If I could I would give the straight quote from Tin Cup; it really sounds like your trying to be too picky on where you want the ball to end up off the tee. Yes, it is a good thing to pick a specific target for your line, but remember even the tour pros struggle hitting that spot all the time. If it seems to be a common issue with a particular club, leave it in the bag for the time being. You might also have an alignment issue with your shoulders being too closed to target at address. This is harder to figure out by just reading your comments, but sounds like a potential possibility. Hope this helps.

1. If you have too flat of a stance (possibly to compensate for a flat lie angle on the club or you stand too far from the ball) you will get a low, screaming hook. Personal experience with ill fitting irons. I got a tip from my Dad in 2008 to stand a bit more upright (your shoulders and knee caps should align) and that cured my hook with woods and hybrids but I had to have my irons more upright (1* or so).

2. Too rotational of a golf swing. You come too much from the inside and rotate too much on follow through.

3. Hanging back on the right foot causes a snap hook. This is also caused by over swinging.

4. Club too long. Toe pointed up in the air too much. Impact forces closed clubface.

5. Ball too far back.

6. Not clearing the hips (from Jim McLean's book) Also go to www.allexperts.com (Golf Golf) and ask Eddie Kilthau (he is a teaching pro that volunteers for this service). He has been a go to guy since 2008 for golf help (I had to get through a bout of snap hooking in 2006 and shankitis in 2008-9). I pretty much have corrected my driving and find the center of the fairway pretty regularly. Keep in mind that what I did may or may not work for you. I've gone from a pull-hook to a power fade. Mother Nature dealt me a slight outside-in swing path on the driver and fairway woods so I work with it. I use a draw driver and a slightly closed stance; my ball goes pretty straight and the worst shot may be a high fade that ends up on the right edge of the fairway. My best distance is a slight pull left center of the fairway. I play the ball off my left instep and keep my head slightly behind the ball throughout the swing. I also have a compact backswing that could be classified as a 2 plane swing. I also got some nice tips from Don Trahan's website and Paul Wilson of Revolution Golf.

I have been a hooker for years. I would say that most hooks are caused by the arms and hands getting in front of the lower body on the way down to impact. Make sure that you are clearing your hips. If you are only hooking the driver it is probably not a grip issue. Good Luck!

Hi Bryce,

I think you've got some excellent advice from TT members here - I just want to add that Jim McLean's "The 8 Step Swing" is an excellent book that, in my opinion, is essential reading if you want to play good golf.

Also - get to range and try to hit some fades with your driver - just feel and visualize what set up and swing shape would produce that, and hit it.  I too struggled with a hook - so now when it feels like it's creeping into my swing during a round I go with a fade feel off the tee and I pretty much end up hitting it straight.

Best of luck,

Jason 

Jim MClean reiterates his 8 step swing in the book I read.  He also advocates a 44-44.5" driver with 10.5 loft for most golfers.  A lot of the PGA golf pros use 44.5" but with heavy shafts.  Quite a few golf teaching pros recommend a shorter shaft for control and accuracy.  I'm 6'1" with a WTF of 35.5 and find it very difficult to hit a 46" driver with a 59* lie angle.   I can swing away with a 44.5" driver.

Also, he and Paul Wilson (author of Swing Machine Golf) have some good videos at Revolution Golf (www.revolutiongolf.com and its Facebook page).   Jim teaches a more traditional golf swing (classic "parallel at the top") whereas Paul Wilson teaches something along the lines of Stack N Tilt.  There is also a third person (Don Trahan  the Swing Surgeon, father of DJ Trahan www.swingsurgeon.com) that teaches more of an upright swing plane with a more compact backswing and is probably one of the biggest opponents of a rotational golf swing because of the back problems associated with it (he also advocates a driver length between 43.5-44" for most males).    Even Golf Digest has an article about whether one should use two plane, rotational one plane (or an inbetween).  

An upright swing, along with a shorter shaft, promotes a fade.  A draw face turns it into a dead straight shot.  When I had my G2, I played a fade for about 2 years and that is how I got my best distance.  Going to a higher loft draw driver capitalized on the power fade and I could also tee the ball 1 1/2" off the ground.

Oh I remember this like it was yesterday, I hit 4 shag bags full of balls, approximately 300 balls, duck hooked 290 of them.

There was a trash dumpster about 30 yards away in the parking lot and I headed with all 4 bags and my driver fully intenet on discarding them all.

The pro at this course must have watched me for at least an hour from about 75 yards away, but never said a word.

I opened the dumpster, and here he came up on a golf cart, and asked me "What are you doing?"

"To hell with this damn game, I can't get the ball airborne anymore, I'm going to quit." was my reply.

He laughed and said, "Before you do lets go hit those balls you left on the ground over there", begrudgingly I agreed.

He asked if I had went fishing recently and I replied "No, did you bring me back over here make fun of me?" He laughed and said "Calm down, your casting the club".

When I was calm he had me make a backswing and stop 1/2 way down, my butt end of the shaft was pointing way in front of the golf ball, and I had lost almost all of my wrist hinge. I made about 10 practice swings (stopping 1/2 way down), until I had the butt end pointed at the ball, or just barely in front of it.

Magically my smother hook turned into a 270 drive with a 5 yard draw.

I have never seen you swing a golf club, but I am sure your doing the same thing.

If you swing fom the inside and cast the club it's the only shot you can hit off the tee, the ugly duckling.

When you get to the top of your backswing start down slow and don't go fishing!

See you in the fairway!

Just to let everybody know, I shortened my driver to 44.5" on Tues (used a Winn Lite Dri Tac jumbo grip).  I can swing away and hit it dead sttraight.   I hit 20 balls on the way home from without one single bad drive.

I feel your pain because I had a nasty hook in 2006 (I could actually snap hook an 8 iron 150 yards).   I may have possibly been casting also.   A GolfTec video showed in 2007 that my hips were turning 60* on a full swing.   I have had a rather compact backswing since 2009 and my ball striking is pretty consistent (my front arm makes it to shoulder level - I don't need nor desire the big 90 degree backswing).

Eddie Kilthau (he is a Titleist using teaching pro in AZ, is a volunteer at www.allexperts.com and has a Facebook page) gave me a great tip on what your front arm, wrist and hand do during a golf swing.  Hold your left arm (for righties) at shoulder level as to shake hands).   Rotate palm down, back to handshake, and palm down.  Your front arm rotates (the so-called "wrist hinge" is a by-product).  Also, Don Trahan has a tip that coincides with this http://www.swingsurgeon.com/DailyVideos/tabid/107/entryid/1126/How-Straight-Is-Forward-Arm.aspx