How to Prevent (or Fix) the Shanks in Golf

The dreaded shank—just hearing the word can make golfers cringe. A shank can happen to anyone, from beginners to seasoned players, and it’s one of the most frustrating mistakes in the game. That sickening sound of the ball ricocheting off the hosel and veering wildly off target can destroy your confidence and turn a good round into a struggle.

But here’s the good news: shanking isn’t a permanent problem. It’s usually caused by specific, correctable issues in your setup, swing path, or mental approach. By identifying the root cause and applying targeted fixes, you can eliminate shanks and regain control over your shots.

In this guide, we’ll break down why shanks happen, how to fix them for different clubs, and drills you can practice to ensure they don’t return. Let’s start by understanding what a shank really is and why it occurs.

What is a Shank and Why Does it Happen?

A shank occurs when the ball makes contact with the hosel of the club—the rounded area where the clubface connects to the shaft. Instead of flying toward your target, the ball shoots off at a sharp angle, often to the right for right-handed golfers. This mis-hit not only ruins the shot but can shake your confidence for the rest of the round.

Common Causes of Shanking

Shanking is almost always a result of small mistakes in setup or swing mechanics. Here are the most common culprits:

1. Standing Too Close to the Ball
   When you set up too close to the ball, the clubhead moves outward during the downswing, increasing the chances of hosel contact.
2. Poor Weight Distribution
   If your weight shifts too far onto your toes during the swing, your body moves closer to the ball. This forward movement can cause the hosel to strike the ball instead of the center of the clubface.
3. Swing Path Issues
   An outside-to-in swing path can force the hosel into the ball, especially if you’re compensating for a slice or trying to steer the ball.
4. Tension and Overthinking
   Tight grip pressure or trying too hard to control the shot can disrupt your natural swing flow, pulling the clubhead off its intended path.
5. Open Clubface at Impact
   For wedge shots, an overly open clubface can shift the contact point toward the hosel, leading to a shank.

Why Shanks Can Become a Pattern

Once you shank a shot, it’s easy to let the fear of shanking creep into your mind. This anxiety often leads to compensations, like overcorrecting your stance or changing your swing path, which can create new problems. The cycle continues until you address the underlying issue.

Key Takeaway

Understanding why shanks happen is the first step to fixing them. By identifying whether your issue lies in your setup, swing, or mental approach, you can target the root cause and eliminate shanks for good. In the next section, we’ll dive into specific fixes for common shanking scenarios, starting with your driver and irons.

Fixes for Common Shanking Scenarios

Shanking can occur with any club in your bag, from driver to wedges, but the causes and fixes vary depending on the shot. By addressing the specific factors contributing to shanks with each club, you can take control of your swing and eliminate the problem.

Fixing Driver Shanks

Although rare, shanking a driver can happen, especially when your setup or swing path is off. With its larger clubhead and longer shaft, the driver amplifies small errors that lead to hosel contact.

1. Adjust Your Ball Position:
   Ensure the ball is teed up just inside your lead heel. Placing it too far forward or back can disrupt your swing path and increase the risk of hosel strikes.
2. Check Your Distance from the Ball:
   Stand far enough from the ball that your arms hang naturally at address. Overreaching or crowding the ball pulls the clubhead closer to the hosel.
3. Focus on Swinging Inside-Out:
   An outside-to-in swing path is a common culprit for driver shanks. To fix this, focus on bringing the clubhead through the ball from the inside. Imagine hitting the inside quadrant of the ball to promote a square face at impact.
4. Relax Your Grip:
   A tight grip can cause tension in your hands and arms, leading to erratic swings. Maintain a light grip pressure to promote a smooth, fluid motion.

Fixing Iron Shanks

Iron shanks are the most common and often stem from setup issues or improper weight distribution. With irons, precision is key, and even a slight misalignment can lead to hosel strikes.

1. Adjust Your Setup:
   Ensure your weight is evenly distributed at address, with a slight bias toward the balls of your feet. Avoid leaning too far onto your toes, as this moves the clubhead closer to the ball during your swing.
2. Maintain Proper Distance:
   Stand at a comfortable distance where your arms can hang freely, with the clubhead resting flat on the ground. Crowding the ball increases the likelihood of hosel contact.
3. Keep Your Swing Balanced:
   During your downswing, focus on keeping your weight centered. Avoid lunging forward, as this shifts your body closer to the ball.
4. Drill: The Gate Drill:
   Place two tees just outside the toe and heel of your club at address. Practice making swings without hitting the tees to train a centered strike.

Fixing Wedge Shanks

Wedge shots require precision and touch, but their shorter shaft and higher loft can make them prone to shanking if your mechanics are off.

