The very first time that I dabbled with the different stances was as a competitive junior golfer, trying to eliminate the natural fade resulting in numerous lost golf balls. Needless to say, my father wasn’t thrilled.

But after some tinkering, I figured out the right stance to improve my game.

So if you’re looking to add another setup to your repertoire, I detail the must-know pros and cons of a closed stance in this post.

I always suggest operating with a neutral stance for optimal posture, balance, and swing mechanics. However, a closed or open stance has its merits, as you will learn in this guide. First, we will look at the advantages and disadvantages of the closed setup before comparing the results to an open or square golf stance.

What is a Closed Stance in Golf?

In simple terms, a closed stance refers to a right-handed golfer who aims to the right of their target line. Naturally, the opposite applies to lefties. You will notice that this is the same stance you employ when setting up for a draw.

Your golf stance is similar to the one you adopt in baseball. It is the foundation with which a player finds balance, comfort, and efficiency in their swing. I learned about golf stances the hard way as a competitive junior.

I used to operate with the grip of death and produced an outside-in swing path on most shots. Sometimes, I got away with it, but when my left foot, hips, and knees opened up more, it aggravated the result.

Since my swing mechanics were too complex to tinker with on the golf course, I would close my stance slightly to compensate for the shape. This was not a permanent fix, but it did mitigate the effects and help me straighten out my ball flight.

The bottom line is that you can benefit from a closed stance in certain scenarios. However, you should not adopt this as your permanent setup because of the risk of erratic shots.

Pros of a Closed Stance

Corrects Fades and Slices

An extreme fade or slice is generally caused by a golfer swinging over the top and cutting across the ball. Just like a tennis player who uses that drop shot with a cut so that the ball stops rapidly.

Operating with a closed stance can encourage maximum rotation, prompting you to clear your waist and shoulders through impact. You’ll notice that this boosts power and helps you square your clubface at impact for straighter results.

My one buddy leads a “tough” life coaching in Phuket, Thailand, where all his students are beginners. He teaches them to hold the golf club the other way around and induce a baseball swing. His students find this awakens the rotation motion and helps them understand its importance in the swing.

You grab the clubhead and channel your inner Ted Williams, and feel how your hips and shoulders rotate.

 Encourages a Draw

A closed stance is required when you set up for a draw. This aligns you to the right of your target, anticipating the curve to the left.

A draw is handy for right-to-left doglegs for right-handers and left-to-right holes for lefties. Following the lay of the land shortens the hole and helps you position yourself optimally for a hassle-free approach.

Lowers Ball Flight

Closing your stance sets you up to produce a draw and strike the ball with a delofted clubface. You will find that this approach lowers your trajectory to restrict the impact of the elements. The uninterrupted flight leads to consistent distance and accuracy.

Low flight is highly beneficial when playing into the wind or when you are stuck under a canopy of trees. You will find that reduced flight in these conditions allows you to deliver ample yardage, despite the struggle.

Escape Trouble

We have all been there. The middle of a bush, behind a tree, and my latest achievement, behind a lamp post.

Closing the stance and clubface generated an in-to-out swing for a low hook when I was right behind a tree stump. The results were not always perfect. However, when my handicap dropped to single figures, and I practiced frequently, I had a successful record of escaping trouble.

Cons of a Closed Stance

Snap Hook

Unless you’re stuck behind a tree or bush, you only have to open or close your stance slightly. When players start to hook their shots, they aim further right of the target for a closed setup.

Increased Roll

The downside of the increased roll is the inability to control your distance. The low trajectory causes your golf ball to hit the ground hot and run like Usain Bolt, making it difficult to hold the green. As a result, you consistently sweat to get up and down. Instead of reading the line of a birdie putt.

Excessive Side Spin

I used to play with an excellent player in high school with a gentle draw that made me jealous. The only problem was that the bad days were terrible.

