Pushes and pulls: Why That "Straight" Miss Is Still a Problem

The strike often feels solid, which is what makes it so confusing. You think you've hit it well, but you look up and it's sailing offline. It’s a shot that tells you that your clubface is in a pretty good position, but your entire swing is heading in the wrong direction.

So what's going on?

The Push explained

A push happens when your swing path is travelling significantly from in-to-out, and your clubface is square to that path. Because the face is square to the path, there's no sidespin to curve the ball back. It simply flies in the direction the club was travelling at impact: to the right.

Where the Push Comes From

A push is a path problem. Your club is approaching the ball too much from the inside. This can happen for a few key reasons.

• Getting the Club "Stuck": This is the most frequent cause. During the downswing, the arms and club drop too far behind the body. From this "stuck" position, the only way to get to the ball is to swing aggressively out to the right. The body's rotation often stalls to give the arms time to catch up, which just makes the in-to-out path even more extreme.
• Poor Alignment: It sounds simple, but it’s a huge factor. Many golfers inadvertently set up with their body (feet, hips, and shoulders) aimed to the right of the target. They then aim the clubface at the flag. Your body is programmed to swing along the line of your shoulders, so even a perfect swing will send the club on an in-to-out path relative to the target line, resulting in a push.
• Too Much Lateral Slide: An efficient downswing is a blend of a lateral shift and a rotation of the hips. Some golfers, however, have too much lateral slide. Their hips shift aggressively towards the target without rotating. This action can drop the club too far down and to the inside, getting it stuck and forcing that in-to-out path.
• Ball Position Too Far Back: If the ball is too far back in your stance, you make contact with it before the club has had a chance to work its way back to the target line. At that point in the arc, the club is still naturally travelling from the inside, leading to a push.

Getting Your Swing Path Back to Neutral

To fix a push, you need to neutralize your swing path and get it travelling down the target line at impact.

• Feel the Club "In Front" of Your Chest: This is a great thought to prevent getting stuck. Throughout the backswing and the start of the downswing, feel like your hands and the clubhead stay in front of your sternum. This promotes a "one-piece" takeaway and prevents the club from falling behind you, encouraging a more neutral path.
• Check Your Alignment Religiously: Don't guess. Put alignment sticks on the ground—one for your target line and one parallel to it for your feet. You might be shocked to find out how far right you've been aiming your body. A square setup provides the foundation for a square swing path.
• Feel Your Lead Hip Pocket Clear "Back": To encourage rotation instead of a slide, feel like your lead hip pocket (left pocket for a righty) is turning back and behind you as you start the downswing. This clears space for your arms to swing down on the correct path instead of getting trapped.
• The "Exaggeration" Feel: For a player who pushes the ball, a useful swing thought is to feel like you are trying to swing the club "out to left field" after impact. This is an over-correction, of course, but it can help to neutralize an excessively in-to-out path and get you back to hitting it straight at the target.

The push is a sign you're close to a really good swing. You're delivering a square clubface, which is a huge part of the battle. Now, you just need to get that swing path straightened out so that solid strike sends the ball flying right at the pin.

The Pull: Correcting the Straight Shot That Starts Left

The pull is the mirror image of the push. You make a swing, the contact feels pure, but the ball starts left of the target (for a right-hander) and flies dead straight, never curving back. It ends up in the left rough or the bunker, leaving you wondering how such a solid-feeling swing could produce such a poor result.

Like the push, a pull is a sign that your clubface is doing its job. The problem isn't the face; it's the path it's travelling on.

A pull is the result of an out-to-in swing path, combined with a clubface that is square to that path. The club is cutting across the ball from outside the target line to inside it. Because the face is pointing in the same direction as the path, the ball shoots off straight in that direction—to the left.

The Root Causes of a Pulled Shot

If you're pulling the ball, your club is approaching the ball from outside the target line. This is almost always caused by an issue in the transition from backswing to downswing.

