The Ascending Path Driver Drill

A driver slice is caused by an out-to-in swing path combined with a clubface that is open relative to that path at impact. The out-to-in path typically originates from an over-the-top move — the club swings outside the target line on the downswing and cuts across the ball, imparting left-to-right sidespin. Joe Stago's Ascending Path Drill targets this directly by positioning the pathpal rod at tee height on the target line, creating a physical barrier that blocks the over-the-top entry and forces the club to approach from the inside.

Angle of attack is the vertical direction the clubhead is moving at impact — downward (negative) or upward (positive). With a driver, a positive angle of attack (hitting up on the ball) reduces backspin, increases launch angle, and adds significant carry distance. Most slicers come into the ball steeply with a negative angle of attack, which compounds the spin and distance loss. Joe targets +3° to +5° up, and the drill's pathpal setup naturally encourages this by forcing the club to stay shallower and approach from the inside.

Set the pathpal to a 20° angle and position it so the rod sits on the target line, roughly even with the tee, and about one foot above the ground. At that height, the rod acts as a threshold: a club coming over the top and outside-in will approach from outside and risk striking the rod, while a club swinging from the inside will clear it cleanly. The 20° angle is deliberate — it mirrors the angle of approach Joe wants to train, making the visual cue directly relevant to the swing change.

Joe targets a path of +2° to +3° in-to-out and an angle of attack of +3° to +5° up for his driver baseline. In his on-camera demo he achieves +4° to +5° in-to-out and +3° to +8° up, carrying the ball approximately 268 yards with a square face. For most recreational golfers, simply moving path from negative (out-to-in) to neutral or slightly positive, and angle of attack from negative to positive, will produce measurable gains in both carry distance and accuracy without needing tour-level numbers.

Yes — the pathpal provides physical feedback that doesn't require any data to interpret. If your club approaches from outside the rod, you'll either clip it or feel the need to redirect. If you clear it cleanly on the inside, the drill is working. Launch monitor data, like the numbers Joe shows, is useful for verifying the change and dialing in targets, but the core feedback loop — did you clear the rod or not — is immediate and requires nothing more than the pathpal itself. Outdoors on a driving range, ball flight will confirm the rest.