One day, I watched him miss every fairway because of the intense sidespin that sent his ball careering into the left rough. Luckily, he could escape trouble. Nevertheless, he lost so much confidence, and this specific round of golf traumatized his next ten games.

Other Types of Stances

Open Stance

An open stance is the opposite setup of a closed golf stance. In other words, your toeline will aim to the left of the target while the clubface is still square to the target.

Advantages of an open stance

Prompts A Natural Fade

As a youngster, I watched my older brother on the range. He could work the ball almost any way he wanted, and I wanted to do that. I thought I needed to change my grip or swing path, among other things. How naive I was.

All I had to do was open my stance and make a normal swing without changing much, and I noticed a slight fade. When you can work the ball any way you want, you have more in your artillery to achieve the best possible outcome for each shot.

A higher ball flight 

Every golf hole poses different challenges. I experienced this first hand at my home course littered with tall trees, water, and perplexing undulation. A higher ball flight helped me hit the ball over the trees hundreds of times.

Furthermore, the higher ball flight allows us to land the ball much softer, which is necessary for long par 3 tee shots and par 4 approach shots.

Disadvantages of an open stance

Loss of distance

The open stance encourages a left-to-right ball shape with a higher ball flight. Unfortunately, this can lead to a loss of distance, something exceptional players like Rory Mcilroy may disagree with. But, we are not him and must play to our strengths and abilities.

The more you open the stance and the larger the fade becomes, the more distance we will lose. This sets you up for tricky approach shots requiring hybrids or long irons, which reduces your chances of attacking the flag.

Heavy wind conditions 

I spent most of the last decade living in Cape Town, where wind is a permanent feature, and I am well versed in its torturous tactics. When I first set up shop in the Mother City, I played with a natural fade and got smashed all over the place by the breeze.

In addition, my open stance and clubface increased my apex, and the wind took hold of my ball and killed my yardage. I corrected this by closing my stance slightly and operating with a forward press setup.

Square stance

The square stance is when the left front foot is parallel to the back right foot and aimed at the target line. Your feet need to be shoulder-width apart, and the clubface has to be square to pull off this most common stance.

For example, you can have a neutral stance, perfect back position, hips, and knees in line, but when you play your shot, you have the ball in the center of your stance. This will make you push the ball to the right, even with the perfect swing.

Advantages of a Square Stance

Promotes Straight Flight

The greatest advantage of a neutral stance is that it prompts straight ball flight to boost your accuracy around the golf course. You will find that this balanced position encourages a fluid swing line with minimal deviation for a square clubface leading into impact.

Disadvantages of a Square stance

No Shape

The downside of constantly operating with a square stance is that it prohibits your ability to shape golf shots. This is particularly annoying on dog leg holes, where a draw or fade can nip you around the curve and give a short, direct approach to the dancefloor.

Matt Stevens

Matt Callcott-Stevens started playing golf at the age of 4 when Rory Sabattini’s father put a 7-iron and putter in his hand. He has experienced all the highs and lows the game can throw at you and has now settled down as a professional golf writer. He holds a Postgraduate in Sports Marketing and has played golf for 28 years.

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As a golf fan, you no doubt watch the top players on the PGA Tour and admire their amazing swings. Let’s be honest, even fellow PGA Tour professionals admire players like Dustin Johnson and Rory Mcilroy’s ability to drive the golf ball. These guys are simply amazing!

Well I have some encouraging news for you!

While very few of us will ever hit towering drives as far as Dustin and Rory there is one element of your swing that can be exactly like theirs.

Yes, you read that correctly!

Every player regardless of skill level can learn to have a good setup, which is a vital step in learning to play better golf. If you setup to the golf ball with a flawed stance, you’ll have a flawed swing. It’s as simple as that!

You don’t need years of golf experience to set up to the golf ball properly, this skill can be learned in just a few minutes. This is one reason many golf coaches enjoy teaching it to people brand new to the game of golf. They don’t have any bad habits engrained with years of experience. They start from scratch and immediately learn a proper grip and stance. If you’ve ever gone through a grip change, you know how difficult it is to break bad habits. However, if you are struggling with your game, take a moment to examine your setup.