1. Avoid an Overly Open Clubface:
   While opening the clubface is common for high-lofted shots, overdoing it can shift the strike point toward the hosel. Use a slightly open face for flop shots but keep it square for standard chips and pitches.
2. Keep Your Weight Forward:
   Place more weight on your lead foot during setup and maintain this position through impact. This helps ensure clean, centered strikes without leaning back.
3. Focus on Smooth Tempo:
   Rushed swings often lead to poor contact. Take a deliberate, controlled backswing and accelerate smoothly through the ball.
4. Drill: Alignment Stick Practice:
   Place an alignment stick parallel to your target line, just outside the ball. This visual aid helps you avoid pulling the clubhead too far inside or outside during your swing.

Fixing Chip Shot Shanks

Chipping around the green can be nerve-wracking, and tension often leads to shanks. Relax and focus on simplicity to regain control.

1. Relax Your Wrists:
   Tight wrists cause the clubface to twist during the swing. Keep your wrists soft and let the clubhead naturally follow your swing path.
2. Shorten Your Backswing:
   A long backswing can create unnecessary movement and increase the risk of mishits. Focus on a compact motion that’s easy to control.
3. Keep Your Eyes on the Ball:
   Lifting your head prematurely to watch the shot can lead to poor contact. Stay focused on the ball until after impact.
4. Drill: The One-Handed Chip:
   Practice chipping with your lead hand only to improve feel and control. This drill encourages a smoother motion and better connection with the ball.

Key Takeaway

Shanking is frustrating, but it’s also fixable. By tailoring your adjustments to each club and situation, you’ll eliminate shanks and regain confidence in your swing. In the next section, we’ll explore universal tips and drills to further reinforce your progress.

Universal Tips for Avoiding Shanks

While specific fixes can address shanking with different clubs, some universal principles apply to all shots. By focusing on your setup, balance, and mental game, you can build a consistent swing that avoids hosel contact altogether. These tips serve as a foundation for eliminating shanks from your game.

Prioritize Proper Alignment and Setup

Your setup determines the path of your swing and the point of contact on the clubface. A strong, balanced setup minimizes the risk of shanking across all types of shots.

• Key Tip: Start by standing at a comfortable distance from the ball. Let your arms hang naturally, and ensure the clubhead sits flat on the ground.
• Body Alignment: Align your feet, hips, and shoulders parallel to your target line. Misalignment often leads to compensations during the swing, increasing the likelihood of hosel contact.

Focus on Weight Distribution

Shanking frequently occurs when your weight shifts forward onto your toes during the swing. Maintaining balanced weight throughout your swing is essential for clean strikes.

• At Address: Distribute your weight evenly across the balls of your feet.
• During the Swing: Keep your weight stable, avoiding excessive forward motion. Imagine your body staying within an invisible cylinder to maintain balance and control.

Slow Down and Stay Relaxed

Tension in your grip, arms, or shoulders disrupts the natural flow of your swing, pulling the clubhead off its intended path. Shanking often occurs when golfers overthink or try to force a shot.

• Relax Your Grip: A light grip allows your wrists to hinge naturally and prevents the clubhead from moving toward the hosel during the downswing.
• Breathe and Reset: If you’re feeling frustrated after a shank, step back, take a deep breath, and refocus. Approaching your next shot calmly reduces tension and improves consistency.

Avoid Overswinging

Trying to generate extra power often leads to a rushed, unbalanced swing. Instead of focusing on distance, prioritize solid contact.

Think “controlled and smooth” rather than “fast and powerful.” A compact swing produces more consistent results and reduces the risk of mishits.

Build Confidence in Your Swing

Shanking can quickly erode your confidence, creating a cycle of fear and hesitation. Breaking this cycle requires a positive mindset and trust in your swing.

• Visualize Success: Before addressing the ball, picture a clean strike and the ball flying toward your target. Positive visualization helps replace fear with confidence.
• Practice with Purpose: Focus on small wins during practice, like hitting five shots in a row without shanking. Success builds momentum and reinforces good habits.

Drill: The Two-Tee Drill

This simple drill helps you avoid hosel contact and promotes centered strikes.

1. Place one tee in the ground where the ball would normally sit.
2. Place a second tee just outside the toe of the clubhead.
3. Practice striking the first tee without touching the second. This encourages a clean, centered swing path.

Avoiding shanks requires a combination of technical adjustments and mental focus. By prioritizing a balanced setup, relaxed motion, and consistent practice, you’ll eliminate shanks and build a reliable swing.

The next section will provide targeted drills to reinforce these fundamentals and ensure long-term improvement.