• The "Over the Top" Move: This is the undisputed champion of pull-related swing faults. As we've discussed, this happens when the downswing is initiated by the upper body—the right shoulder and arms lunge towards the ball. This action throws the club "over" the correct swing plane and forces it to travel on a steep, out-to-in path. If your face happens to be square to this new path, you get a dead pull.
• Incorrect Alignment: Just as aiming right can cause a push, aiming your body (feet, hips, shoulders) to the left of the target can cause a pull. Your body will swing along the line it's aimed on. Even with a perfect clubface, if your body is aligned left, your swing path will follow suit.
• A Restricted Lower Body Turn: A golf swing needs space. This space is created by a proper body turn in the backswing. If a player has a restricted hip turn, they often compensate by lifting their arms to complete the backswing. From this high, disconnected position, the most natural way down is to throw the club out and over the top, leading to a pull.
• Ball Position Too Far Forward: While less common, a ball position that is way too far forward in the stance can sometimes cause a pull. The player feels they have to "reach" for the ball, which can cause the shoulders to open up early and reroute the club onto an out-to-in path to make contact.

How to Get Your Path Coming From the Inside

Fixing a pull means shallowing out your downswing and getting the club to approach the ball from the inside, or at least from neutral.

• Feel Your Back Stay at the Target: This is the best anti-pull thought there is. As you start your downswing, have the feeling that your back remains facing the target for a split-second longer. This prevents the right shoulder from spinning out and throwing the club over the top. It forces the lower body to lead the sequence, which naturally drops the club onto an inside path.
• Check Your Setup: Get those alignment sticks out. Ensure your feet, hips, and shoulders are all parallel to your intended target line. A square, balanced setup is the easiest way to promote a neutral swing path.
• Feel the "Drop": From the top of the backswing, feel a slight, passive "dropping" of your hands and arms straight down before you start to rotate. This isn't a pull, but a simple yielding to gravity. This small move is enough to drop the club into "the slot" and avoid the over-the-top lunge.
• The "Exaggeration" Feel: Just as a pusher should feel like they swing to left field, a puller should feel the opposite. A great swing thought is to feel like you are trying to hit the ball out to "right field" (for a righty). This exaggerated feeling of swinging in-to-out can be just the ticket to neutralize your out-to-in path and get the ball starting on line.

A pull can be frustrating because the contact feels so good. But it's a clear signal that your swing path is off. By working on the transition and ensuring your lower body leads the way, you can get that path straightened out and turn that solid strike into a shot that flies right at the flag.

Push Miss (Starts Right, No Curve) Recap

A push is the polite miss. It feels solid, looks straight – just not at your target. The ball launches right and stays there. That tells you the clubface was square to an inside‑out path, not to the target line.

• Why setup creates pushes
• Ball too far back: closes shoulders and tilts the path to the right.
• Stance too narrow: balance issues make the club drop under and get stuck.

• Hanging back in the downswing because the ball is back – you push it right.

• Direction chain reaction
  Ball position too far back = closed shoulders = path right. If the face matches that path, you get a push; if the face is more open than the path, you get a push‑slice.

Pull Miss (Starts Left, No Curve) Recap

A pull feels so flush you want to keep it – until you see it finish left of the green. The face is square, but the path is left. The ball starts left and never comes back.

• How setup tilts you left
• Ball sneaks too far forward: opens the shoulders, sends path left.
• Narrow stance, then you lurch over the top to reach that forward ball.

• Mis‑aim born from poor ball position – your eyes “fix” it by aiming the body left.

• Direction chain reaction
  Too‑forward ball position = open shoulders = path left. If the face matches that path, you get a pull; if the face is more open than the path, you get a pull-hook.

What to feel to fix a push or pull

Set up, exhale, and let your chest feel square to the target. Picture the club brushing the turf after the ball in line with our lead heel. That image alone cleans up a lot of left or right starts.