Fix Your Ball Striking in 5 Minutes with This Simple Tilt Tip

The Root of the Problem: Poor Setup Posture

Alex begins by identifying a common mistake: setting up with your shoulders level and your spine vertical. While this may look balanced from the outside, it actually encourages the club to travel too steeply into the ball or forces you to make last-second compensations with your hands.

This flawed setup often causes:

Fat shots (hitting the ground before the ball)
Thin shots (hitting the ball with the lower edge of the club)
Scooping (trying to lift the ball into the air with your hands)
Inconsistent contact and weak compression

The fix? Adding a small but powerful upper-body tilt away from the target at address.

What the Tilt Tip Looks Like

Alex breaks it down simply. Once you’ve taken your normal stance with your irons:

Tilt your upper body slightly so that your trail shoulder sits just lower than your lead shoulder
Feel like your head is slightly behind the ball
Let your arms hang naturally from this tilted position

This small change in posture improves your swing path, allows you to stay behind the ball, and helps you strike down and through the ball—producing cleaner, more compressed contact.

Alex makes it clear: this isn’t about making a huge adjustment. It’s a subtle change with a big impact.

How Tilt Improves Ball Striking

With the right tilt, your entire swing benefits:

You set up for a proper angle of attack
You eliminate early extension or standing up through the swing
You allow the club to bottom out just after the ball, not before
You improve your ability to compress the ball and take a proper divot

Alex explains that better ball striking isn’t about swinging harder or trying to manipulate the club at the last second. It’s about giving your body the right conditions to move efficiently. The correct tilt helps you do exactly that.

Visual Demonstration and Real-World Impact

Throughout the video, Alex shows side-by-side comparisons of swings with and without the tilt adjustment. The differences are dramatic.

Without tilt: the club path becomes too steep or too shallow, leading to fat or thin shots
With tilt: the golfer swings on plane, makes ball-first contact, and creates crisp, penetrating shots

The improvement in turf interaction and ball compression is immediate and obvious.

Many golfers report better contact, increased distance, and improved control with their irons, just from this one setup change.

Easy Drills to Practice the Tilt

Alex includes a few quick and effective drills to help you build this adjustment into your routine.

Mirror Check Drill
Stand in front of a mirror or use your phone camera. Set up to an imaginary ball and tilt your upper body slightly so your trail shoulder drops. Check that your spine is angled slightly away from the target. Repeat until the position feels natural.

Club Across Shoulders Drill
Place a club across your chest and get into your setup posture. Gently tilt your shoulders so the club points slightly downward toward your trail side. This reinforces the visual and feel of proper tilt.

Pre-Shot Routine Drill
Before every shot, pause and check your tilt. Don’t skip this step. Making it part of your routine ensures that you set up correctly on every swing.

Who This Tip Helps Most

This tip benefits almost every type of golfer, but especially those who:

Struggle with inconsistent iron contact
Hit behind or thin the ball regularly
Scoop or try to lift the ball into the air
Lack compression or feel in their swing
Beginner to mid-handicap golfers will notice the biggest improvement, but even more advanced players can benefit from checking and refining their tilt position at address.

Final Thoughts

If you’ve ever asked yourself why your ball striking feels inconsistent or why you can’t compress the ball like the pros, the answer might be hiding in your setup. This simple tilt tip from Alex Elliott can fix your strike, improve your swing path, and give you the confidence to hit solid shots time after time.

You don’t need a full lesson or weeks of practice to feel the benefits. Just adjust your setup posture, tilt your spine slightly away from the target, and start hitting crisper, more powerful golf shots immediately.

This five-minute fix could be the missing link in your ball striking, and the easiest improvement you’ll ever make.