FUNDAMENTALS H TOUR TIP H STRATEGY H FIVE-MINUTE LESSON H PURE STRIKES H SWING STUDY H PUTTING H
DUSTIN JOHNSON
WHY IT
PAYS TO
PLAY A
FADE
I was always a natural drawer
of the ball until, in 2015, I
decided to start fading
everything left-to-right. The
decision was made to help
keep my driver under control,
but it’s had a beneficial impact
on my irons. With a fade, your
attack is slightly more
downward and your path
tends to work left through
impact. This helps compress
the ball and improves spin,
flight and distance control. It
also helps it land softer on the
green.
MAKE YOUR SHAPE
ADJUSTMENTS
AT ADDRESS
For me, hitting a fade is all
done at set-up. I like to play
with zero swing thoughts,
and knowing that my
address position takes care
of my shot shape helps me
with that. I aim my feet,
hips and shoulders a little
left of parallel to the balltarget
line to encourage a
leftward swing path. Then I
aim the clubface between
my path and the ball-target
line at impact.
THE
COACH’S
VIEW
WHY THERE’S ROOM FOR LATITUDE IN DJ’S TECHNIQUE
“When DJ started working with my father, Butch, they talked about the very bowed wrist and ‘shut’
face he played with. My dad was smart enough to leave it in place. ‘This is what makes you good,’ he
told DJ. ‘We could change it, but then no one’s going to know who you are.’ History has shown us that
trying to force orthodoxy on a feel player rarely works. DJ proves that, as long as you put the club on
the ball consistently well, there is plenty of room for latitude in technique.” – Claude Harmon, Jr
38 GolfPlus JULY 2020