While high-handicappers usually fight an over-the-top slice, accomplished players and chronic drawers often battle the opposite nightmare: getting the club trapped too far inside-out, where the hands either block the ball dead right or flip it into a violent snap hook.
New England PGA Teacher of the Year and Multi-Time Golf Digest Best Young Teacher Rico Riciputi places the pathpal outside the target line in the forward exit zone to train a 'low and left' hand and clubhead exit that neutralizes a stuck swing.
See the full step-by-step station on the The Low and Left Path Neutralizer page, or watch Rico demonstrate the setup below.
The drill
Rico Riciputi (Owner at Coach Club; 2021-2026: Golf Digest Best Young Teachers, 2022: New England PGA Teacher of the Year, 2021-2027: Golf Digest Best Teachers in State) uses the pathpal training system to give golfers immediate physical and visual feedback on every repetition.
If you struggle with a heavy inside-out swing path that causes nasty blocks or uncontrollable hooks, this drill is your fix. PGA Teacher of the Year Rico Riciputi uses a pathpal ground setup to provide a visual and physical boundary that trains your hands and club head to exit low and to the left through impact, neutralizing a stuck path and introducing a controllable, tighter ball flight.
Setup
- Position a pathpal unit on the ground just outside your target line and slightly forward of the golf ball (in the exit zone of your impact area).
- Insert an alignment stick into the pathpal, angling it so that it mirrors a correct, neutral exit plane.
- Adjust the setup so that if your swing path pushes too far to the right (into-out), the club head or hands would notice the barrier, forcing your swing to work left of the stick.
How to run the drill
- Address the golf ball with your mid-iron, checking your alignment relative to the pathpal setup.
- Take a normal, smooth backswing.
- On the downswing and through impact, focus entirely on the sensation of keeping your hands working low and left around your body.
- Ensure the club head follows your hand line through the hitting zone, exiting safely inside and underneath the pathpal's visual alignment guide.
- Start with 50% feel-swings to get the sensation of the neutralized path before moving to full speed.
To eliminate blocks and hooks, your hands and clubhead cannot keep chasing out to right field past impact; they must work low and left around your rotating torso underneath the forward guide stick.
Watch the drill
View the full guided drill on pathpal →
Why it works
When a golfer tries too hard to swing from the inside, the clubhead keeps traveling away from the body down the right side of the target line after impact. Once the arms run out of room, the wrists violently roll over, turning a minor path error into a two-way miss.
Keep the hands working low and left around your body through impact to take blocks and snap hooks out of your game.
Rico Riciputi positions a pathpal unit just outside the target line and slightly forward of the golf ball in the exit zone, with an alignment stick angled to mirror a neutral exit plane. If your club pushes out to the right, you see and feel the barrier immediately; exiting low and left keeps you safely inside and underneath the stick.
Who this is for
- ✓Golfers who struggle with blocked pushes to the right and snap hooks to the left
- ✓Players with an excessively inside-to-out (+5 degrees or more) club path
- ✓Anyone whose hands stall and flip high and right through the hitting zone
- ✓Accomplished players who want to train a tour-style low-and-left body release
Try it
Place your pathpal on the ground just outside the target line and slightly forward of your golf ball (in the exit zone) with an alignment stick angled to match a neutral exit plane.
- Position the pathpal outside the target line and slightly ahead of the ball with an alignment stick mirroring a neutral exit plane
- Take a mid-iron and make 10 half-speed feel swings keeping your hands and clubhead exiting low and left around your hips
- Hit 15 shots at 50 to 75 percent speed ensuring the clubhead exits safely inside and underneath the visual guide
- Step back and hit 5 full-speed mid-irons, watching your dispersion tighten into a straight or slight fade flight
This drill uses the pathpal magnetic 14-angle training station and alignment sticks. Shop pathpal, pair it with The Arrow padded alignment sticks, or explore the Complete Training System with Free U.S. Shipping.
Related drills
If this drill matches what you are working on, these three guided drills build on the exact same movement pattern:
The "Hook-to-Fade" Dual-Segment Drill
Taught by Mark Heartfield. Master the Out-to-In Swing Path: Eliminate the Hook by Curing Both the Inside Takeaway and Excessive Rightward Path. View drill →
The TrueStrike Outside-In Fade Drill
Taught by Jacob Tilton. Correct an Excessive Inside-Out Path and Hit a Controlled Fade. View drill →
"Inside Path" Corrector Drill
Taught by Eric Barlow. Neutralize Your Club Path: Prevent Excessive Inside-Out Motion and Eliminate Raised Hands at Impact. View drill →
About Rico Riciputi
Frequently asked questions
What does 'swinging low and left' mean for a right-handed golfer?
It means allowing your hands and clubhead to continue rotating around your lead hip to the left (and staying low on plane) immediately after impact rather than throwing the clubhead high and out to the right.
Why does an overly inside-out path cause both blocks and hooks?
When your club path is 5 or more degrees inside-to-out, an open clubface launches a big push-block to the right, while a closed or flipping clubface produces a diving snap hook to the left.
Where do I set the pathpal for Rico Riciputi's Low and Left Drill?
Place the pathpal just outside your target line and slightly forward of the golf ball in the impact exit zone, with an alignment stick angled along the neutral exit plane.
Should I start this drill at full speed?
No. Rico Riciputi recommends starting with 50-percent feel swings using a mid-iron so you can sense the hands and clubhead tracking together around your body before moving to full speed.
Will exiting low and left cause me to slice the ball?
For a golfer whose baseline path is overly inside-out, training a low-and-left exit neutralizes the path back toward zero degrees, producing a straight ball flight or a tight, controllable fade.
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