Every Amateur Can Get Their Golf Swing On Plane... Just Try This Simple Mirror Drill

Tom Motley demonstrating the golf swing plane mirror drill with an inset image of a magic mirror in front of a blue smoke background.

A lack of understanding on how to get your golf swing on plane could be holding you back on the course - but we have the perfect expert advice to help.

There are some commonly overlooked faults when it comes to swing plane that negatively impact the performance of many amateurs, particularly high-handicappers, so identifying the problem and finding the correct fix is important.

There are plenty of drills to get your golf swing on plane, but the thing that sets this particular example apart from the rest is you can do it anywhere you can find a mirror - making it super convenient.

In this article, Golf Monthly Top 50 Coach Tom Motley shares how a golf club, an alignment stick and a mirror could unlock your full potential on the golf course...

How To Get Your Golf Swing On Plane: Simple Mirror Drill

This is a perfect drill to rehearse in front of a mirror, where you can practice how to start the backswing and make sure your chest and arms are working together nicely, allowing the hinge to gradually set onto the plane.

The golf swing plane drill at address, demonstrating how to position the alignment stick next to the grip of the club (Image credit: Olly Curtis)

Although this drill might look a little complicated, it’s not! The best golf drills are simple to set up and carry out, but offer plenty of scope for improvement, and this one is no different.

It’s one to try if you have a tendency to get the club behind the hands in the takeaway and too flat in the shaft plane. This exercise can also help those who don’t use the body enough and have a ‘handsy’ takeaway, as well as golfers who flare the club open.

Getting the golf swing on plane is crucial in order to achieve a consistent strike (Image credit: Olly Curtis)

Take your 7-iron and place one alignment stick down the back end of the grip and another on your ball-to-target line.

You don’t need any tape - it’s just a case of holding it in place with your fingers (as I am doing in the image above).

Note how the plane I have set the shaft on matches the target line. From here, I can just rotate the torso to the top and keep everything matching up nicely.

This is a great example of the swing being on plane at the top of my backswing (Image credit: Olly Curtis)

At the top of my backswing, in the image above, I’m on a good plane. If the alignment stick were pointing too much outside the target line, the shaft would be too flat and I’d have to make downswing compensations.

I really like this drill for golfers who tend to set the wrists late, which can cause you to be either too ‘laid off’ or across the line at the top of the swing.

What does 'on plane' mean in the golf swing?

If your golf swing is 'on plane', your club is essentially moving on the correct angle relative to your body, with the clubhead moving on a consistent path throughout the swing.

The best players in the world do this effortlessly, but you too can improve this aspect of your mechanics using the drill above, helping you to strike the ball better than ever before.