Golf questions
Direct answers to familiar golf questions. Start with what the shot tells you, check the evidence, then choose one thing to practise.
A slice curves strongly toward the trail side: right for a right-handed golfer, left for a left-handed golfer. With centred contact, the face pointing to the trail side of the club's path at impact helps explain that curve. The ball flight does not, by itself, prove an over-the-top swing.
See the checks and practice taskA hook curves strongly toward the lead side: left for a right-handed golfer, right for a left-handed golfer. On a centred strike, a face pointing to the lead side of the club's path helps explain the curve. A hook does not automatically mean the clubface was pointing left of the target for a right-hander.
See the checks and practice taskA fat or heavy iron shot happens when the club contacts the ground too far behind the ball, interfering with the strike. For a normal iron shot from turf, the useful task is ball-first contact followed by ground contact. The heavy strike identifies a contact problem, but not one unique swing fault.
See the checks and practice taskA thin iron shot strikes the ball low on the face, often near the leading edge, producing a harsh feel and an unexpectedly low flight. It can arise from several contact patterns, including a club that bottoms out too early and rises into the ball. Thin contact is not proof that you lifted your head.
See the checks and practice taskEarly extension describes the pelvis moving toward the ball or target line during the swing, often with a change in forward bend. It can reduce space for the arms, but it is a movement characteristic rather than proof of a bad swing. Some effective players show it too.
See the checks and practice taskInconsistent golf can mean changing strike, start direction, curvature, distance or decisions. Those are different problems. Define which result varies, under which conditions, before changing your swing. A few excellent shots mixed with poor ones do not establish that the whole technique needs rebuilding.
See the checks and practice taskStrokes gained compares the shots a player takes with the expected shots for a selected benchmark from the same starting and finishing positions. Positive values mean better than that benchmark; negative values mean worse. The benchmark and the recorded distance and lie matter to the result.
See the checks and practice taskThere is no single correct distance for each golf club. Speed, strike, delivered loft, equipment and conditions all affect the result. For course decisions, the most useful number is your normal carry and its spread, rather than a tour player's distance or your longest-ever shot.
See the checks and practice taskGolf practice plan and free PDF · Greens in regulation explained · Golf statistics app
How a golf handicap is calculated · A practical plan to break 90 · How to improve systematically
These are educational starting points. Public coaching resources and technical definitions inform the answers; they are not a diagnosis of an unseen swing. Read our editorial approach.
