Why Do My Wedge Shots Keep Pulling Left?

The idea for this article came up because I’m known to pull my wedge shots left.

It’s not every shot and it’s not always a huge miss but it happens enough that I know the pattern well. I think some of it may be a fitting issue with my wedges but that’s a story for another day.

Some of it is just me.

It’s frustrating because these are the clubs I’m supposed to be attacking pins with. When I have a wedge in my hands, I’m trying to give myself a good look at birdie, not watch the ball start 15 feet left of where I was looking.

If the same thing happens to you, there are a few things worth checking before you start making major swing changes.

1. Make sure you aren’t aimed left

I know this seems obvious but it’s the only place to start. Wedge setups tend to be different from our full-swing setups. The stance gets narrower and plenty of golfers like to open their feet slightly.

You can open your stance and hit perfectly straight wedge shots. But if you already have a tendency to swing the club left, an open stance can make that tendency easier to exaggerate.

Put an alignment stick down and check where your feet are aimed. If you tend to pull wedges, try getting your stance closer to square and see what happens to your start line.

2. Check your ball position

I don’t like to push a ball too far back in my stance with a wedge but if the ball gets too far forward it could be the reason behind your pull. If your path is already moving left and the ball is too far forward, it can make the ball start even farther left. Try putting the ball in the middle and see if it fixes anything.

3. Look at your shoulders

Your feet can be square and your shoulders can still be aimed left.

If your right shoulder (right-handed golfer) gets pushed forward at address, your upper body can start pointing left. As you’re standing over the ball, you look at your feet and think everything is fine. Take a few down the line videos and see if you can get a good look at what your shoulders are doing when you set up. Sometimes dropping the right shoulder back a little helps you avoid the pull.

4. Then look at the club path

If your setup looks good and the ball is still starting left, the path is the next place to look.

A pull starts left because the clubface is pointed left of the target at impact. If the ball starts left and stays relatively straight, your club path is often traveling left as well.

One simple drill is to put an alignment stick on the ground pointing slightly right of your target and make a few shorter swings feeling like the club travels more in that direction.

It may feel like you’re swinging way too far right. If your normal pattern is left, that exaggeration may be exactly what you need.

The main thing is not to assume a pulled wedge means your entire swing needs fixing. Start with alignment, ball position and your shoulders. Then look at the path. For me, it’s almost always the shoulders that cause the issue. When I open my stance to a softer shot, my shoulder tends to get in the wrong spot.