When I sat down with Anders Mattson of Anders Mattson Golf of Saratoga Springs, NY, he went through a few common swing “mistakes” that golfers make. One sounded particularly familiar to me. This, he says, is the “shank shot.” Ever been having a great game, and then BAM. Your ball hits your club in the wrong place and goes flying to the right? EMBARRASSING, isn’t it? In this SCOOP, Anders shares the most common golf swing mistake he sees, and a quick drill you can do to fix it and improve your golf game.

WHAT IS THE MOST COMMON SWING MISTAKE AND WHY DO WE DO IT?

A shank is when you hit the ball with the “hosel” instead of the club face. It then goes flying to the right. This term was new to me as well (see diagram in video). This common golf swing mistake is caused by swinging out to in, in to out, or standing too far from the ball.

HOW CAN WE IMPROVE OUR SWING AND FIX IT?

This may sound ridiculous, but it works! Anders recommends practicing driving with a pool noodle. Yes, that’s right. By placing your ball between the noodle and your body, it helps you to swing parallel to “the shank line”. This decreases your likelihood of this common golf swing mistake, SHANKING!

Anders Mattson is owner and founder of Anders Mattson Golf. AMG provides golf coaching services to the Saratoga Springs and surrounding communities. Competitive players enjoy year-round coaching from this state-of-the-art Saratoga Golf Studio. Recreational players use Anders’ services to step up their game and eliminate embarrassing shots, like this common golf swing mistake, the shank shot. The studio utilizes Trackman technology, a radar-based system, that helps you to see contact patterns and improve your game. More information about the coaching programs available at Anders Mattson Golf can be found at www.andersmattsongolf.com .