Lateral movement and shanking

[LLAP]

I can be playing along fine then the dreaded shank will show up. I do not know what causes all of them but I believe many of them are caused by me making a lateral move forward towards the target and sometimes if not always my head / upper body rising up. I wonder if I am pushing off too much with my rear foot.
I've just ordered the 10 Things DVD and anxiously await it's delivery. Is there anything I can work on to cure this?

Steve

[dodger]

Look at Mike's hand and wrist action video. You need to lag the sweetspot, not the hosel. I try to feel as if the clubface looks at the ball halfway down. If that happens, shanks don't.

[dthobs]

If you suspect that your shanks are caused by too much of a lateral slide then they very likely are. Been there , done that myself.

You must TURN as you start down and continue to TURN to the finish.

Hover a mid iron over a ball and swing at about 1/2 speed and focus on the path of the club head as is approaches the ball and goes beyond. It must come from the inside and after it passes over the ball start back inside .

Hope this helps.

[LLAP]

I appreciate the input and suggestions. I left work a little early to mow lawn but somehow wound up at the course for a quick nine. I tried very hard to keep my head still on all shots and I hit some very nice drivers and irons but still wound up shanking quite a few short shots from 90 yards down to 10 yards.
I practiced a while around the 9th green and I probably have more than one issue in play. ARGHHHHH.

Thanks

Update
I hit some short chips in the back yard trying to use some swivel and I was not overwhelmed. After trying several things I hit some shots using the lagging club head takeawayletting my wrist cock and pivoting into the shot and I hit some very nice looking 15 yard shots with surprising height for a short shot.
I do not know why it works but I am going to try it again.

[Michael Jacobs]

Shanks occur for a couple of reasons:

#1 and most common is 'getting under the sweet spot' to fix this - like dodger said accurately above - get used to turning the sweet spot club face towards the ball

#2 A club head approach from such an inside out or outside in approach that the hosel strikes the ball..... the toe and sweet spot of the club actually get to the other side of the target line (across the line) on a severe inside out path
Driving the arms too much cross line or merely standing too close to the ball can help produce this


As for a feeling of laterally getting way ahead of the ball, creates one or both of the situations above.. please review this tip from the 2008 season: