The incredibly difficult drill Tommy Fleetwood uses which amateur golfers can copy for improved ball-striking

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There is no doubting the fact that Tommy Fleetwood is one of the best ball-strikers in the professional game.

So it goes without saying that amateur golfers looking for golf tips to help them strike their irons more crisply should copy something that Fleetwood does regularly on the driving range.

Fleetwood has already shared a great ball-striking tip for amateurs, but this one was more to do with the technique of the golf swing.

“This is a seven-iron. We’re going to start with the setup. Alignment and ball position I always try and keep pretty neutral.

“For a seven iron and pretty much every club in the bag, it’s always past-center, it’s always going to be past the center of my body. That way, I try and keep the weight of my feet pretty neutral.

“So 50/50 on both feet. But I like to have a bit more pressure going left with my right hand and right chest. That feels to me like I’ve got a strike in the golf swing already before I even take it back.

“From there, almost the most important move in the golf swing would be the first part of my takeaway. I have a tendency to lose the takeaway out and then from there, from a foot into my golf swing, all I have to do then is reroute and try and find my way back to the ball.

“So first part of the takeaway, take it inside, turns with my body. From there, full turn to the top. I hold my left side, I don’t want to lose my left side.

“And then the first move from the downswing will then be my left hip goes straight back, straight down that thing.

“I don’t want it to sway, so I want it to go straight back, which then sets the club. And from there, turn and hit and pass the ball.”

So now we know what is required to improve our ball-striking, what drill can we implement during practice to help us get there?

The drill Tommy Fleetwood uses which amateur golfers can copy

Fleetwood was ranked sixth in strokes gained approach on the PGA Tour last season.

And when the Englishman is on top form, there aren’t too many players in the game who are capable of matching his iron play.

How has the 2025 Tour Championship winner become such a consistently brilliant ball-striker with his irons, though?

Fleetwood obviously works extremely hard on his game but, crucially, he never practices without a purpose.

During a TaylorMade instructional YouTube video, Fleetwood demonstrated the drill he uses to get his swing perfectly on plane and to ensure that his ball-striking is as good as it can possibly be.

Now, this may seem incredibly complicated, but you don’t have to do the drill in such a severe manner as Fleetwood is doing it in the above clip.

It may look complicated but Fleetwood’s drill is simple to replicate

Firstly, alignment sticks are not expensive to buy at around $15-20 in any reputable golf store.

If you buy two or three, you can lay one down next to your ball, parallel with your feet. Meanwhile, you can stick another one in the ground next to the stick on the floor, and point it diagonally towards your body.

Then you can place anything you like on the outside of your golf ball, like a head-cover for instance.

Now, Fleetwood has given himself absolutely no margin for error in the above clip, so unless you are a highly skilled low handicap golfer, give yourself a bit more space between the alignment stick on the ground and whatever you choose to place outside of your golf ball.

If you are with a friend, you can ask them to help you by holding another alignment stick to the left side of your head while you swing.

However, that part is not essential to the overall drill.

Fleetwood puts all of these little things into practice because it ensures that he is able to get the club on the perfect plane both in his backswing and downswing and that his head remains still through impact.

If he is slightly off plane, or his head moves, he will hit either his alignment stick or the box just to the right of his golf ball.

This is a great way to improve your ball-striking but as mentioned earlier, start off with a greater margin for error and gradually decrease the space between your ball, the alignment stick and your head-cover on the ground as you continue to perfect your motion.