Drills to Practice

Targeted practice is the key to overcoming shanks and building a more consistent swing. These drills focus on improving your setup, swing path, and confidence, helping you eliminate hosel contact and strike the ball cleanly every time. Incorporate these drills into your practice routine to see measurable improvements.

1. The Gate Drill

This classic drill helps you focus on centered contact and avoids hosel strikes by reinforcing a proper swing path.

1. Place two tees in the ground, slightly wider than the width of your clubhead.
2. Position your ball in the center of the “gate.”
3. Practice swinging through the gate without touching the tees.
   • If you hit the inside tee, your swing is moving too close to the hosel.
   • If you hit the outside tee, your swing path is too far from the ball.

This drill trains a clean, centered strike and builds confidence in your swing mechanics.

2. The Two-Tee Drill

This drill focuses specifically on preventing hosel contact by creating awareness of your clubhead’s position during the swing.

1. Place a tee where the ball would normally sit.
2. Position a second tee just outside the toe of your clubhead at address.
3. Practice striking the first tee without touching the second one.

By avoiding the second tee, you’ll naturally adjust your swing path to prevent shanking. This drill is particularly effective for irons and wedges.

3. Alignment Stick Drill

Misalignment is a common cause of shanking, and this drill helps you maintain a proper swing path while staying square to your target.

1. Place an alignment stick on the ground, parallel to your target line.
2. Position the ball just inside the stick at address.
3. Practice swinging along the stick, ensuring your clubhead stays parallel to the alignment aid.

This drill helps prevent an outside-to-in swing path, which often leads to hosel contact, and promotes consistent ball striking.

4. One-Handed Swing Drill

Tension in your wrists and arms can cause shanks, especially during chips and pitches. This drill builds better feel and control.

1. Take your lead hand (left hand for right-handed golfers) and grip the club as you normally would.
2. Practice chipping or pitching small shots using only your lead hand.
3. Focus on maintaining a smooth, pendulum-like motion with minimal wrist movement.

This drill improves your touch and encourages a relaxed, natural swing motion.

5. Wall Drill for Balance

Maintaining balance throughout your swing is essential for avoiding shanks. This drill helps you stabilize your weight shift.

1. Stand a few inches away from a wall, with your trail hip (right hip for right-handed golfers) closest to the wall.
2. Take a slow backswing, ensuring your hips don’t bump into the wall.
3. Transition into your downswing while keeping your hips centered and balanced.

By practicing this motion, you’ll develop a more stable swing and eliminate forward lunging, a common cause of hosel contact.

6. The Towel Drill

This drill helps you maintain proper distance from the ball and prevents leaning too far forward during your swing.

1. Place a rolled-up towel under your toes at address, with your heels flat on the ground.
2. Practice swinging while keeping your weight centered on your feet.

The towel forces you to maintain balance and prevents excessive weight shift toward your toes, a frequent cause of shanking.

Key Takeaway

Drills are an essential tool for building muscle memory and addressing the specific issues that lead to shanking. By practicing consistently with these targeted exercises, you’ll reinforce good habits and eliminate hosel strikes from your game.

In the final section, we’ll recap the key points and provide actionable steps to help you put these fixes into practice on the course.

Conclusion

Shanking a golf shot can be one of the most frustrating experiences on the course, but it’s not an insurmountable problem. With the right approach, you can identify the root causes, apply targeted fixes, and practice with purpose to eliminate shanks from your game.

The key to overcoming shanks lies in understanding the fundamentals of setup, swing mechanics, and mental focus. By maintaining proper alignment, balanced weight distribution, and a smooth swing path, you’ll drastically reduce the risk of hosel contact. Pair these adjustments with consistent practice using drills like the Gate Drill and Two-Tee Drill, and you’ll build the confidence to strike the ball cleanly every time.

It’s also important to remember that shanking is often as much a mental hurdle as it is a physical one. Stay calm, focus on the process rather than the outcome, and trust in the adjustments you’ve made. With patience and dedication, you’ll regain control of your swing and restore confidence in your game.

Finally, don’t hesitate to revisit these drills and tips whenever shanking creeps back into your game. Golf is a journey of continuous improvement, and even the best players refine their fundamentals regularly. By committing to consistent practice and a positive mindset, you’ll turn a frustrating challenge into an opportunity for growth.

For more tips, drills, and structured practice plans, explore our Golf Practice System. Whether you’re tackling shanks or looking to improve another aspect of your game, the right tools and guidance can make all the difference.

Now it’s time to hit the range and put these tips into action. With practice and persistence, you’ll not only stop shanking but also enjoy a more consistent and rewarding golf game.