How to Fix a Heel Strike in Golf

Nothing sours a great day on the course faster than the dreaded heel strike. One moment you're an athlete in the middle of a powerful, fluid motion, and the next, your ball flies sideways at a horrifying 90-degree angle. This article will cut through the confusion surrounding this common fault, explaining precisely why you're hitting the ball on the heel and giving you simple, actionable drills to fix it for good.

What is a Heel Strike (and Why is it a Golf-Ruiner)?

A heel strike, in its most basic form, is when you make contact with the golf ball on the part of the clubface closest to the shaft - an area called the heel. When contact drifts even further towards the shaft, you hit the hosel, that curved piece connecting the shaft to the clubhead. This is what produces the infamous "shank," a shot that is arguably the most demoralizing in all of golf.

The result is a low, weak shot that darts sharply to the right for a right-handed golfer (or left for a lefty). It feels shockingly bad, a jarring sensation that offers zero feedback other than failure. Unlike a simple slice or hook where you can at least watch the ball fly down the fairway, a shank sends your ball into the trees, the next fairway, or even backwards. It attacks your confidence because it feels like a total system failure - a complete breakdown between your intention and the brutal reality of the shot.

The 1 Core Reason You're Hitting the Heel

So, why does this happen? We can list a dozen different swing theories, but they all boil down to one simple, undeniable truth: at the moment of impact, your clubhead is further away from your body than it was at address. Think about that. You set up a specific distance from the ball, yet during your swing, something pushes your hands and the clubhead outward, moving the sweet spot past the ball and aligning the heel or hosel with it instead.

The goal is to figure out why your body is doing this. For the vast majority of golfers, it comes from one of three common culprits:

• Early Extension: The #1 Fault. This is the big one. Early extension happens when, instead of rotating your hips around and back on the downswing, you thrust your hips and pelvis towards the golf ball. It's an instinctive move to generate power, but it ruins your swing mechanics. This forward thrust eliminates the space you created at address, forcing your arms and hands to get pushed out and away from your body. Your body is trying to save the shot, but the only way it can is by throwing the clubhead outward, leading directly to a heel strike.
• Losing Your Balance Toward Your Toes. Your posture at address is your foundation. Many golfers start with their weight too far forward, onto the balls or even the tips of their toes. During the swing, especially the downswing, this imbalance becomes exaggerated. As you rotate, momentum pulls you forward, causing you to "fall into" the shot. As your balance tips towards the ball, your hands and club follow, and again, the heel is presented to the ball at impact. You need to maintain balance to allow the club to return to its original position.
• An "Over-the-Top" Swing Path. This is a classic move where, from the top of the backswing, your first motion is to heave your right shoulder and hands out and over your swing plane. This immediately puts the clubhead on a path that is outside the ball, coming across it from out-to-in. While this path is more known for creating a slice, when it’s combined with any forward body movement, it’s a recipe for a shank because it aggressively pushes that hosel toward the ball.

Finding Your Fault: How to Diagnose Your Heel Strike

Before you can apply a fix, you need to be sure about the cause. guessing will only lead to more frustration. Use these simple diagnostic tests on the driving range to pinpoint your issue.

Test 1: Foot Spray Impact Test

This is your starting point. You need to confirm you're actually hitting the heel. Grab a can of athlete's foot spray or dry shampoo and apply a light coating to your clubface. Hit a few balls. The spray will wear off exactly where you made contact, giving you undeniable proof. If the mark is consistently near the heel, you know the problem isn’t in your head.

Test 2: The Headcover Gauntlet

This simple drill is brilliant for diagnosing early extension and an over-the-top path.

1. Place your ball in its normal position.
2. Place a headcover (or a rolled-up towel) on the ground just outside the golf ball and slightly closer to you. So, if you were to swing "over the top," you’d hit the headcover.

If you find yourself consistently hitting or grazing the headcover before the ball, it's a clear sign that you are thrusting your hands and club outward - the defining move of early extension or a severe over-the-top swing.

Test 3: The Wall Test

This is the definitive test for early extension.

1. Set up without a club, your backside just touching a wall or your golf bag.
2. Mimic your golf swing.

The goal is to keep your glutes touching the wall throughout the entire backswing and, most importantly, the downswing. If, as you start down, you feel your hips and pelvis push forward off the wall, you are guilty of early extension. Proper rotation would keep your lead glute on the wall as you turn through.

The Fix: Your Action Plan to Eradicate Heel Strikes

Now that you have a good idea of what’s causing your issue, you can get to work. Don't try all of these at once. Pick the drill that corresponds to the fault you identified and commit to it.

Drill 1: The "Hips Back Rotation" Drill for Early Extension

This drill actively trains the feeling of proper hip rotation instead of "humping the goat."

1. Find a wall or place your golf bag directly behind you as you take your setup. You want your backside to be just lightly brushing against it.
2. Take slow, deliberate half-swings. Your only goal is to feel your left hip (for a righty) rotate back and remain in contact with the bag throughout the downswing. Your right hip should turn into the space your left hip just vacated.
3. Focus on the sensation. You should feel like your hips are turning *around* you, not thrusting *at* the ball. This maintains the essential space for your arms to swing freely and return the club to the ball on the sweet spot.
4. Start without a ball, just grooving the motion. A hundred reps of feeling your hips work correctly is better than hitting a hundred shanks while guessing. Once the motion feels more natural, add a ball and try to replicate the feeling.

Drill 2: The "Gateway" Drill to Fix Your Path

This is a an updated version of the headcover drill, designed to give you instant feedback on your club's path into the ball.

1. Set up two objects to create a "gate" for your club to swing through. You can use two golf balls, two headcovers, or even two tee pegs.
2. Place one object about 4 inches outside your golf ball, and the other about 4 inches inside your golf ball. The objects should be aligned with your target, creating a narrow channel about the width of your clubhead.
3. Your goal is to swing the clubhead through the gate to hit the ball a few feet.
4. If you hit the outer object, your path is too far from the outside ("over the top"). If you hit the inner object, your path is too far from the inside. This drill forces you to shallow the club and deliver it straight to the ball, making it nearly impossible to hit the heel.

Drill 3: The Towel Drill for Connection

An awful lot of heel strikes happen when the arms get disconnected from the body's rotation. This drill helps sync them up.

1. Take a medium-sized towel and place it across your chest, tucking it into both of your armpits. It should feel secure, but not overly tight.
2. Take smooth, three-quarter practice swings.
3. Your objective is to keep the towel in place throughout the swing. To do this, your arms and chest must turn together. If your arms fly away from your body on the backswing or downswing, the towel will drop.
4. This promotes a swing where the power comes from the rotation of your torso - your body's engine - rather than an independent, uncontrolled arm movement that can easily be thrown off-plane.

Final Thoughts

Stopping a heel strike starts with understanding that the root problem is moving closer to the ball at impact than you were at address. By identifying whether early extension, poor balance, or your swing path is the culprit, you can stop blindly searching for answers and start using targeted drills to build a more reliable, centered strike.

Self-diagnosis is a powerful tool, but sometimes you just need an expert second opinion to break through a frustrating plateau. For an even deeper understanding of your Personal swing, our Caddie AI serves as your personal 24/7 golf coach right in your pocket. When you're stuck on the range wondering why that shank won't go away, you can get instant, tailored feedback to identify the cause and receive simple, effective advice to get your practice session back on track, helping you swap guesswork for confident improvement.