Tour Coach Alex Buckner's Checklist for Fixing Ball Flight

Alex Buckner, a coach who works with players on the PGA Tour and DP World Tour, says golfers chasing a single 'correct' swing are asking the wrong question. Instead, he teaches players to experiment with a small set of variables and observe how each one changes ball flight.

Why grip strength affects your ball flight

Buckner starts with grip. A stronger grip, showing three or four knuckles on the lead hand, tends to close the clubface at impact. A weaker grip, showing only one knuckle, tends to leave the face open. He says a player pulling shots left can sometimes fix it by weakening the grip, though he cautions that grip changes aren't always necessary if the resulting shot shape already works for that player.

How ball position changes shot height and shape

Moving the ball back in the stance produces a lower, right-starting shot that is easier to draw, because the club meets it on a steeper angle of attack. Moving the ball forward produces a higher shot that starts left and is easier to fade. Buckner notes tour players regularly shift ball position from shot to shot, particularly in windy or firm conditions, as a simple way to manipulate flight.

Using alignment and pressure to fix a slice or hook

For golfers losing shots to the right, Buckner suggests closing the hip and shoulder alignment at address, which makes it easier to start the ball right and draw it back. Golfers fighting a hook or an overly inside path can try the opposite: opening the alignment slightly to encourage a left-starting fade.

Pressure at address works alongside alignment. More pressure forward at setup steepens the angle of attack and produces a lower, right-starting shot, similar to Rory McIlroy's setup. Pressure set further back, with a more upright posture, makes it easier to hit a higher fade, a position Buckner compares to Scottie Scheffler's more lateral move.

A good golf swing isn't right or wrong - it has to match the shot a player is trying to hit.

Buckner's last variable is handle height. A higher handle through impact makes it easier to swing around the body and produce a draw that starts right; a lower handle makes it easier to start the ball left and fade it. He recommends golfers isolate one variable at a time on the range rather than making several changes at once, so they can see clearly what each adjustment does to ball flight.