CONCEPT · BALL STRIKING INTERMEDIATE FOCUS
Elite ball strikers deliver the clubface square to their swing path at impact, eliminating directional misses.
Skill split
01 · Overview
~2 min read
The clubface angle at impact determines roughly 85% of your ball's starting direction, yet most golfers remain oblivious to where their face is pointing throughout the swing. Whether you're battling a persistent slice or simply can't understand why your well-struck drives veer offline, face angle awareness separates consistent ball-strikers from those who spray shots across the course.
Porzak Golf advocates for developing clubface consciousness by practicing positional awareness—going "Square. Square. Square. Square" at key points in your swing to ingrain proper face control. Meanwhile, Danny Maude reveals a crucial insight about driver accuracy: when the ball sits forward in your stance, the club naturally swings left of target at impact, requiring precise face angle adjustments to find the fairway consistently.
The relationship between face angle and club path creates the ball flight laws that govern every shot you hit. Understanding how your grip influences face position, or how an overly cupped position in your backswing leads to an open face at the top, transforms random results into predictable patterns. These videos will teach you to feel, see, and control your clubface through impact—the foundation skill that makes every other swing improvement possible.
4 components that build the move
01 · CLUBFACE POSITION
The clubface must be perpendicular to your swing path at impact, not necessarily to the target line. This relationship determines initial ball direction.
02 · GRIP AWARENESS
Your grip pressure and hand rotation directly influence clubface angle. Strong grips tend to close the face, weak grips open it.
03 · TOP POSITION
Avoid excessive cupping or bowing of the lead wrist at the top. A neutral wrist position keeps the clubface manageable through impact.
04 · BALL POSITION ADJUSTMENT
With the ball forward in your stance, the club naturally swings left of target at impact. Adjust face angle to compensate for this geometric reality.
02 · The Reference
3 of 318 · hand-selected
Editor's Pick · #1 · 6:50
Porzak breaks down the true mechanics of why slices happen and provides the exact clubface awareness drill to fix them.
Porzak Golf · intermediate
Editor's Pick · 8:48
Maude explains the geometric relationship between ball position and clubface angle that most golfers completely miss.
Danny Maude · beginner
Editor's Pick · 0:33
Lines demonstrates an instant slice fix by showing exactly how grip changes affect face angle through impact.
Milo Lines Golf · beginner
04 · The Experts
3 perspectives · same drill
04 · Practice it
2 drills
Drill
Practice protocol with timestamped demonstrations across 4 videos.
Drill
Practice protocol with timestamped demonstrations across 2 videos.
05 · FAQ
Answered from the library
According to Danny Maude, this inconsistency is primarily due to face angle variations at impact, even when your swing path feels identical. Small changes in how the clubface is positioned at contact can dramatically alter ball flight direction, turning what feels like the same swing into completely different shot shapes.
Porzak Golf explains that slicing often stems from improper sequencing and lack of connection in the swing, particularly when arms get too wide at the top. Dan Grieve also emphasizes that it's often the clubface angle at impact that's hitting shots left or right, not necessarily the swing plane itself.
Face angle is crucial for shot direction and often more impactful than swing path alone. As demonstrated in the videos, even with a decent swing plane, if the face is turned over or open at impact, it will dramatically affect where the ball goes regardless of your body mechanics.
ChrisRyanGolf teaches a specific move that most golfers don't know they should be doing, which is essential for proper compression and impact. This move is something he teaches all his students and is often the missing piece when golfers can't make progress with their ball striking despite working on their swing.
Yes, face angle is critical in all aspects of golf, including bunker play. James Ridyard's bunker techniques emphasize proper face control as part of his 'cheat code' system, showing that understanding face angle applications extends beyond just full swing shots to short game situations as well.
Tap any concept to explore the library
06 · The Library
YouTube-indexed · expert-graded
Video · 0:38
Golf Studio
Video · 0:37
Golf Studio
Video · 0:59
Kerrod Gray Golf
Video · 0:31
Scratch Golf Academy
Video · 0:34
Kerrod Gray Golf
Video · 1:42
Scratch Golf Academy
Video · 0:27
Golfslump
Video · 2:04
Brit Golf Dad
Video · 9:58
Scratch Golf Academy
Video · 0:52
Jimmy Ballard Golf 2.0
Video · 0:38
Tropicana Entertainment
Video · 13:29
Face First Golf
Video · 0:20
Michael Kanev Golf
Video · 2:08
Top Speed Golf - Clay Ballard
Video · 0:33
Scratch Golf Academy
Video · 0:26
Kerrod Gray Golf
Video · 5:30
Scratch Golf Academy
Video · 1:25
Tropicana Entertainment
Video · 1:10
Tropicana Entertainment
Video · 1:05
George Gankas Golf
Video · 26:12
George Gankas Golf
Video · 0:39
The Logical Golfer
Video · 0:59
MONTE’S GOLF - Since 1954
Video · 1:30
Rob Cheney Golf
Video · 14:40
AlexElliottGolf
Video · 10:04
Alistair Davies Golf
Video · 11:00
Danny Maude
Video · 1:39
Todd Graves
Video · 0:44
ChrisRyanGolf
Video · 35:48
Meandmygolf
Video · 1:01
Todd Graves
Video · 18:13
Rob Cheney Golf
Video · 10:37
Swing Quest Golf
Video · 11:55
Face First Golf
Video · 1:17
Tropicana Entertainment
Video · 0:24
Kerrod Gray Golf
Video · 1:31
Rob Cheney Golf
Video · 0:14
The Logical Golfer
Video · 2:21
Malaska Golf
Video · 0:36
Golfslump
Video · 0:21
CK Golf
Video · 1:33
Todd Graves
Video · 11:47
MrShortGame Golf
Video · 0:27
Michael Kanev Golf
Video · 1:16
Brit Golf Dad
Video · 0:59
Jimmy Ballard Golf 2.0
Video · 0:09
Michael Kanev Golf
Video · 0:38
Scratch Golf Academy
Video · 6:57
Meandmygolf
Video · 0:52
Athletic Motion Golf
Work with our AI coach to dial in the precise grip and setup adjustments that will square your face at impact.