In this article we are going to give you 5 easy steps to find the best golf stance for you.

1. Always Think Athlete

When teaching my students a proper golf stance, I always start with a simple question:

“What other sports have you played before?”

This is important to me, because often times players can relate certain elements from other sports to help them better understand golf. Golf is an athletic sport and therefore we need to setup in an athletic position. By far the majority of amateur golfers setup in static positions that don’t allow their bodies to move athletically!

The player in this photo is a prime example of a non-athletic setup position. His knees are bent significantly, causing his body weight to shift to his heels. His spine is completely vertical and hands almost touching his body. From this position it will be impossible to make an athletic motion with the club.

Using the analogy of other sports. I want you to imagine a goalie in soccer. He stands very upright with a slight bend in his knees, and his weight towards the balls of the feet. Have you ever seen a goalie significantly bend his knees, hunch his back and have all his weight in his heels? Of course not, and the reason is simple.

The goalie needs to be in an athletic position to move either left or right in a fraction of a second. Sometimes we forget how athletic a golf swing is, but it’s not much different. We are moving both right (backswing) and left (downswing) in our golf swing and need to be in a powerful position to do so.

So what does an athletic stance look like? Let’s look at one of the PGA Tour’s star player, Australia’s Jason Day for more insight:

Jason Day is an athlete, and sets up to the golf ball like one. His knees are only slightly bent allowing his upper body to tilt forward from his hips. If we draw a straight line from the back of his right shoulder, we see that the line touches the front part of the knee and extends to the balls of the feet. Jason has put his body in a powerful position to swing the club with authority and power!

2. Use the Three-Step Posture Drill as a Guideline

I like to keep things simple and over the years I’ve found this 3-step posture drill the most effective way to teach an athletic setup. This is how it works:

Begin by standing with your feet as wide as your shoulders and stand perfectly straight while extending your arms and golf club out in front of you.

It’s important to note, in this first stage my knees are not bent, and my arms and club form a straight line that is parallel with the ground below.

Slightly bend your knees and allow your arms to drop down until both are resting on your chest.

In this position, the golf club is still parallel to the ground and my knees have only bent a couple inches. A good visual reference to feel this slight bend in the knees is to imagine you are sitting down on a high bar stool. Your knees just need to a bend a fraction before your backside makes contact with the chair.

The final and most important step, slowly bend forward from your waist, until your clubhead touches the ground. When it does you will be in a perfect setup position.

If you’ve done the drill correctly, you will feel your body weight in the balls of the feet and your hands located directly underneath your chin. Your spine will slightly tilted forward, but relaxed. You are now in a powerful setup position to make an athletic swing.

3. Practice the Extremes

You are starting to make great progress on your setup and now just need to fine tune your positions.

For this step, we are going to focus specifically on your spine angle and help you find the most neutral, or in other words “natural” position. Generally speaking, there are three types of posture at setup. C Posture, S Posture, and Neutral Posture.

Golfer’s with C Posture have a rounded back and level hips at address:

Golfers with S Posture arch their backs and have excessive tilt with their hips at address:

Golfers with neutral posture are in between C and S and have a straight back and their hips tilted the correct amount:

It’s hard for most players to initially find a neutral posture position. The most effective way to find what “neutral” feels like is to practice the extremes. Begin by taking your golf stance and hunch your back like a cat. This sounds a bit odd but I want you to focus on rounding your shoulders, bringing your chin closer to your chest, and feeling very “crunched up” and small. This is position is now one end of the spectrum.

To find the opposite end of the spectrum, stand tall and arch your back as much as possible. Your chin should be far away from your chest and you should feel a lot of tilting in the hips. This is now the other end of the spectrum.

