Here's my warning to all wannabe golfer's, if you start on this sorry path, and do nothing to stop it, you will lead a life of pain and anguish. All my golfing life I've been a hooker! How or why it started I don't know. I never wanted it to happen, it just did. When I first started hooking, it was not every shot.

It just sort of creeps up on you, over days, weeks, even months, and gets gradually worse, until nearly every shot is hanging left. And I don't mean just a little bit left, these 90 degree plus benders would make a circle look tame. Finally, it got so bad, I was spending so much time in the trees, searching for lost balls, that my friends stopped coming round, and asking me out to play. Then came that dreaded day.

I can remember this so clearly, its almost as if it happened yesterday. I ran out of golf balls during a round. It was SOooo embarrassing. Thats what made me finally seek professional help. After walking off the course that afternoon, I went straight to the clubhouse and spoke to The Pro.

When I spoke to The Pro, he admitted that he had already heard about my little problem. It seems that a few of my so-called friends had already spoken to him, to find out if it was contagious. What he told me, certainly made me feel better.

There is a cure. And its really quite easy. Just keep reading: THE PROBLEM: Hitting the ball with a closed clubface, causing shots to curve (sometimes dramatically) to the left. THE CURE: The first thing you should do is check your grip. When you grip the club the Vs in each hand should point over your right shoulder. If they point farther to the right, then your grip is too "strong" and could produce a closed face and a hook at impact - when the hands return to their normal position.

If your grip is good and you are still hooking, try weakening your grip by gradually moving both hands to the left. Check your stance to make sure that your feet, knees, hips and shoulders are all parallel to your target line. Another cause could be the ball position. If it is too far back, it could produce an excessive in-to-out swingpath.

Try gripping the club more in the palm of your hands, rather than the fingers, to reduce wrist action and premature closing of the clubface. Make sure that your left wrist is not too relaxed at impact. If it is, your right wrist will take control and close the clubface too early.

On your downswing, make sure that the action begins with your legs and body. This will stop your wrists unhinging and closing the clubface too soon. There, you see. I told you it was curable. Although, maybe not TOTALLY curable.

To this day, many years later, occasionally it happens. But the major difference is that, now as I'm walking towards the trees to look for that wayward shot, I'M SMILING - because I know how to fix the problem. The Happy (occasional) Hooker .

By: David Barnard