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Hit the ball where you want it to go:

Many amateur golfers have a lot of trouble getting the ball to go where we want it to.

This is a huge problem in a sport where the goal is to get a 1.68 inch ball in a 4.25 inch cup.

How can you increase your accuracy to slash your scores? Well one very common but easy to fix problem is a tricky optical illusion that makes your eyes think you are aiming one way while your feet, hips, and shoulders aim another way. The real trouble is that many golfers have difficulty with their alignment and they don't even know it. You may think your golf swing is bad because the ball goes the wrong way, but in reality you may be simply aiming it the wrong way.

Aiming a tiny golf ball is hard enough as it is, but to make it even harder on us golfers we have to aim from the side of the ball. Just think about it...in every other precision sport the players get to line their eyes up with the target. Basketball players don't shoot free throws by standing beside the ball (although it would be impressive). Marksmen don't aim their guns by standing two feet to the left of the gun either (it would make the shooting range a dangerous place).

So it is no wonder that so many of us golfers have such a difficult time aiming properly.

Luckily there are some tricks you can use to make sure you are aiming perfectly every time but to do this you have to fix your alignment.

Alignment is how you address the ball, mostly where your feet are in relation to the ball and your target. The heels of your feet should line up perfectly with your target.

You probably already knew that, but what you don't know is that most players only think their heels are aligned with their target. In reality 90% of amateur golfers are aiming 5 or more yards to the right of their target (for us right handed golfers anyways). And that's why 90% or amateur golfers hit a slice.

5 yards doesn't sound too bad to us amateurs but remember guys like us don't have consistently straight as an arrow shots. Guys like us routinely hit the ball 5 or more yards off of where are feet are aimed. Now add that 5 or more yards of miss-alignment and you can easily see why this can get you into the rough on a regular basis.

By correcting your alignment you could stay in the fairway on a few more holes each round. Think about what that is going to do for your score (I'm thinking 3-5 strokes at least).

How to Fix Your Alignment:

If you are having trouble with your alignment try the old 'club behind the heels' trick. Lay a club on the ground up against your heels. Now step away and look where that club is pointing. Chances are it is not pointing where you think you are aiming.

To fix this you have to break the illusion of thinking you are aiming one way while your heels are saying something different.

Use the club behind your heels trick until you thing you have a good feel for where your heels are pointing.

Another common problem is that guys will address the ball then straighten their body and look where they want to aim. They then make adjustments to their shot based on this illusion of where they were looking from (which is not right over the ball).

To overcome this illusion you can start aiming by simply turning your head while you are down in your stance (most people have their head more over the ball in their stance) so your eyes will be more in-line with the ball. This is really difficult to explain without picture which is why I have included some here.

To make your aim and alignment even better you should implement a good pre-shot routine that you follow religiously.

Most amateur golfers have been aiming improperly for so long that any change (even just an inch) will make them feel like they are changing their aim by several feet. You are going to have to force yourself to make these changes and overcome the awkward feel they may give you (the wickedly straight shots you hit will make this change a little easier to swallow).

Here's what you should do:

Always approach the golf ball from behind. Stand behind the ball for a second and pick a target (not just the fairway), a real defined spot (by the way this is how you should be practicing on the range too).

Now imagine a straight line coming from that target going back to your ball and pick a spot (piece of grass etc.) maybe 12 inches in front of the ball that is on the target line. You now have a small segment of your target line to use as a guide to set up your feet.

Address the golf ball and align your heels on a line that is parallel to the target line.

You must use your heels. If you go by your toes you will be off target. Most golfers do not keep their toes straight forward so a toe to toe line goes in a different direction than the heel to heel line.