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Proper Stance and Alignment
In golf, stance has a lot to do with the shots you hit. Lack of distance, hook, slice, push, pull and so on can be fixed with proper stance.
We find lots of golf tips on magazines and TV, but even if you try those tips as they are instructed, we don't always improve.
Those golf tips won't work for you unless you have the correct grip, stance, ball position, posture and so on. You won't improve much no matter what kind of practice you do unless you understand and practice those basics of golf.
3 Types of Stance
There are 3 types of stance.
1. Square Stance
2. Closed Stance
3. Open Stance
If your feet are parallel to the target line (ball to target line), you have the square stance. If your feet are aiming left, you have the open stance. If your feet are aiming right, you have the closed stance.
Most of the time, golfers take their stance in order to compensate for their problems such as slice, hook and so on.
If you are a slicer, you might have the open stance. The ball will curve to the right, so you are going to have to aim left to avoid OB on the right side.
Also, in an effort to avoid right side, slicers start to swing left (out to in swing). The open stance makes it easier to swing from out to in.
All these things you do to avoid right side will not cure slice but makes it even worse.
How to Check Your Stance
If your feet are parallel to the target line, your stance is square.
Right?
It's correct, but it doesn't apply to some golfers.
Most golfers check the toe line to see if their stance is square. But some golfers flare out their left toe. If they try to check their toe line, it might be pointing left because left toe is flared out.
To avoid this problem, you should check the heel line. Lay a club down along the heels to see if it's really square.
I also recommend you to hold your club against your knees to check the alignment.
Even if your stance is square, sometimes golfers find themselves open to the target when they check the knee line.
So the toe line doesn't tell you the whole thing about alignment.