It’s important to practice both ends of the spectrum because you can then go to the middle point and find a posture that is a perfect balance of the two. If you’re struggling with your posture use this exercise as an effective way to help you find exactly what the neutral position feels like.

4. Analyze What’s Comfortable

Earlier in this article I mentioned the fact that every golfer can setup to the golf ball like a PGA Tour player, however there is an important element to understand.

You also need to find the position that is most comfortable for your body and if you suffer from any physical ailments there is nothing wrong with adjusting your setup to reflect what makes your body feel comfortable.

Many times, I work with players who suffer from a lack of hip mobility. This lack of mobility could be from a previous injury, general loss of flexibility, or just a general aging of the body. Sometimes I purposely put players in a position where their shoulders are more rounded and chin tucked closer to their sternum (the C Posture). The best example of how effective this method can be for some players is to look at current European Tour golfer Tommy Fleetwood:

Tommy’s shoulders are much more rounded than most other professionals. However, this setup position allows him to keep his spine angle stable throughout his swing.

Generally speaking I would always prefer a student to have more of a C Posture (rounded in the back and shoulders) than the S Posture. Students with a C Posture will find their hips to be slightly more level allowing them to rotate their hips better. Just like every golf swing is unique, every posture is unique to how your body feels and can move.

5. Wash, Rinse, and Repeat!  

As you progress in the game of golf you will realize that the more advanced you become, the more important the basic fundamentals are.

When I was the Head Golf Professional at Sheshan International Golf Club in Shanghai, China, I was fortunate enough to spend a lot of time with many PGA Tour players on the range during the WGC-HSBC Champions event every year.

I’ve watched all the top pros hit balls and one of the best lessons I learned from many of the game’s top players is how much focus and dedicated practice they put on the basic fundamentals of the game.

Things like posture and alignment, concepts so basic you would think that a tour pro wouldn’t need to worry about, were the exact things most of the guys were constantly practicing.

Learning the correct golf stance is something you never actually “learn” and then forget. It’s something that needs to be practiced, monitored, adjusted, and like every other aspect of your game given focused practice.

As a general rule of thumb, I don’t like to go more than 1 month without seeing my swing on film. Errors in posture in stance don’t happen overnight, they gradually happen as we travel, practice, and play. But if your posture adjusts every day by even just a millimeter, it will be way off in a month’s time.

Having a routinely monthly checkup (or weekly if you are playing often) will help you stay fresh and monitor your progress.

After teaching golf to students around the world for over a decade, I would say that 2 out of every 3 swing problems can be traced back to an initial problem in the setup. When PGA Tour professionals start hitting the ball poorly, every single one of them will immediately go back to the basics and examine the basic fundamentals beginning with the golf stance, it’s that important.

As you examine your own golf game, do you setup to the golf ball in an athletic position? Do you know what neutral posture actually feels like? When was the last time you saw your setup on video?

Use these 5 methods to improve and monitor your golf stance and you’ll be on your way to more consistent swing soon.

August Noble

August Noble was first introduced to golf at 7 years old. In 2013 he started seriously working on his game and was able to reduce his handicap from 19 to 3.4 in less than two years. He’s been helping other golfers do the same ever since.

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Have you ever heard of the immensely popular golf phrase, “You drive for show, but you putt for dough”? That’s because over 40% of your strokes during a round are with the putter! Sadly, lots of golfers never seem to get around to practicing their putting and this costs them dearly on their scorecards.

When I first started playing golf, my PGA teaching professional told me that phrase quite often. He did this to remind me to spend just as much time on the putting practice green as I did on the driving range, if not more. Once I started heeding his advice, my overall golf game improved rapidly.

Is your putting stance keeping you from shooting your lowest score ever? Here are some quick tips to help you improve your putting stance. These are some simple things to remember when you are practicing at the putting green.

