How To Open The Club Face In Golf

There are times during the course of a round when you will need to open the club face to create loft or deliver a fading ball flight. In this video and article, we are going to show you how to find the perfect grip for a controllable open club face. We'll then talk about when you might need to use the shot and finally, if you are leaving the face open through impact unintentionally, how to fix it.

To open the club face, if you are playing a flop shot for instance, follow these easy steps. A square club face sees the toe of the club pointing up to 12 o'clock on a clock face, before taking your grip gently rotate it to 1 o’clock (11 for left handers). Only once you have done that, grip the club correctly. Don’t overdo it.

From there, aim the club face at your target and then set you stance. You’ll find your feet are more open than normal. It is so important to not just turn your hands round to open the face (the video with this article shows exactly what to avoid here). All this will do is see them return to the position they naturally hang in and the face will be square again. So rotate the club to open the face, then place your hands on it with a neutral golf grip.

When would I want to open the club face? 

Opening the face is important, particular for bunker shots. By doing this, you'll expose the bounce on your wedge and as long as you know how to use the bounce, you'll 'slide' the club face under the ball and pop it out on a cushion of sand. If you don’t do this you’ll just dig the leading edge into the sand. 

Secondly you’d want to open the face if you wanted to add a bit of loft onto a cheeky green-side shot. Given very little green to work you can limit the run on the ball by gently opening the face and playing the shot as normal.

You’d also open the face a bit if you wanted to encourage a fade or to work the ball around a dogleg or perhaps an obstacle blocking your route to the green. The key here is aim your body where you want the ball to start, then the club face a fraction right of where you want the ball to finish. Swing the golf club along your body line and trust your amendments. 

Does an open club face cause a slice?

If the club face is open to the path of your swing, you will create the sidespin that causes a slice. This usually happens if you are coming over the top at the start of the downswing. Matching up your club face to a neutral swing path is the key to hitting straight shots.