What Is a Closed Stance in Golf?

A closed stance in golf is one of the most effective adjustments you can make to your setup to fundamentally change your swing path and shot shape. If you've been battling a slice or struggling to generate power, learning how to correctly use a closed stance can feel like discovering a hidden cheat code. This guide will walk you through exactly what a closed stance is, why you would use it, how to set one up, and when you should avoid it.

What Exactly Is a Closed Stance?

In the simplest terms, a closed stance is a setup where your body (specifically your feet, hips, and shoulders) is aligned to the right of your final target, assuming you’re a right-handed golfer. For left-handed players, everything is simply reversed, and your body would be aligned to the left of the target.

Imagine your target line is a straight railway track heading directly to the hole. A "square" stance, which is considered the neutral standard, would have the toes of both your feet positioned right on the near rail, parallel to the target line.

To create a closed stance from this square position, you would simply pull your lead foot (your left foot for righties) back from the target line, so it's a bit closer to the golf ball. Simultaneously, your rear foot (your right foot) moves slightly further away from the target line. The result is that a new line drawn across the tips of your toes now points to the right of your ultimate target.

Critically, it isn't just your feet that move. To be effective, your hips and shoulders must follow suit, also aligning to the right of the target. You are essentially turning your entire body apparatus away from the target before you even begin the swing. This pre-set alignment has a powerful influence on the direction your club will travel during the swing.

Closed vs. Open: What’s the Difference?

Understanding the opposite setup - an open stance - can make the closed stance concept even clearer. In an open stance, your body is aligned to the left of the target. You achieve this by pulling your lead foot *away* from the ball and your rear foot *closer* to it. Golfers use an open stance primarily to promote a left-to-right ball flight (a fade) or for feel shots around the green, like delicate chips and bunker shots.

• Closed Stance: Body aims right of the target. Encourages an in-to-out swing path.
• Open Stance: Body aims left of the target. Encourages an out-to-in swing path.

Why Would You Use a Closed Stance? The Benefits

So, why would you intentionally aim your body away from where you want the ball to go? A closed stance offers two significant primary benefits: fighting a slice and generating more power.

1. Promoting a Draw and Fighting the Slice

This is the number one reason most golfers experiment with a closed stance. The dreaded slice - that weak, curving shot that veers dramatically to the right - is almost always caused by an "out-to-in" swing path. This means your clubhead is approaching the ball from outside the target line and cutting across it at impact.

A closed stance is a powerful corrective measure because it physically restricts an out-to-in motion and naturally encourages an "in-to-out" swing path. By aiming your body to the right, you give your arms and club more space to drop to the inside on the downswing. As you swing, your club travels from "in" (behind you), "to" the ball, and then continues "out" (to the right of the target).

When you combine this in-to-out path with a clubface that is aimed square to the target at impact, you produce a draw - a beautiful, right-to-left moving shot that is the envy of most amateur golfers. The ball starts out to the right (following the swing path) and then gently curves back toward the target (influenced by the square clubface).

2. Generating More Power

The secondary benefit of a closed stance is an increased potential for power. How? By allowing for a fuller body turn during the backswing.

When you close your stance, you are pre-setting your hips for a bigger rotation away from the ball. For golfers who struggle with flexibility, this small adjustment can make it significantly easier to get their shoulders turned further back, a full 90 degrees or even more. Think of your torso like a spring. The more you can coil that spring on the backswing, the more stored energy you have to release on the downswing. A bigger turn means a longer swing arc and more time to build up clubhead speed, which translates directly to more distance.

3. Hitting Specific Trouble Shots

Beyond being a general swing aid, a closed stance is a fantastic tool for getting out of certain on-course situations. If you find your ball behind a tree and you need to hit a low_hooking shot to get it back into play, a closed stance is your best friend. Closing your stance and de-lofting the club will help you keep the ball down while ensuring it has enough right-to-left movement to curve around the obstacle.

A Step-by-Step Guide: How to Set Up With a Closed Stance

Applying the closed stance correctly is essential. Just moving your feet isn't enough, you must get all the pieces in alignment. Here’s a simple, step-by-step process to follow on the range:

1. Step 1: Start Square. Always begin by setting up in your normal, square stance. Place an alignment stick on the ground pointing directly at your target, and another parallel to it, indicating your foot line. This gives you a clear baseline before you make any changes.
2. Step 2: Close Your Feet. Keeping your club behind the ball, pull your lead foot (left foot for a righty) back about two to four inches away from the target line. Then, pull your rear foot (right foot) an equal distance back from where it was. Your new foot line should now be pointing noticeably to the right of your target.
3. Step 3: Let Your Body Follow. This is the step most people miss. Allow your knees, hips, and shoulders to naturally realign themselves parallel to your new foot line. Your entire upper and lower body should now feel like it's aimed where your feet are pointing - to the right of the target. Resisting this and keeping your shoulders square to the target will negate the whole point.
4. Step 4: Align the Clubface to Your Target. Here’s the magic ingredient. While your body is aimed to the right, your clubface must be aimed at your intended final target. This creates the separation between your body line and clubface line that is necessary to produce a draw. If you aim your clubface right along with your body, you’ll just hit a straight push shot to the right.
5. Step 5: Trust the Path. Now for the swing. Your only thought should be to swing the club along your body line. Don't try to re-route the club toward the target on the downswing - that will just cause the slice you're trying to fix. Swing freely along the path your hips and shoulders are set on. Feel the club approach from the inside, make contact, and exit out to the right. The clubface will do the work of bringing the ball back to the target.

When to Avoid a Closed Stance: The Potential Pitfalls

A closed stance is a powerful tool, but it's not a cure-all and can cause problems if used incorrectly or at the wrong time.

If You're Already Hitting Hooks or Pushes

If your predominant miss is a hook (a shot that curves too much from a closed stance can makematters worse. A closed stance will further exaggerate your in-to-out path, leading to push-hooks (the ball starts right and hooks even further left_or big blocks (the ball starts right and just keeps going right).

When Fading the Ball is the Goal

If a hole calls for a fade (a left-to-right shot) to get around a dogleg left or to hold a firm green, a closed stance is completely counterproductive. For these shots, you want to use its opposite, the open stance, to promote the out-to-in path needed for a fade.

Using It as a Permanent Crutch

While fantastic for learning the feeling of an in-to-out draw path, a closed stance shouldn't necessarily become your permanent, one-shot setup. The ultimate goal for most golfers is to achieve a versatile, neutral setup that allows them to hit the ball straight, draw it, or fade it on command. A closed stance is an incredible drill and a great situational tool, but think of it as training wheels. Use it to learn the proper feeling, and then slowly work your way back to performing that same motion from a more square stance.

Final Thoughts

A closed stance is much more than just a minor tweak, it's a strategic adjustment that influences your entire swing. By re-aligning your body to the right of the target, you can effectively promote a powerful, draw-inducing in-to-out swing path that can straighten out a slice and add some welcome yards to your shots.

Understanding concepts like the closed stance is the first step, but applying them on the course brings up new questions during real-world situations. Sometimes you need a second opinion on whether a specific lie calls for a closed, open, or square setup. That's exactly where technology can provide helpful support. For instance, our tool, Caddie AI, can act as your personal golf coach, ready to help. You can even snap a photo of a tricky lie in the rough, and it can analyze the situation and suggest the best way to play the shot, removing guesswork and helping you commit to every swing with confidence.