1. Find the Proper Stance Width

Two keys to hitting great putts are having balance and stability. In order to maximize balance and stability, spread your feet out slightly wider than your shoulders during your set-up. The best way to do this is to stand with your feet at shoulder-width apart, then move each foot one to two inches away from each other.

Why do we want a wide stance when putting? Not only will you stay more balanced throughout your putt, but a wide stance will help limit your head movement. Any type of head movement before or during your putt will decrease your accuracy.

How wide of a stance is too wide? Well, you never want to feel uncomfortable while putting. If your stance is putting unnecessary stress on your back, hips, or knees, consider standing a little bit more narrow. The ideal putting stance is wide enough to maintain balance but narrow enough to keep you comfortable.

2. Practice the Perfect Ball Position

To sink more birdie putts, you have to make sure you position the ball properly in your stance. The perfect position for the golf ball is right in the center of your stance. This will put you in the ideal position for sinking more birdies and eagles.

It may help to picture an imaginary line right in the middle of your stance. That’s exactly where you want the ball. Keeping the ball right in the middle of your stance will ensure that the golf ball is aligned right between your eyes. The most talented putters in the game keep their eyes directly over the ball.

When you line up with the ball in the center, you ensure that you’ll make contact with the ball at the bottom of your swing arc. This will get the ball started with the necessary amount of speed. Speed is the most important factor to having more success on the putting green. 

If you play the ball too far towards your back foot, you’ll often hit the ball with too much force and it’ll run by the hole. If you play the ball too much toward your front foot, you’ll catch the ball at the end of your putting stroke and it likely won’t have enough speed to get to the hole. Obviously, neither one of these results are what we’re looking for on the putting green.

3. Aim for a 50/50 Weight Distribution

When working on your putting posture, aim to keep your weight equally distributed. This means you want the same amount of weight on each leg. This will lead to better balance, increased stability, and less head movement. 

If you put too much weight on either leg, it will change your swing path and decrease your consistency. If you have too much weight on your right foot, the bottom of your swing arc moves too far back. If too much weight is on the left foot, the opposite is true.

Remember, we never want the swing arc to change. Try your best to maintain that perfect 50/50 balance throughout your entire stroke. Your scorecard will thank you for doing so! 

4. Don’t Forget to Practice Your Putting Grip

We’ve discussed in great detail how important your grip is when making normal golf swings. Having the proper grip is also crucial to reaching your full potential with the flat stick! Here’s a quick drill you can perform to make sure your grip is correct.

• Let your arms hang naturally out in front of your body
• Hold the putter shaft with both of your palms facing each other
• Practice hitting a few putts while making sure that the back of both your right hand and left hand are following through with a straight line toward your target 

Also, make sure your grip pressure is correct. Just as with your normal golf swing, you never want to grip the shaft too tight. If you can see white on either of your thumbnails, your grip is too tight. Loosen up and don’t choke your putter.

5. Check Your Alignment

Having the proper alignment is critical to putting success. If your alignment is off by the slightest of margins, you’ll find yourself pulling or pushing putts just outside the hole. Work on keeping the shoulders square towards your intended line.

The best way to make sure your shoulders stay square at impact is to putt cross-handed. Lots of players on the PGA Tour employ this method when they’re in the midst of a putting slump. If you’re right-handed, simply practice some putts with your left hand lower than your right hand on the shaft. (If you’re a leftie, it’s obviously the other way around)

It may feel a bit weird at first so it’ll take some time to get used to the feel of it. Once you feel more confident in your alignment, you can always go back to your normal putting stroke with your left hand on top. 

Mike Noblin

Mike has been involved with sports for over 30 years. He’s been an avid golfer for more than 10 years and is obsessed with watching the Golf Channel and taking notes on a daily basis. He also holds a degree in Sports Psychology.

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Remember when you were new to the game of golf, and it was nearly impossible to get your feet, and clubface squared and have all parts of the body working together?

Who would have thought that after just a bit of experience in the game, you would go back to these alternative stances with your feet open or closed?

