Tiger’s Stinger: Secrets Behind the Shot

“Here we are with my 3-iron stinger. It's one of my go-to shots. I'm sure most of you have seen this shot.”
— Tiger Woods

Let’s not pretend: Tiger’s 3-iron stinger is arguably the most iconic shot in modern golf. The only contender might be the Mickelson flop, but the stinger? That’s different. That’s utility. That’s art. That’s warhead technology in the hands of a surgeon.

So, when Tiger breaks down the shot—like he does in the clip I’m sharing in this post—you don’t interrupt. You listen.

“I’m trying to hit a low draw... the more I play it back in my stance, the more draw I will get on it. I try to feel as if I make a normal backswing, still get behind the ball, still load the right leg—but I really try and feel like this right shoulder gets on top of that golf ball. It feels high. It feels like it’s covered.”

He calls it covering the ball at impact. That’s the visual. The shoulder rotates over the ball, never bails, never flips. If you want to hit a low draw that stays hit, that’s the blueprint.

A Technical Breakdown of Tiger’s Stinger

“I developed this low-flying tee shot in the late ’90s to make sure I could compete in any condition. The stinger would give me an advantage on windy Open Championship days, when you can’t control anything that flies too high.”

That sentence right there is everything. The stinger wasn’t a flex—it was a necessity. Tiger didn’t invent it to impress crowds. He created it to control what others couldn’t: the wind, the bounce, the moment.

“I had to get stronger, particularly in my forearms, to cut off the swing just after impact to hit this shot.”

“Back in the late ’90s, I used a 2-iron almost exclusively to play this shot. Then the design of 3-woods improved... Because I don’t hit a 2-iron or 3-wood as far as I used to, I now sometimes hit the stinger with a driver...”

That’s the truth of the shot: the club doesn’t matter. What matters is:

• The ball position (slightly back)

• The swing (normal coil, full load)

• The move (cover it with the right shoulder)

• The finish (short, quiet, violent in silence)

Tiger finishes by saying:

“It’s impossible to overstate how crucial it is to have a go-to ball off the tee—a shot you can trust to find the fairway when you need to.”

I agree. And for me? That shot has become something a little different.

The Drawl: My Southern Hybrid

It starts low. Turns late. And runs forever.

I call it The Drawl.

Not just because it draws. But because it talks like a Southerner: slow, calm, deliberate. It ain’t in a hurry—but it always gets where it’s going.

I built it out of necessity, just like Tiger built the stinger. I needed a shot that I could trust when the fairway tightened up and the wind was whipping, something that stayed down, turned over late, and kept running long after it landed. I needed control.

So, I grabbed my Ping 2-hybrid and started working.

Ball a hair back. Stance just closed. Eyes quiet.

Then I trained the motion:

• Calm takeaway

• Smooth transition

• Right shoulder over the ball

• Low finish

It wasn’t a power move. It was a presence move.

Now when I step up to a narrow tee box, I don’t need to reach for a big sweeping fade or force a high carry number. I just let The Drawl do what it does: slide under the wind, peel back inside the edge, and chase.

You can build your own version. Maybe it won’t be a 2-hybrid. Perhaps it’ll be a 4-iron. Or a bent-down 3-wood. Doesn’t matter. What matters is that you build a shot with shape, trust, and purpose.

Because in this game, confidence isn’t built from the biggest swings. It’s built from knowing you have a shot that won’t blink when it’s time to win.

And if that shot talks slow and hits hard?

Even better.

📸 A Name That Stuck

Tiger shares a great story in the piece—one I didn’t know:

“I didn’t come up with the name ‘stinger.’ Golf Digest did... Back in 2000, they asked me to demonstrate the shot for an article. The photographer crouched 10 yards in front of me and asked me to hit the stinger over his head... I hit one that couldn’t have missed his head by more than a few inches.”

“The shot, with the ball still in the frame, ran in the magazine alongside the headline, Tiger’s Super Stinger. To my knowledge, that’s the first time anyone referred to it as a stinger—but the name stuck.”

The name stuck because the shot earned it.
A weapon with its own myth.

📚 BBFA Takeaways

• You need a shot that goes in play. Always.
  Tiger’s was the stinger. Yours might be The Drawl. Might be a bunt driver. But if you don’t have one, build one.

• Trajectory control is psychological control.
  Keeping it down keeps you down—on plane, on rhythm, and under your emotional ceiling.

• Club doesn’t matter. Principles do.
  Tiger now hits it with a driver sometimes. I’m hitting The Drawl with a 2-hybrid. It’s the feel, the shoulder, the finish that matter.

• Tiger’s stinger won him an Open in 2006.
  What will your go-to shot win you?

🏋️‍♂️ Tiger’s Stinger System – BBFA Breakdown

Mastering the Low Bullet with Discipline and Precision

🔁 BACKSWING

Setup:

• Stand slightly closer to the ball

• Ball slightly back in stance → lowers launch, adds draw

• Mindset: “This isn’t a sweep. This is a strike.”

Backswing Keys:

• Keep weight centered → avoid drifting into trailside

• Feel slightly lead-loaded at the top

• Full rotation, tight coil → no float, no slide

• Club stays in front of body → quiet, controlled geometry

Swing Thought:
“Stay centered. Stay over it. Keep it tight.”

⬇️ DOWNSWING

Angle of Attack:

• Strike down—but with control
  → Too steep = spin balloon; shallow compression is key

Body Motion:

• Left side clears early—space gets tight fast due to close setup

• Snap left knee straight → opens the lane for the hands
  → Classic Tiger move for efficient clearance

Swing Thought:
“Cover it and clear. Shallow power—not steep punishment.”

💣 IMPACT

Visual Cues:

• Chest directly over the ball → “stacked and covering”

• Hands nearly on top of the ball → clubhead still lagging

• Shaft is delofted → launching with controlled aggression

• Lead leg is braced and locked

Result:

• Ball is compressed low and late

• Flighted draw with aggressive spin control

Swing Thought:
“Stack it. Trap it. Snap it.”

✂️ FOLLOW-THROUGH

Finish Characteristics:

• Club stays low to the ground post-impact → confirms shallow entry

• Follow-through is intentionally cut short
  → Forearms work to stop the hands quickly
  → The shorter the finish, the lower the ball flies

Physical Requirement:

• Strong forearms are required to control momentum

• This isn’t a fake move—it’s a physical skill earned in training

Swing Thought:
“Cover it. Compress it. Cut it off.”

🧠 Final Recap (Tiger’s Words → BBFA Application)

“Stand closer. Cover the ball. Cut off the finish. That’s how you sting it.”