I am sure you have heard the phrase “keep your eye on the ball” a million times when associated with the golf swing. While it is true that you need to keep your head down and your line of sight somewhere near the ball you actually do not always want to be lined up with the ball when you have your head down. Depending on the club you are using you want to visualize different points around the ball where you will concentrate on making contact with the ball in order to get the maximum flight out of club and the desired result. This is called the aiming point in the golf swing.

For example, the aiming point in the golf swing when you are in a sand bunker is just about a quarter of an inch behind the ball. You want the aiming point in the golf swing to be behind the ball out of the sand because you want to put sand between your wedge and the ball so that it is the blasting of the sand that gets the ball out of the bunker. If your aiming point in the golf swing out of a sand bunker is right on the ball then you will make direct contact with the ball and the ball will take off like a rocket and you will have even less control over it than you normally would.

Where To Aim

Traditionally you want something between your clubface and the ball when you are using any wedge or any high numbered iron. So when you hit a club from your pitching wedge down to an 8 iron, or 7 iron depending on the shot, you want the aiming point in the golf swing to be just in front of the ball enough to take up a divot that will put something between your ball and your clubface. If you strike down in front of the ball you will have more control over your shot. For mid to long irons you want to have the aiming point in the golf swing to be right on the ball as that is what these irons were designed for. On your woods you want the aiming point in the golf swing to be just behind the ball to maximize power.

Making contact at the correct point on the ball is just another nuance of the golf swing that you need to know. It can be strange to get used to but once you have it down you will find that you are getting a lot more distance and accuracy out of your clubs and possibly more enjoyment out of your game.