Hit Straighter Drives with Gear Effect & Spin Axis

It is incredible the effect ball contact has on shot shape, and knowing this can help you understand why a ball flies the way it does!

We must first understand what happens with the ball that creates shot shape…  Although some of you may have heard in the past that a ball has backspin and side-spin, but this notion is incorrect.   A ball may only spin in one direction and will do so around around a lone axis.  Think of a rod running through the center of a ball and the ball will spin around this rod. 
It is the tilting of this spin axis that causes a ball to curve in different directions.  A great visual is to imagine an airplane’s wings as it banks into a turn… as they tilt to one side, the airplane’s flight will slide off in that direction.  This is the exact same concept with the golf ball’s spin axis.

Although the orientations of club face and path at impact have a great effect on spin axis, the gear effect can often override or enhance these effects!  When the ball contacts the face somewhere other than the Center of Gravity, it causes the face to change its orientation; Toe impact will cause the club face to open and heel impact will cause the face to close.  The opening & closing of the face is what affects the spin axis.  This is because during impact, the ball and face are connected like two gears. 

For a great visual aid, please make a fist with both hands and connect your knuckles like gears.  As you push both gears away from you, your right hand will turn to the right and your left hand will turn toward the left.  This is toe contact causing the spin axis to tilt towards a draw.  Now try pulling your gears/hands towards you to help grasp the concept of heel contact and a fade spin axis.


What’s the big ‘Take’ from this?  If you are working on your driver, you Must know where the ball is contacting the face in order to have the correct fix!  Please pick up some Dr. Scholls foot spray to use for finding out where you make contact.