Instruction – Set Up for Success

Your setup is the foundation of your swing. One of the most overlooked parts of the setup is shoulder alignment. When the shoulders are too open (pointing left of the target for a right-handed golfer or right for a left-handed golfer), it can cause a chain reaction of issues throughout your swing and slice.

What happens if your shoulders are too open at setup?

Out-to-In Swing Path: An open shoulder alignment often promotes an out-to-in swing path. This means the club moves across the ball from outside the target line to inside. As a result, players are more likely to slice the ball or pull it straight left, depending on face angle at impact.

Loss of Distance and Power: Proper shoulder alignment helps create a coiled, loaded position at the top of the backswing. If your shoulders start open, it reduces the amount of coil between your upper and lower body, leading to a weaker, more arms-driven swing. Less coil = less stored energy = less distance.

Inconsistent Ball Striking: When the shoulders are too open, it can throw off low point control – where the club bottoms out in the swing. Players often hit thin shots (ball first, little turf) or fat shots (turf first, then ball) because their swing path and body pivot are mismatched from the beginning.

Poor Clubface Control: When your path is altered by open shoulders, it affects how you deliver the clubface to the ball. Managing face angle becomes harder because your hands and arms are often trying to “save” the shot mid-swing, leading to unpredictable face positions at impact.

If you are slicing the ball, try closing your shoulders at setup, and if that doesn’t help, close your shoulders and fix your takeaway with my takeaway tip below. Closing your shoulders and fixing your takeaway will ensure the slice is gone.

At setup, place an alignment stick on the ground, pointing to your target. From here, place an alignment stick inside the one pointed to your target and place this one at a 45-degree angle. The stick placed at the 45-degree angle, like the yellow arrow in the picture above, will simulate club path. On your takeaway, it is important that your clubface is square. If your clubface is open, you will most likely hit a slice.

The takeaway is one of the most critical parts of the golf swing – it sets the tone for everything that follows. One common mistake that many golfers make is opening the clubface too early during the takeaway. While it might seem like a small detail, an open clubface at the start can cause major problems with swing path, ball flight and consistency.

Here’s a closer look at what happens when the clubface is open on the takeaway

Leads to an Open Clubface at the Top: If the clubface is open early in the swing, it’s likely to stay open throughout. At the top of the backswing, this results in a clubface pointing more toward the sky (open relative to the swing arc), making it harder to square it in time for impact. This often leads to slices or weak fades.

Promotes Over-the-Top Motion: An open clubface can trigger an instinctive reaction: during the downswing, players often come over the top to “save” the shot, trying to square the face. This steep, over-the-top move produces glancing contact, resulting in pulls, pull-slices and loss of distance.

Inconsistent Contact: When the face is open on the takeaway, players often compensate mid-swing by flipping the wrists or rolling the hands to square the face. These timing-based moves are hard to repeat consistently, leading to thin shots, fat shots, or even the dreaded double-cross (starting left and curving even more left for a right-handed player).

How to fix an open clubface on the takeaway

Trace the alignment stick at a 45-degree angle and check that the grooves of your clubface are pointing toward the ground and your right palm toward the ground. Imagine the logo on your glove pointing at the ball for the first few feet of the swing – this keeps the clubface square without manipulating your hands.

The takeaway is like a domino – if the first move is off, the rest of the swing is spent trying to recover. Pay attention to your clubface early in the swing, and you’ll set yourself up for more draws, better ball striking, more consistency and lower scores.

Below is a quick checklist to keep handy when you practice, to say goodbye to slices and hello to baby draws.

Checklist: Fixing an open clubface on the takeaway

Signs Your Clubface is Open:

Clubface points toward the sky early in the swing

Shots often slice or fade weakly

Struggle to square the face at impact

Inconsistent contact (thin, fat, glancing blows)

Quick Tip

Imagine the logo on your glove pointing at the ball for the first few feet of the swing – this keeps the clubface square without manipulating your hands.

For a video explanation of this article, e-mail me at kpikegolf@gmail.com.