A Malaska Golf Member has a question about how to make a shot that hooks and fades, but more importantly, what you do with the clubface.
Mike uses an oversized club to demonstrate what the clubface does. If Mike swings the club and the clubface comes into the ball 1 or 2 degrees from the inside and is square to the path, he will hit a slight draw.
If you want to hit a bigger draw, you only need to add more face rotation. Mike doesn't want you to twist your hands. The reality of face rotation is that you only have to move the clubface in small increments to hit a bigger draw or fade. Combining that with changing the club path a few degrees makes the ball curve. You aren't doing much to make the ball curve.
Mike is a former pitcher and could throw a slider, curveball, and fastball. When Mike comes down into the ball and wants to hit a draw, he adds extra pressure from his index finger. He adds extra pressure from his middle finger if he wants to hit a fade. If Mike wants to hit the ball straight, he simultaneously pushes with his index and middle fingers.
Mike demonstrates this with the oversized club. He has been hitting this way for a long time and can feel tiny bits of force on the club by using his fingers.
Mike doesn't understand why some experts in the golf industry tell players to "take their hands out of the game." It's all in the hands. Tiger Woods, Jack Nicklaus, and most superstars have phenomenal hand-eye coordination. Bob Toski is also a savant with his hands.
It takes practice to figure out how much you integrate to get the ball to do what you want.
Again, you can make the ball curve, do it with your hands, or make the same swing and set the clubface closed or opened. You must ensure that your eyes and swing stay on the same path when you open or close the clubface.
When making small adjustments to your swing, you must make exaggerations to make the ball curve big. Then you dial it in from there. The key is to work on feel and touch with the clubface to get the curve you want.