does it always seem to happen at the worst times?

What Causes Weak Shots to the Right?

There are some swing issues that cause the weak shot to the right.  These include a wide open club face, a swing path that is too far left with an open clubface, poor low point control, or a poor angle of attack.  Ultimately, the golfer fails to compress the ball and deliver enough speed through the ball and pure contact is nowhere to be found.

Recap of the Causes:

  • A wide open club face
  • A swing path that is too far left with an open club face
  • Poor low point control
  • Poor angle of attack

Issue #1: A wide open clubface

Any shot that starts to the right is a result of a clubface that is open or to the right at impact.  See details on ball flight laws, here.  The golfer fails to rotate his or her body enough or fails to use enough of a release to square up the clubface.  While a clubface that is 2-3 degrees open is perfectly fine, if the clubface is 7-10 degrees open the golfer is asking for trouble.  

Solution to #1: Throw the club towards the target

The golfer will want to pick a target off in the distance.  From here the golfer should focus on throwing the club out towards the target way off in the distance.  This gets the speed out front and allows the club to release without manipulation.  The movement is more natural and the clubface can square up much easier.

Pick a target like the cell phone tower well beyond the trees or a specific branch of the tree and have the feeling of throwing towards that target!

Issue #2: A swing path that is too far left with an open clubface

If you hit the shot that starts slightly left or slightly right and then fades or slices weakly to the right, chances are your clubface and swing path are way out of alignment.  When there is too big of a gap between swing path angle and the clubface direction, the ball will fly with too much curve and the golfer will struggle to strike the ball really solid.  This weak shot to the right is often a result of a swing path that might be 7-10 degrees to the left or outside in and a club face that is anywhere from 1 degree left or up to 7-10 degrees to the right.  The shot is ugly and takes away any chance of hitting the ball a quality distance from the glancing, spinning blow that is delivered.

Solution #2: Get your swing path more inside to out

In golf we want a swing path that is moving from the inside out or to the right.  This allows the golfer to strike the ball from the inside and keep the swing path and the clubface within several degrees of each other.  The key is to understand the ball flight laws (see link above) and then look at creating the ideal swing path for irons and/or driver below.

Best swing path for irons

What is the best swing path for a driver?

Issue #3: Poor low point control

When you combine an open club face or a bath swing path with poor low point control, the disaster only gets worse.  Low point control is one of the major keys in the game of golf.  The better the golfer, the better they control the low point.  This helps the golfer strike the ball pure and maximize their potential. 

Solution #3: Low point control drill

Check out this drill below and use it frequently until you are striking over 99% of your shots solid.

The Drill: The Low Point Control Drill

  • Take some yard paint and paint a 1-2 yard long line.
  • Setup with 55% of your weight on your front side.
  • Try to hit the target side of the line and see how many times out of 10 you can do this successfully!
  • Repeat this drill every day for a month, tracking your progress and your ability to to this successfully in trials of ten.
  • You may need to start with half swing and progress to full swings.

If you are struggling, put more weight forward and work on keep your head still to help control the low point in the swing.

The golfer needs to hit the golf ball prior to the ground! Work on the drill above!

Issue #4: Poor angle of attack

The poor angle of attack can be a result of an outside to in swing path or trying to hit down on the ball too much. This can cause poor contact and too much spin.  Over spinning a shot can lead to a loss of distance and the golfer is going to struggle hitting the ball the distance he or she needs to.

Solution #4: Inside swing path and sweep the ball

I would highly recommend checking Monte Scheinblum’s Broomforce series.  The golf swing should look more like a “U” at the bottom of the swing vs a “V” at the bottom of the swing.  He has some great drills to help the golfer feel that more sweeping motion vs a stabbing or chopping motion that results from the too steep of a golf swing.

Broomforce: Monte Sheinblum (Review)

Use a launch monitor like a Skytrak to measure your swing and get instant feedback on what took place!

Final Thoughts

I would highly recommend using a golf launch monitor to help measure your clubface and your swing path.  Once again, as these two numbers get too large of a gap, the golfer is going to fight the hook shot in golf.  I purchased a Skytrak Launch Monitor several years ago and the feedback is rather impressive.  After every shot, you can receive the following:

  • Carry and Total Distance
  • Spin Axis
  • Spin Rate
  • Swing Path
  • Launch Angle
  • Ball Speed
  • Club Speed

In addition, the shot tracer is rather helpful in getting feedback.  If you understand the ball flight laws, the shot tracer gives you the immediate feedback about where your clubface was at impact as well as your swing path based on the curve of the ball.

Check Current Price of Skytrak Launch Monitor, Here!

My Secret To Golf Improvement

Let’s face it, in order to get really good at golf, we must practice frequently.  About four years ago, I made the leap and invested in a golf simulator build for my garage.  I went with a SkyTrak Launch Monitor and the TGC software and can now play over 100,000 courses including Augusta, Pebble Beach, Bethpage Black, Whistling Straits. St. Andrews and many other of the top 100 courses in the world.

This golf simulator setup, which is more affordable that you might imagine, has been a game changer.  I can now play golf everyday of the year regardless of rain, snow, cold weather or time of day.  I can practice or play rounds of golf.  I can stand in the 11th fairway at Augusta and with the auto-rewind feature I am able to practice my approach shots from various differences.

It is worth checking out through Rain or Shine Golf as they offer some incredible packages along with financing offers that are difficult to beat.

Some direct links to Rain or Shine Golf for pricing and financing:

Take Action – What You Can Do Today to Get Better

What does this mean for you?  I believe in the following recipe to get better:

1 – Improve your motion in the golf swing by identifying a golf instructor.  Here are some options:

Here is a list of golf instructors that we have reviewed:

2 – Train to swing faster and improve your swing speed.  Here are some options:

Looking to gain more Speed and Distance in your swing. Two Options:

3 – Understand course strategy and work to break through your next barrier.  Here is a series on breaking through:

We have provided guides on how to break 100, 90, 80 and 70. Check out more below, if interested.

4 – Practice Frequently

Did you know that I build a golf simulator in my garage and have played over 500 rounds of golf on my SkyTrak system?  It has been a game changer and one worth checking out. Here are some of my other posts on golf simulators frequently asked questions:

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