The open stance golf swing can be a tremendous tool for players when it’s done right. The key here is making sure you understand what an open stance is, how to get into an open stance position, and the impact it has on ball flight.

Keep reading – we have the answers you need to give this a try on the range today.

What is an Open Stance Golf Swing

An open stance golf swing is one where your toes are going to be aimed left of your target while your clubface stays square down the target line. With an open stance golf swing, your toes and heels are still on the same parallel line, but they are no longer parallel to your clubface. What this looks like is a golfer with their hips and toe line aimed to the left of the target.

The key to making a proper open stance golf swing is the swing plane. Once your feet are on this path being aimed left of the target, the swing plane is still the same as if the feet were in the center of your stance.

Therefore the swing plane and path will match what the clubface is doing, not what the feet are doing. As you can imagine, this will have an impact on the ball flight, spin, and overall distance of the shot.

The open stance swing has both positives and negatives. One of the reasons I like players to learn the open stance swing is that it can be helpful in fixing issues that you may have on the golf course or getting you out of trouble.

Pros of Having an Open Stance in Your Golf Swing

The main positive to hitting a golf shot with an open stance swing and swing path is a higher ball flight. However, in addition to this higher ball flight there are benefits to being able to work the ball and to help players that struggle with rotation in their swing.

Higher Ball Flight

When your left foot and right foot are aimed to the left of the target line, the result to the clubface is that it will be slightly open in relation to your stance. The open clubface results in a higher ball flight.

Some golfers that struggle with getting the golf ball up in the air can greatly benefit from this higher ball flight as it can help with getting the ball to stop on the green. I also know that a higher ball flight (within reason) typically leads to a better distance than a low and penetrating ball flight.

Softer Landing On Approach Shots

Approach shots to the green are all about hitting it close. At some point in your golf career, you likely realized that getting the ball on the green is not enough. You need to be close enough to make a putt. One way to ensure you can attack pins is to have a higher overall flight with a bit more spin on the ball.

Think about the angle that many of your approach shots land on the green. Are they coming in high, dropping down, and stopping? Or are they scooting across the green like a line drive to center field? The ability to change ball flight and prepare for this softer landing is essential.

Easy Way To Hit A Fade

The draw and fade equation tends to get over complicated. Players worry about changing their grip, adjusting their swing path, and all sorts of other mental tricks to try and get the ball to turn just a few yards. Many great players will open their stance a bit and watch the ball fade.

The open stance promotes a more outside swing path, and with the feet aimed to the left of the target, the result will be a high fade. Don’t feel the need to make this game any more complicated than it is!

Can Help Senior Golfers With Rotational Issues

If you are starting to feel hip pain or pressure when you swing through the golf ball, chances are the left foot is making things difficult for you. As we age, our flexibility decreases, and so does our power. The result is a move that tries to create power with a less flexible body, and the many golfers end up in pain.

Sometimes by opening the stance just a bit, we make it much easier to swing through the ball, transfer weight and look straight down the fairway at our target. For players that struggle to get to the left side or don’t feel comfortable turning with speed, the open stance is a game changer.

Cons of Having an Open Stance in Your Golf Swing

Like all things in golf, if you make a slight change, there are possibilities for negatives as well. The square stance is where most players like to play, and that is because the golf ball tends to perform best from this position. Here are a few downsides to the open stance, all of which can be controlled by the degree to which you open your stance.

Can Promote a Slice or Fade Spin

The outside-in swing path created by a player who sets up with an open stance has also been known to promote a slice or a fade. For many golfers, this is a great thing, but if you exaggerate this move in any way, expect that your face angle could be a bit too extreme, and the slices and fades can get out of control.

Loss In Distance

Another one of the disadvantages to the open stance golf swing is a slight loss in the distance. Sometimes with the open face angle and the setup to the left of the target, the shots can be a few yards shorter. With a closed stance and clubface that is slightly shut down, there is more topspin on the ball, increasing the amount of roll and distance.

