The mistake Tommy Fleetwood says lots of amateur players are making when hitting driver and the simple drill to fix it

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For many amateur golfers, merely making contact with the centre of the clubface is the ultimate aim when hitting a driver off the tee.

For many, getting the ball started at the intended target and in the air constitutes success. However, the majority of amateurs are making an error.

By looking to make clean contact, some golfers are actually causing more harm than good. Focusing on strike typically causes a downward motion, which results in an over-the-top technique and precisely the opposite of what’s required with a driver.

Professionals like Tommy Fleetwood always look to hit up with the big stick, and the Englishman has now shared a drill which could help promote a better technique off the tee.

Tommy Fleetwood’s tip to hit up with the driver

Speaking during a short coaching clip, Fleetwood highlighted the importance of sweeping the ball off the tee and even shared a drill he uses to promote an upward strike.

“What a lot of players do that I see and struggle with is they don’t sweep up on their driver. They focus such much on making contact at impact they hit down on the driver. That then results in a spinny cutting sliced drive. One of the things I really like to do is put a tee in the ground, and it is a task for you to miss. I am going to put a tee in front of the ball, and what I am going to do is try and miss the tee in my follow-through, and that’s it.

“If I was to hit down on this, I would hit the ball, and the driver would hit the tee. To miss it, you are clearly going to have to sweep up, and the driver is going to come in higher than the tee, and that’s going to create a nice sweeping motion, which will hopefully hit the ball higher and have a bit of a straighter flight, and you’re going to start hitting it longer as well.”

• READ MORE: Lee Westwood says many amateur golfers are making a mistake before they’ve even hit a golf ball

What else amateurs can do to hit up on the ball

Along with Fleetwood, some of the game’s great players have reiterated the importance of maintaining a sweeping motion when driving. Tiger Woods always looks to maintain width with his driver, and the 15-time major winner believes avoiding steepness is crucial to gaining distance off the tee.

For some, the concept of hitting up on a shot is slightly counterintuitive.

It’s widely recognised that hitting down with irons and wedges is the correct practice. Therefore, although the principles are the same, using a driver is slightly different. The sooner amateur golfers understand the fundamentals of a driver swing, the sooner shots will fall off a scorecard.