How to Use Golf Alignment Sticks

When beginning any new discipline, it can be frustrating to learn the ropes from the ground up. However, without taking the time to perfect the little things, you may create bad habits that come back to bite you later.

One of those bad habits is alignment. Your arms and back posture are critical for your stance, but if your hips are too far out or your feet are angled incorrectly, your alignment will be off. That’s where golf alignment sticks can be crucial. 

Alignment sticks can resolve many of your golfing problems. These golfing aids are long slender sticks that you can use to measure your stroke and improve accuracy. 

Read on for everything you need to know about alignment sticks and how to improve your game.

The Basics

Alignment is tricky to learn and might feel unnecessary, but it is tough to correct poor alignment once bad habits sink in and become how you play. From the very start of your golfing career, trying to improve your accuracy will do wonders for you in the future. However, it's not always easy to know whether you are learning the right way or not—unless you have alignment sticks to help.

Alignment sticks are primarily for helping shape the alignment of your hips and your feet before taking your shot. 

Do you need alignment sticks? Yes! Whether you know it or not, every good golfer starts with a set of alignment sticks. If you are interested in improving, you should consider implementing them. These aids are easy to use, full of possibilities, and affordable. You don’t need to hire a costly trainer to develop good habits and get a good handle on the basics of alignment. 

Using Alignment Sticks

You have your alignment sticks ready to go, but how do you use them? There are endless techniques and strategies that you can use to improve different elements of your game using alignment sticks. Here are just a few that you should keep in mind!

Alignment

Your alignment sets you up to take a shot. A right-handed player should face their body parallel right to their clubface. This positioning will help your aim when you take your shot.

Using alignment sticks to improve your positioning can take place in several ways. A common method involves laying one stick in front of where your feet will go, and the other alignment stick one inch from your ball on the side that is closest to you. The sticks allow you to gauge how your feet and body line up in relation to the ball and clubface. 

Ensure your sticks are straight. You may even want to place another alignment stick between your first two to be sure!

Ball Position 

Choosing the correct and consistent position for your ball is essential for improving your game. A slight difference in the position of your ball can significantly affect the direction your ball travels. Creating good habits for your placement might seem confusing at first, and until your muscle memory kicks in, your alignment stick will make all the difference.

Create a cross with your two sticks, your feet behind the perpendicular stick, and your ball on the tip. The cross gives you a perfect middle point where your ball should sit relative to your feet.

It might seem like you already know where the direct center between your feet is, but you'll be surprised what a difference it makes when you see your placement with total certainty.

Chipping Technique

Chipping is a commonly misunderstood element of most beginner's golfing abilities. It might seem like a simple sharp flick of the wrist is all it takes, but this is a common mistake. Like everything in this game, a good chipping technique takes patience, and indeed, implementing an alignment stick can help guide you to success.

When you practice your chipping technique, grip your stick in your hand so that it runs up further toward your hip. The basic rule of this technique is that if the stick touches your body, you are out! 

Doing this during regular chipping practice will help develop good habits that might save your game.

Shot Shaping

Every golfer knows there's nothing more impressive than a perfectly shaped shot. Golfers try for years to improve their natural shot shape as a matter of personal pride, while others know it’s the missing element that can elevate their game to a professional level. Using your alignment sticks can be a great help when trying to work on your shaped shots.

Place your stick directly in the ground so that it stands straight. The stick will become your perfect reference for watching the shape of your shots. 

Experiment with different distances and different kinds of trajectories. In no time at all, you will have the perfect practice to shape your next shot out on the course.

Swing Path

Your swing path is vitally important to ensure that your stroke is confident and well-balanced. However, nothing is more frustrating than taking one lousy shot after another and not understanding where you are misjudging your swing path. 

A stick provides a helpful visual reference. It can help you to understand where you are veering and how to aim accurately when taking your swing.

Start with one alignment stick set in front of your toes. Remember to aim slightly to the left of your target! Then, lay out your second stick along the angle of your path, and use it to pass your swing over. 

Even if you don't swing exactly along the plane of your stick, with much practice, you will help to stay in line and, more importantly, know when you aren't.  

Putting

When you are finally on the green, precision becomes more important than ever, so it makes sense that you want to improve the accuracy of your game. Using your alignment sticks to help guide you to the perfect stroke could make the difference between success and disaster.

One common technique to perfect your putting stroke can be easily implemented by laying two sticks down, creating an alley toward the cup. Practice your putting technique with this drill to gain a visual reference. It can make a big difference in memorizing the right stroke and not forming bad habits.

Frequently Asked Questions

So now you have your techniques memorized, you may still be wondering just what difference golfing aids make to your game. Well, you are not alone! Read on to find the answers to your most asked questions related to this essential golfing aid.

Do Golf Alignment Sticks Work?

We all love picking up as many gold goodies as we can, so when push comes to shove, many people wonder whether alignment sticks actually make a difference in a way that counts.

Fortunately, studies prove that alignment tactics can help improve your golfing technique, especially on the green. Using your alignment sticks often and correctly will help you develop muscle memory and experiment with new ways to practice your strokes that free play may not. 

Muscle memory might seem like just one of those things trainers insist on to fill the silence. Still, scientific analysis backs up physical conditioning as a solid strategy for improving how you measure your distance and accuracy when it comes to your shot. Practicing shots measured correctly will help enhance muscles that cement your stroke.

When it comes to spacial awareness, we aren't always as accurate as we might think. Visual cues are vital for staying on track and knowing when your shot is out of line. With just a bit of work and practice, the results will become apparent in no time!

Conclusion

When trying to improve your game, you should try to draw from every piece of advice, resource, and tool you can. Alignment sticks are a cheap and effective solution to help you, and the uses are endless. Try adding to your techniques by getting creative and finding some new ones all on your own.

Now that you have your new set of alignment sticks to go with your clubs, you might be after a tailored stick cover to carry them in! Here at STITCH, we love all things golf, and our precision to detail means you are always in safe hands when it comes to golfing gear.

Our high-quality products help house your clubs in style so that you can take your attention off your gear and back into your game.