When a short-game shot goes wrong, the mistake usually happens in the first 18 inches of the takeaway. Let the wedge head drift flat and behind your hands, and the club gets stuck behind your hip on the way down, causing heavy contact and low-spin flyers.
Golf Digest Best Young Teacher and Georgia PGA Section Champion Jacob Tilton uses a 75-degree pathpal barrier outside the ball to keep the wedge head up and in front of your chest from the very start of the motion.
See the full step-by-step station on the Vertical takeaway drill page, or watch Jacob demonstrate the setup below.
The drill
Jacob Tilton (Junior Golf Leader at Ansley Golf Club; 2024: Golf Digest Best Young Teachers in America, 2023: Georgia PGA Section Champion, 2020: Georgia PGA Youth Player Development Award) uses the pathpal training system to give golfers immediate physical and visual feedback on every repetition.
This drill uses the pathpal to enforce a vertical swing plane on the takeaway, preventing the club from getting "stuck" behind the body and promoting consistent ball-first contact with higher spin on short game shots.
Setup
- Prepare Your pathpal: Take one piece of your pathpal.
- Set the Angle: Adjust the pathpal to a 75-degree angle. Jacob says that while you can go down to 65 degrees, 75 degrees is ideal for this drill.
- Position the pathpal: Place the pathpal on the ground directly in line with your target, slightly outside your lead foot or the ball. It should stand upright and be angled away from you (towards the target).
- Ball Position: Position the golf ball so that your club can swing just outside the pathpal on your takeaway without hitting it.
- Maintain Stability: Ensure you are not shifting your weight back or tilting backward during your setup. The goal is to maintain a stable, centered position.
How to run the drill
- Vertical Takeaway: As you begin your backswing, focus on immediately getting the clubhead to move up and out, staying just outside the pathpal. The pathpal provides instant feedback if your club goes too far inside or "flat."
- Keep Club in Front: Throughout the backswing, consciously strive to keep the clubhead out in front of your hands and body. This prevents the club from getting "stuck" behind you.
- Hit Down: Embrace the feeling of coming down on top of the golf ball to achieve ball-first contact. This steep angle of attack is crucial for generating friction and spin.
- No Weight Shift/Tilt Back: During the swing, be mindful not to shift your weight excessively to your trail side or tilt your body backward. Maintain a stable lead side.
- Analyze Feedback: If you "nick" the pathpal, it means your club is getting too far behind you. Use this immediate feedback to adjust your takeaway.
Keep your weight centered and move the clubhead immediately up and outside the 75-degree stick on the takeaway so the wedge never gets trapped behind your body.
Watch the drill
View the full guided drill on pathpal →
Why it works
On pitch and chip shots, you do not have the time or clubhead speed to recover from an inside takeaway. Once the clubhead rolls behind your hands, your only options are to drop the club into the turf behind the ball or flip your hands to save it.
Keep the wedge head out in front of your hands going back, and ball-first contact with spin becomes automatic.
Jacob Tilton sets one piece of the pathpal at 75 degrees (or 65 degrees for a slightly wider window) in line with the target just outside the lead foot. If your clubhead rolls inside or flat, you nick the stick immediately; if you hinge it up and in front, you set up a clean downward strike with maximum groove friction.
Who this is for
- ✓Golfers who get their wedge 'stuck' behind their body on short-game shots
- ✓Players who hit fat chips or struggle to generate greenside spin and check
- ✓Anyone who shifts weight backward or tilts away from the target when chipping
- ✓Golfers who want instant tactile feedback on their first two feet of takeaway
Try it
Set one piece of your pathpal to the 75-degree slot (or 65 degrees to start) and place it along the target line just outside your lead foot.
- Adjust the pathpal to the 75-degree angle slot and set it upright along the target line outside your ball
- Stand centered with stable lead-side posture and make 10 rehearsal takeaways keeping the clubhead outside the stick
- Hit 15 pitch and chip shots focusing on keeping the club in front of your chest and striking down on the ball
- Remove the station and hit 5 greenside shots with the same upright, in-front takeaway feel
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:
Vertical Swing Plane
Taught by Cody Carter. Optimize Attack Angle and Spin for Crisp Wedge Shots. View drill →
Vertical Backswing Drill
Taught by Shawn Koch. Develop a Steeper Takeaway and Prevent a Flat Swing. View drill →
Prevent inside takeaway - "wall" drill
Taught by Shawn Koch. Prevent a Flat, Rolled Takeaway for a More Upright Swing. View drill →
About Jacob Tilton
Frequently asked questions
What angle does Jacob Tilton recommend on the pathpal for this drill?
Jacob recommends setting the pathpal to 75 degrees for the sharpest vertical takeaway feedback, though players can start at 65 degrees while building comfort.
What does it mean to get 'stuck' on a short-game shot?
Getting stuck happens when the clubhead rolls too far inside and behind your hands on the takeaway, trapping the shaft behind your trail hip on the downswing and causing fat or flipped shots.
How should my weight be distributed during the Vertical Takeaway Drill?
Keep your weight stable and centered-to-left without shifting backward onto your trail foot or tilting your spine away from the target.
What happens if I nick the alignment stick during my takeaway?
Nicking the stick tells you immediately that your clubhead drifted flat and inside behind your hands rather than working vertically up the plane.
How does a vertical takeaway increase greenside spin?
When the club stays in front of your body, you deliver the wedge on a steeper, ball-first angle of attack that creates clean friction between the ball cover and the wedge grooves.
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