golfrewind.com

When I set-up for a drive, I try to never let the clubhead lay on the ground, as if I were in a bunker. I have seen some pros that let the clubhead rest on the ground before takeaway and some that don't. What do you guys do?

I let the clubhead rest on the ground before takeaway. It's like this with all of my clubs except when I'm in the sand. With my irons, I sometimes try not to ground the club if it means I'll move the earth beneath the ball (thus moving the ball) but I always ground my driver.

Great, now I have something else to think about when I set up for my swing!

I always ground it, myself. With the club grounded, I look to see whether I've got the ball teed at the right height for me. (I try to have the ball's equator even with the highest point on the club face.) Also, when the club's resting on the ground, I relax my arms and regrip the club. Helps me get into a comfortable set-up.

I don't hover the driver partly because I'm afraid it will tense up my arms too much and partly because I don't have the confidence that I can return the club to the same place on impact.

I usually don't tee it high. These new long tees we're seeing... I don't know how people manage to use them.

I've been teeing it up higher and higher, actually. Its helped me offset the "raising up" I've been fighting this year. I haven't gone to the long tees, just tee it up about as high as a regular tee will let me go. I used to do the half the ball above the clubface, but now I've got nearly the WHOLE ball above the clubface.

Whatever works, right?:)

As for grounding the driver, I do it, I couldn't imagine NOT doing it. Like Jim said, it gives you a chance to take a breath, straighten everything up and go. That and it goes back to a trick my dad taught me way back, to pick a spot 8-12" behind the ball, and when you take your club back, brush over that spot. I just wish I could remind myself to do that EVERY time. Hmmm....

Yeah, Tony, I agree: Whatever works for the player is best, regardless of what others may do. (I should have added that in my previous post.) And that's a great tip your dad gave you. A pro told me the same thing when I was taking lessons a few years ago.

Ihaverangeball's question also got me to thinking about hovering the putter. Again, some do and some don't, and it seems to be a matter of personal preference. Personally, I ground the putter at address for the same kind reasons that I ground the driver. However, people who feel comfortable hovering the putter (without ever grounding it before the backstroke) get an added advantage. If, while they're standing over the ball, the ball moves (ball's on a slope, say, and it rolls a quarter-turn), they don't get the 1-stroke "ball moving after address" penalty (USGA Rule 18-2.b) because technically they have not "addressed" the ball (Section II: Definitions).

when i want to work on grip pressure in my hands, i tee my driver up and dont rest my club on the ground. this will relax your grip and give you the sensation of how tight you should have your grip. i know a lot of great ball strikers that use this tip to help their swing.

Hey, I do that---must me I'm a great ball strikers, right?

I was going to post that I always ground the driver so that I can relax my grip one last time before the swing......I have a tendency to tense up too much on the tee, and this really 'quiets' me down. Plus, if I don't ground the club, the subtle swinging of the clube before take away freaks me out....

Cool to read how everyone does the same thing differently......life would be boring if we were all the same..

I ground my driver only to see if I have the ball teed correctly, the proper set up (alignment), then I lift the driver off the ground prior to my back swing. I found that this eliminates picking the driver up abruptly resulting in a steep swing at the ball. I've had some success doing this.

i ground all my clubs before takeaway-it just gives me something more to think about. But actually it helps me double-check my alignment and grip one last time before pulling the trigger

I ground/rest my driver, but I've tried a "hovering" technique, where I hover the driver behind the ball. both methods seem to work OK, but I seem to prefer resting the clubhead on the ground.

Another reason I like resting the clubhead on teh ground is - it helps me promote taking my club back and UP. If I "hover" - it seems to help flatten out my swingplane.