How to hit a draw or fade

The shape of your shot depends on two factors: club path and face angle. This drill from Harrington will focus on club path.

When hitting a draw (for a righty) you want the club path moving more in to out, while if you want to hit a fade you’d want it to move out to in. When you’re practicing, you can use barriers to teach your club to move in that direction as you hit the ball.

Harrington recommends using a pair of headcovers (or something else soft) to create a gate to swing through. Let’s say, for example, you want to hit a fade. Set up one barrier inside the ball slightly behind it and set up another outside the ball slightly just in front of it.

“By putting this here, I know I can’t come in this way, and by putting that there I can’t go out that way,” Harrington says. “So I’ve got to come across a little bit more. Straight on line and a little bit left.”

By making these gates to swing through, you can force yourself to manipulate your path for any given shot shape. Give it a try next time you practice and before you know it the club path will be so ingrained for each shot that you won’t even have to think about it when you get to the course.

Zephyr Melton

Golf.com Editor

Zephyr Melton is an assistant editor for GOLF.com where he spends his days blogging, producing and editing. Prior to joining the team at GOLF, he attended the University of Texas followed by stops with the Texas Golf Association, Team USA, the Green Bay Packers and the PGA Tour. He assists on all things instruction and covers amateur and women’s golf. He can be reached at zephyr_melton@golf.com.