The Rory McIlroy Push Draw…
If you’ve ever wondered how Rory McIlroy can be one the longest hitters on tour – despite only being 5’10” 165lbs – then today’s video is for you!
This video is an older one – I recorded it a few years back – but it’s as relevant as ever. 🙂
The Rory McIlroy Push Draw
Rory is one of the top players in the world, and obviously there are many reasons he is able to generate so much power.
But what I’d like to talk about today is his use of what I’m calling the “Rory McIlroy Push Draw.”
Many amateurs think the goal is to produce a dead-straight ball flight. And while there’s nothing wrong with hitting it straight, it’s worth noting that many of the world’s top players prefer to play a fade or draw.
The high push draw is a great shot to have in your bag. It’s one of the longest ball flights you can hit, and learning to play it will help your game – particularly with the longer clubs.
The diagram below shows the proper impact conditions to hit the push draw, and there are a couple of common misconceptions I want to point out.
- To hit a push draw, you actually want your club face to be slightly open at impact. Many golfers are surprised by this, as they’ve been taught that an open club face produces a fade. But the truth is your club face angle is the #1 factor in determining the starting direction of your ball… and if you want to hit a right-to-left draw, you need your ball to start out to the right so it can finish up at your target!
- An open club face alone will not produce a push draw… the key is having your club path (the direction your club head is moving) even more to the right. The winning combination is: club face slightly to the right, club path even more to the right. This will produce a ball flight that starts slightly to the right and draws back in towards your target.
One last thing I want to point out… if you watch the down-the-line angle around the 5:00 minute mark of the video you can really see how Rory flattens the club in transition. As you know, that is the magic move I talk about in the Ballstriking Blueprint. 🙂