Welcome to Day 2 of the "9 Days to Amazing Ball Striking" lesson series. Today you're going to learn the specific mechanics required to hit a draw — with clear, step-by-step instructions that walk you through the entire process from feel to full swing.
If you struggle with slicing the golf ball, this lesson addresses the root cause head-on. The first thing we need to understand is what actually causes a slice versus a draw at the mechanical level.
Day 2: How to Hit a Draw Shot in Golf - Two Factors
There are exactly two factors that determine whether your shot will curve as a draw or a fade:
- The direction the club head is moving through impact
- The direction the club face is pointing at impact
We covered club head direction on Day 1. You learned how to aim your swing path more to the right, getting the club head to travel inside-out so the ball starts to the right of your target.
Then you reversed it, swinging the club head right-to-left so the ball started to the left.
The shaft on the ground in the photo at left represents the direction the club head is traveling. In this case, we're swinging inside-out to the right, so the club moves through the impact zone from left to right.
The direction of club head movement is the first factor. The second — and the one that creates curvature — is the club face orientation relative to that path.
When you're swinging out to the right with the club face perfectly square to that swing direction — pointing the same way the club is moving — the ball launches straight along that inside-out path with no curvature.
You swing to the right, you keep the club face square to your swing direction, and the ball starts to the right. That's exactly what we practiced on Day 1.
How to Hit a Draw - Club Release
Today we're modifying that second factor to create curvature. You're going to learn to roll the club face closed relative to your swing path. The club head still moves to the right, but the face now points left — back toward your target.
If we lay a second shaft on the ground to represent where the club face is pointing, the two shafts form a V shape. The larger this V — meaning the greater the difference between the direction the club head moves and where the face points — the more your shot will curve.
If you're trying to hit a pronounced hook with significant curvature, you need to roll your hands aggressively to get the club face substantially closed relative to the swing path.
The fundamental principle is simple: the bigger the gap between path and face angle, the more draw spin or fade spin the ball will carry.
Step 1: Wrist Rotation
Now that you understand what creates a draw, let's focus on exactly how to execute it.
Start by picking up a club with just your left hand, using your normal neutral grip. When you hold the club out in front of your body, the face should be perfectly vertical — straight up and down.
Now simply turn your left wrist counter-clockwise — as if you were turning a doorknob to the left — until the face rotates to parallel with the ground. That's it. That's the release.
When golf instructors talk about needing to "release the golf club," this is precisely what they mean. Many students overthink the concept, imagining elaborate hand flipping or exaggerated arm rolling.
The release is simply turning your wrist counter-clockwise, which closes the club face relative to your swing path. Clean, simple, powerful.
It's critical to use your normal grip for this exercise. Don't adopt an artificially strong grip or rotate your hand excessively to the right. While a stronger grip would certainly allow more aggressive face rotation, that's not what this drill is developing.
Use a nice, neutral grip so you're developing the ability to close the club face through proper wrist release — not through grip manipulation.
Complete 20 repetitions. Start with the club face perfectly vertical and roll it counter-clockwise until the face points at the ground. Twenty reps will groove the sensation before moving to Step 2.
Step 2: Impact Bag
For Step 2, you'll make mini swings into an impact bag using your left hand only.
Execute that same rolling motion with your wrist as you approach impact, focusing on hitting the bag with just the toe of the club.
Really commit to the wrist roll as you come down — you should be rotating the club a full 90 degrees to the left.
Obviously, this would produce a terrible shot if you were actually hitting a ball. We're deliberately over-exaggerating the movement so your body internalizes the feel of proper release through impact.
Roll your hands enough that the toe of the club contacts the bag at impact. When the club has rotated 90 degrees, the toe will point directly down the target line.
Commit fully to releasing the club into the bag. Complete 20 reps, matching the same volume as Step 1. If you want real-time feedback on your release mechanics, try a free AI golf lesson that tracks your hand position through impact.
Step 3: Half Swings
Once you've grooved that impact bag sensation, it's time to progress to more realistic swinging motion.
Still using your left hand only, swing back and through to approximately waist high.
Execute a full release as you swing through — the face of the club should be pointing straight down at the ground when the club reaches waist height on the follow through.
Really commit to closing the club face through the impact area. If you did this while actually hitting a golf ball, you'd produce a massive hook — but again, these drills are purposely exaggerated to ingrain the correct motor pattern.
The first step in learning the draw is understanding what it feels like to produce maximum right-to-left curvature. We'll refine the amount of release later in the series.
For this drill, we simply want the ball to curve right-to-left. Don't worry about how much it curves — if you're getting dramatic curvature, that's actually a great sign. You'll learn to calibrate your draw precisely in upcoming lessons.
Now you're ready for the complete drill.
Step 4: Full Drill
This drill uses the same alignment rod setup you established in the Day 1 lesson.
Today, focus exclusively on getting the club to swing from inside-out so the ball starts to the right of the stick, while adding the wrist release you've been practicing to curve it back.
For your first few shots, ensure your feet, hips, and shoulders are perfectly square to the target line, just like on Day 1. Let the club swing inside-out and roll your hands exactly as you've practiced in the preceding drills.
As you swing through impact, concentrate on feeling the club face completely roll over. A helpful visualization: imagine your wristwatch — your hand rolls over through impact so both the watch face and the back of your hand point toward the ground.
If you swing to the right (as practiced on Day 1) and roll your hands to the left (as practiced in today's drills), you'll produce a shot that curves from right to left — a draw.
Start with small 10-15 yard shots and gradually increase your speed. As your consistency improves, progressively build up to full swings.
Continue practicing until you can execute 20 full swings where the ball starts to the right of the stick and curves back to the left.
Remember: the amount of curvature doesn't matter at this stage. Whether the ball curves 2 yards or 20 yards, as long as it's moving right-to-left, you're developing the correct release pattern.
Swing inside-out, let your hands release, and get that ball curving from right to left. Master this drill and we'll see you tomorrow for Day 3, where you'll learn the opposite shot — the fade. You can also complement this work with a free AI swing analysis to see exactly how your current swing path looks from above.
Watch part 2 now to see how you're moving your body in the opposite direction of the pros!
If the face is square to the direction of the swing, the shot will go straight
The larger the V, the more your shot will curve
Turn the club counter clockwise
Hit the bag with the toe of the club
Swing to about waist high
Full release
Roll the hands
Wrist watch points down
