Drill library · Driving range

The Pane of Glass

Driving rangeHandicap 10–3015 minblock workironsdriver

Why this drill

Golf's most famous image: an imaginary sheet of glass resting on your shoulders, tilted down to the ball. Swing under it and the club stays on plane; shatter it and you've come over the top. One alignment stick makes the image physical.

Setup

Push an alignment stick into the ground (or through a range basket) so it leans at the same angle as your club shaft at address, a grip-length behind your trail hip. A mid iron and fifteen balls.

The drill

Rehearse five slow backswings keeping the club below the stick's angle as it passes your trail side — brushing the imaginary glass, never breaking it. Then hit ten balls at three-quarter speed with the stick in place; the swing that avoids the stick on the way down is the swing that approaches from the inside. Finish with five at full speed, stick removed, holding the picture in your head instead.

One thought to take with you

Swing under the glass, never through it.