Rule 12 of 25 · Chapter II — The Strike
Let the loft lift the ball and never try to help it into the air by leaning back.
Why this rule exists
Leaning away from the target to lift the ball moves the low point behind it, which produces the fat or thin shot that feels exactly like the failure you were trying to avoid. The clubface already has enough loft to launch the ball; your job is to deliver it descending. This is the single most common amateur instinct that keeps the other six rules from working.
In practice
Notice the situations that trigger it — a long iron, a tucked pin, water short — and consciously commit to hitting down and taking a divot on those shots. Practise hitting deliberately low shots with a mid-iron until the low flight stops feeling like a mistake. If you feel your trail shoulder dropping and your head falling back before impact, take a club more and swing easier instead.
When it doesn't apply
Some shots genuinely require a rearward lean and added loft: flop shots, greenside bunker shots, and recoveries where you must go straight up over an obstacle. The rule governs full iron shots from the fairway, not every shot in the bag.