geline

Alignment
At address your body (feet, knees, hips, forearms, shoulders and eyes) should be positioned parallel to the target line. When viewed from behind, a right-handed golfer will appear aimed slightly left of the target. This optical illusion is created because the ball is on the target line and the body is not.

The easiest way to conceptualize this is the image of a railroad track. The body is on the inside rail and the ball is on the outside rail. For right-handers, at 100 yards your body will appear aligned approximately 3 to 5 yards left, at 150 yards approximately 8 to 10 yards left and at 200 yards 12 to 15 yards left.

Foot Placement
The feet should be shoulder width (outside of the shoulders to the inside of the heels) for the middle irons. The short iron stance will be two inches narrower and the stance for long irons and woods should be two inches wider. The target-side foot should be flared toward the target from 20 to 40 degrees to allow the body to rotate toward the target on the downswing. The back foot should be square (90 degrees to the target line) to slightly open to create the proper hip turn on the back swing. Your flexibility and body rotation speed determine the proper foot placement.

(www.about.com)

GolfCoach

nice read, thanks

white_tiger_137

Nice post, Geline!

Now, how do you know if your alignment is off? If you think your alignment might be causing you problems, this should help put things in perspective. First, I'll hit balls with radically open, closed, wide or narrow stances. I'll mess around with my grip, shoulder and hip postition, etc. Even if you don't consiously compensate for it, you can still hit very good shots from an awkward set up position. Now go back to a regular set up, and normal shots start to feel really easy.

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Surtees

another good read sorry i'm thread dig at the moment

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broken tee

I want to reopen this discussion, but throw in set up routines, this last round I played in Colorado I was hitting right, not slicing, even compensating it went right. one of these paragraphs is the answer or I'm in the water hazard with my thinking.( I just left myself open here for a shot from down under)give me your opinions.

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Trigger

A couple of things. On the range, take 2 clubs and line them up on the ground. They should look like railroad tracks, parallel to each other. Use one to align your feet, and one on the outside of the ball. Make sure it is far enough away from the ball that you don't hit the club. Point the club next to the ball at your target and ensure the inside club is parallel. This drill will help you know where you need to ACTUALLY be aligned.
Since you are never actually facing your target, it is natural to line up to the right of your target for a right hander, left for a wrong hander.

Additionally, ball position is very important. Improper position can lead to a push or pull or worse. Alot of people like to base their ball position off of their left foot. This has problems for a number of reasons. The feet are rarely in the same place, and different clubs call for a slightly different position.
Base your ball position off of your shoulders, as they never get wider or more narrow. I like to use the logo on my shirt as a reference point. Think of your farthest forward position as that of the driver, and work a half a ball back for each club as you go shorter.

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A bad day golfing is better than a good day working, especially when you skip work to play golf!

In the Bag:
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Cleveland CG1 Tour 4-PW
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Trigger

Additionally, setup is one of the most important parts of your swing, and it is one of the easiest things to master, since it doesn't involve any movement.

Another thing that will help you to gain consistency, especially with irons, is to focus on the position of your left hand at impact. Try to work on having the logo of your glove facing the target at impact. Hit some half shots while consciously trying to square your left hand to the target line. This will ensure that you are getting the clubface closed, and not turning it over too much.

__________________
A bad day golfing is better than a good day working, especially when you skip work to play golf!

In the Bag:
Taylormade R7 Superquad 10.5*
TM VSteel 3wood 15*
TM Burner Rescue 19*
Cleveland CG1 Tour 4-PW
Cleveland 588 54,60*
Odyssey White Hot Tour #1

broken tee

I found out today that my alignment is good, but some reason I using the arms rather than getting the hips to turn so I am opening the face of the club. so I think your suggestion Trigger will get the muscle memory back. Maybe its hair loss or the greying and it just might be the person using the club

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Best Game I ever swore at

Trigger

I also forget my hips at times, especially when I get tired. I guess that is what keeps us hackers off the PGA Tour.

__________________
A bad day golfing is better than a good day working, especially when you skip work to play golf!

In the Bag:
Taylormade R7 Superquad 10.5*
TM VSteel 3wood 15*
TM Burner Rescue 19*
Cleveland CG1 Tour 4-PW
Cleveland 588 54,60*
Odyssey White Hot Tour #1

Surtees

The hips sounds like its a common problem I agree Trigger I think thats why were call hacks

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Growing old in mandatory but Growing up is optional