Ball Will Be Subject To Wind

High ball flight is great until you are into the wind. If you are playing golf on a windy day, opening the stance and increasing the ball flight is likely not your best decision. Instead, learn how to play a closed stance as well as an open, and then you are prepared for any situation.

Can Cause Swing Plane Issues

Golfers with an open stance tend to struggle with where the golf club should come around in the backswing. Sometimes the club gets a bit too far outside the target line, which is difficult to recover from. I’ve said it before, but it’s worth mentioning again that adjustments to the golf swing, like an open stance, should be subtle. Don’t go crazy with this; it’s not going to help you.

Other Types of Stances

In addition to the open stance, there are two other types of stances in golf. We wish we could tell you that learning one will be enough. If you want your game to stall at a certain point and not progress to lower handicap, then you may stick with just a square stance.

However, great players will work hard to add tools to their golf bags. These tools are not necessarily golf clubs; instead, they are shots that can be hit using the equipment you already have.

Square

A square stance is a standard golf stance where your feet, hips, shoulders, and clubface are all square to the target line. With a square stance, you set yourself up for a perfect swing plane and for a high ball flight, and a straight golf shot.

Of course, the square stance will not guarantee that you hit a golf ball straight, but it certainly gives you the best chance. However, each golfer has some unique features to their game, and sometimes even with a square stance, the ball will go left or right.

Closed

The closed stance is essentially the opposite of an open stance. With the closed stance, your golf club still stays square to the target, but your feet are going to be aimed right of the target. The closed stance can result in shots that go left of the target as the swing plane is typically a little more inside out.

One of the best fixes for a golfer that is struggling with a slice is to close down their stance and see if it helps straighten the ball flight out. The clubface closes slightly, and the path encourages you to release the golf club.

Which Type of Golf Stance Is Best?

Wouldn’t it be great if there was one type of golf stance that you could learn as a beginner and have that take you throughout your entire golf career? Unfortunately, golf is never that simple.

The square stance is the one you will use the most often. However, once you have the square stance down, it’s time to start looking at the open stance and closed stance as additions to your game. The learning curve on these stance options is short, and you can pick up this skill in one afternoon on the range.

My best tip is to start very subtly. Do not overdo the motion in any way, as it will likely cause a shot that you are not going to favor. Simply start with a slight turn of the toes towards the left and see how this impacts your flight. Chances are you will hit some shots that you have not been able to hit in the past.

Brittany Olizarowicz

Britt O has been playing golf since the age of 7. Almost 30 years later, she still loves the game, has played competitively on every level, and spent a good portion of her life as a Class A PGA Professional. Britt currently resides in Savannah, GA, with her husband and two young children.

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Open stance putting is a unique way to play the game that will impact your ability to make putts and score.

Golfers that use open stance putting are going against what is conventional, but sometimes, an open putting stance feels more natural to players.

Let’s take a more detailed look at what an open putting stance is, how it can help you lower your scores and whether or not it would be a good fit for your game.

What is an Open Putting Stance?

An open stance in putting is when your body is turned more towards the target. Most of the stances we take in golf have us set up square to the target with our shoulders, hips, knees, and feet all on a parallel line.

However, with an open stance, your front foot will be set up a bit more turned towards the target. When this happens, your entire body will be turned a bit more this way, allowing for a more straightforward look down the target line.

Golfers with an open stance tend to have much more ability to swing through toward the target as they are not restricted by a closed stance. However, as with any change in your golf game, there are always both positives and negatives to consider.

How to Put with an Open Stance

The best way to putt with an open stance is to set up your feet square. When I do this, I then like to get my feet a little more narrow and turn them towards the left of the target. The turning of the feet towards the left of the target (for a right-handed player) should, in turn, open the hips and the shoulders.

Once you have this in place, you can ensure your weight distribution is even between both of your feet; it’s also then essential to get the ball in the middle of your feet or slightly towards the front.

