Shallow Golf Swing: The Key To Better Ball Striking?

Every golfer wants to hit the ball purely. There’s nothing quite like the sound – whether it’s a driver, a mid-iron, or a flushed wedge… It’s a wildly rewarding feeling.

But if you’ve been playing the game for any length of time, you know that magical feeling isn’t easy to achieve consistently. Finding the sweet spot on any golf club is a challenge, even for skilled amateurs who can regularly shoot in the 70s or break par.

So what’s the key to hitting the ball purely and making more consistent contact?

One of the most important moves is learning how to build a shallow golf swing. When you make a shallow move on your downswing, it’s so much easier to compress the ball and make better contact. 

When you learn how to shallow your swing, you will have more distance, accuracy, and likely lower scores. The move is elusive to so many golfers but in this article, we’ll try to simplify the process so you can have a more consistent golf swing.

Shallow Golf Swing

Before getting into the details, you might have asked yourself, “What is a shallow golf swing?” 

A golf swing is usually considered on plane, steep, or shallow.

A shallow swing is when you come from the inside on the downswing. The club is flatter and more laid off than a steep swing. A shallow swing tends to create more lag and ultimately, more power as you hit the ball then the turf (with irons). 

One of the best examples of a well known player with a shallow swing is Sergio Garcia. He creates an incredible amount of lag and has been one of the most consistent ball strikers over the past 20 years. 

The opposite of a shallow swing is a steep swing. In this case, a golfer takes the club at a more vertical angle toward the ball at impact. You might have heard the saying, “Chopping wood” on the golf course as it’s a similar, up and down motion. 

A steep attack angle isn’t common for elite golfers and tends to happen more with amateurs and recreational players. When you have a steep attack angle, it leads to all types of issues including weight transfer problems and incorrect swing path. 

If a golfer has a neutral swing, this would be on plane or slightly underneath to create a shallow swing. Now, let’s get into how each part of the swing dictates the plane and contact at impact. 

Understanding Your Golf Swing Plane 

Before diving into the details of what might be causing a steep swing, it’s important to first check your golf swing plane. The worst thing you can do is try out new drills or moves in your swing to fix an issue that you don’t have. 

If your swing is too steep you likely have one or more of these issues:

• Pulled golf shots that are well to the left of your target (the divot never lies). 
• Pop up shots with the driver. Arguably one of the most frustrating shots in the game and can leave a nasty skymark on your golf club. 
• Weak cuts and weaker slices, especially with a driver. While this might come from more than just plane issues (like your grip), they usually come together. 

Are you still not sure if you have a steep or shallow golf swing? Then record your golf swing in slow-motion on your phone and then evaluate a few key checkpoints. 

• The takeaway (P2): This position is when the golf club is parallel with the ground. If you have a swing that is neutral and on plane, the clubhead should be just outside the shaft. If the clubhead is more inside and the butt-end of the club is pointing well right of your target, this inside takeaway is likely the cause of a steep swing. 
• The downswing (P5): This position is when you’re on the downswing and the shaft can tell you a lot about the plane. Is your shaft above your bicep? Underneath it and more towards your forearm? Or right on it? If your shaft is more vertical and above your bicep, you likely have a steep swing and need to work on shallowing it out.

Part 1: Setup Position

If you want to create a more shallow swing, you first need to check a few things in your setup position. Go through these checkpoints to make sure you’re set up correctly at address.

• Head: It should be bent comfortably over the ball with your chin up to allow for a proper shoulder turn on the backswing. 
• Posture: You should have your knees bent, in an athletic position and feel like you’re slightly squatting down. 
• Arms: They should be pressed tightly against the side of the chest with the forearms pointing toward the sky. Additionally, they should be as close together as possible.
• Feet: Externally rotate your lead foot toward the target to clear your hips on the downswing. And your back foot should be perpendicular to the target line.

Once you’re set up correctly and follow these golf swing basics, let’s get into the backswing where most problems occur.  

Part 2: The Backswing 

Getting steep can happen from several moves in your backswing. Here are a few of the most common reasons why you don’t have a shallow golf swing. 

Inside Takeaway 

If you have a steep downswing, it’s likely because of an issue with your backswing. The biggest cause of a steep downswing is taking the club too far inside on the way back. When this occurs, it’s almost impossible to not get steep on the downswing which leads to all kinds of issues. 

Here’s what Tiger Woods said in his book, How I Play Golf, about letting the club stray inside on the backswing… “If the club moves too far to the inside midway through the backswing, the shaft aiming to the right of my target, I’m forced to make compensations (I call them makeup moves) to get the club back to the right track.” 

One of the most common “makeup moves” after an inside takeaway is coming over the top on your downswing. Being over the top means steep, which leads to pulls, cuts, and sometimes banana slices that plague beginning golfers. 

Instead, make sure the club is outside the shaft during the first part of your takeaway. This will help you feel like a loop in your swing where you take it outside, then drop it back inside on the downswing. 

Also Read: How To Build an Inside Out Golf Swing

Excess Wrist Hinge

Here’s what Josh Zander, a top teacher in California according to Golf Digest said about the wrist’s impact on the swing plane. He said, “Avoid hinging your wrists too soon, which narrows and steepens the swing arc. You want more of a sweeping move off the ball and less of a lift. 

At the top of the backswing, Zander says you should strive to get the clubhead as far away from your head as possible. The farther you can keep it out, the wider your arc, and the shallower—and more solid—your impact.” 

The sooner you hinge your wrists on the backswing, the easier it is to get steep instead of shallow. Keep plenty of width in your swing so you have a wide arc at the top of your backswing. 

Part 3: The Downswing

The downswing is known as the second part of the swing. Ben Hogan dedicated an entire chapter in his book, Ben Hogan’s Five Lessons to explain this concept. 

As he elaborated, “On the downswing a golfer swings on a slightly different plane than on the backswing. The plane for the downswing is less steeply inclined and is oriented with the ball quite different from the backswing plane.”

The start of the downswing is with your hips, not your upper body. Your hips lead the way, then the shoulders, arms, and hands follow suit. 

Ben Hogan later said, “When the golfer is on the correct downswing plane, he has hit from the inside out. When he hits from the inside out, he can get maximum strength into his swing and obtain maximum clubhead speed.” 

Related: 5 Tips to Increase Swing Speed 

Drills to Shallow Your Golf Swing

Now that you have a better understanding of how the swing should function, let’s talk about some drills. Because as I’m sure you know from experience, learning something conceptually is easier said than putting it to use in your own golf swing.

Here are several drills to help you feel the correct move in your swing so you can develop a more shallow swing. 

Open Stance Drill 

Using an open stance is a great way to learn how to shallow the golf club. Jim McLean is a big fan of this drill and one that I’ve used as well. 

Here’s how to get started…

• On the driving range, grab a short iron and set up the golf ball like normal.
• Then, open your stance by dropping your left foot back without moving your right foot. Your shoulders should stay aligned toward your target, but your feet are well left of it. 
• Then take some practice swings and see how it feels. You’ll likely feel it requires you to take the club more outside on the backswing which helps with a flatter downswing.
• After you’ve done 5-10 practice swings, start hitting golf balls and swing on your shoulder line (not your feet). 
• If you’re still pulling the shot left, try to swing more right of the target so you have an inside-outside swing path. 

Figure 8 Drill

According to top YouTube golf coach Clay Ballard of Top Speed Golf, the easiest way to get shallow is with the figure 8 drill.