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Draw it like G-Mac

The Ryder Cup star on three keys to produce a great flight

By 2010 US Open champion Graeme McDowell
on 05 February 2012

The background

Graeme McDowell is known for hitting a powerful draw off the tee, a shot which helped him win the US Open at Pebble Beach in 2010 and then play a leading role in reclaiming the Ryder Cup. Such a shot might seem a pipe dream for you but, with the help of the Celtic Manor hero, that can be a reality. 

“The draw has been an ongoing work for me, trying to get that clubhead squarer and squarer,” explains McDowell. 

“At impact it is very important not to get underneath the shot and I work hard on not dropping the club too far on the inside as I then start overdrawing the ball. Basically I think of it as a topspin shot in tennis or table tennis where the racket works from the inside.”

At the top

I have a naturally bowed left wrist which has the clubface slightly closed so I am always going to be a naturally right-to-left ball shaper because of my clubhead position at the top. I then re-route the club slightly to the inside.

At impact

I try to attack the ball from the inside to the outside and then hit the draw with the big muscles. I feel it with the chest and body rotation and not with a flip of the hands.

The finish

For a draw my left shoulder works a little bit higher and my hands work more down the line to a slightly higher finish. With a fade they would be disappearing low and left.
Graeme McDowell won the 2010 US Open and has played on two Ryder Cup teams 


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