Once you have this setup and your alignment is correct, you can take your typical swing path and continue your stroke towards the target. For the best consistency, it is a good idea to work on the type of stroke you will take; many golfers with an open stance like the straight back and straight through style putting stroke.

Pros of an Open Putting Stance

The positives of a putting stroke tend to outweigh the negatives. However, you will have to test the effectiveness of this open putting stance to first ensure it is the right fit for you.

• Golfers feel more comfortable
• Can see the line better
• More natural distance control
• Consistent and repeatable swing path
• More involvement of the arms and less with the hands
• Feels less rigid than a closed or square stance

Cons of an Open Putting Stance

The biggest con of an open putting stance is that it can open you up to some unwanted movement in your golf putting stroke. Some players notice that their legs and hips start to sway, and that can be a problem. My solution here is to take a slightly narrower stance, and it usually does the trick.

• It can allow hips and lower body to sway
• If very open, it can be hard to get the club far enough back on a backswing
• Ball position may be off when first learning how to putt with an open stance

Pros Who Putt With an Open Stance

The open putting stance is a perfectly legal and acceptable way to put, and therefore it has been used on tour by many players. The most notable of these players is Jack Nicklaus. Jack Nicklaus certainly knew how to putt under pressure, and he ensured that his stance was always comfortable and stable before he took his stroke.

Jack Nicklaus is considered by many to be the greatest golfer of all time, and the fact that he putted in this way indeed tells us a lot about how this putter can perform. Golfers with an open stance while putting often feel that the ball can travel down the line with very little motion in the hands and wrists.

More and more golfers today are getting square and rigid with their strokes, and we will see this change through the years. Currently, it’s more common to be square than open, but that doesn’t mean we will see it stay this way forever.

How to Decide if an Open Putting Stance is Right for You

An open putting stance could be an excellent choice for your golf game, but there are a few things that you should consider before making this decision.

Also, remember that when making a significant change like this to your putting stroke, you will want to give yourself some time to practice it on the putting green before heading to the golf course.

Type of Putting Stroke

There are two basic ways to swing the putter. You can have a straight back/straight through putting stroke, or you can have more of an arc style. We have always found the straight back straight through to be better for the open stance putter.

When you have an arc style, the way the putter moves around the body can be a bit more difficult to manage with an open stance. This can come down to player preference, but it is something to consider when deciding if this is right for you.

Alignment Issues

One of the things that I always found to be beneficial with an open putting stance is alignment. Allowing yourself to line up with an open stance makes it incredibly easy to see the line in front of you.

With this line to the target being more visible, it makes a golfer feel as though they can start the ball on the line considerably easier. If you feel like you are making good putting strokes, but the ball doesn’t start down the line the way you want it to, the open putting stance could be the right fit for your game.

Trial and Error

Of course, the most important way to decide if an open putting stance is right for you is to try it on the green. You should know that you may not like the feel of this adjustment right away, and it does make sense to try it for a little while before deciding if it is good or bad.

I highly recommend putting from 5, 10, and 20 feet when trying out the open stance putting stroke. I always felt that it was an effortless adjustment in the short putts, but it took some time to get used to the longer putts.

In addition, if you are finding that you pull your putts to the left when switching to the open stance, it may make sense to close the stance just a little. Some golfers will overexaggerate this open feeling, and it doesn’t always work out.

Putter Type

The open putting stance can work for any type of putter you own. However, some large mallet putters can sometimes make it difficult on longer putts.

If you have a blade style or traditional mallet, the open putting stance is a bit easier. Keep this in mind as you make the switch and decide which type of putting stance will bring you the most consistency.

Brittany Olizarowicz

Britt O has been playing golf since the age of 7. Almost 30 years later, she still loves the game, has played competitively on every level, and spent a good portion of her life as a Class A PGA Professional. Britt currently resides in Savannah, GA, with her husband and two young children.

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