SPECIAL SITUATIONS
BEST TIP: With bad lies, forget distance and
concentrate on good contact.
Sweep the ball off "fluffy" lies.
Hitting into the wind, move ball back in stance, take more club, make
three-quarter backswing and swing easy.
With sidehill lies, aim to right of target when ball is above feet. Aim to left
of target when ball is below feet.
For downhill lies:
play ball back in stance
lean a little left at address
set your shoulders parallel to the slope
keep the clubhead low to the ground past impact
ball tends to go right.
For high iron shots, play ball forward one inch. Hands should be even
or slightly behind ball, weight on back foot.
For "flyer" lies, take one less club.
When you have a bad lie, forget distance and choose a club that will
maximize your chance of making good contact.
When pitching from an uphill lie,
play ball in back half of stance.
When hitting from hardpan:
-- play ball in center of stance
-- keep most of weight on left side
-- keep hands ahead of ball at impact
On "digable" hardpan, play ball back two inches from center, use an
almost wrist-free swing and hit ball and ground at the same instant.
The ball will go lower with more roll.
When you need to hit the ball a certain distance, but the normal arc of a
ball might bring it into a tree, take a lower-lofted club and choke up on
the grip.
For uphill lies, play ball off inside of left foot with most of weight on left
foot. The ball will tend to go left.
Use only 80% of effort on all hilly shots.
When ball is in a sand divot, play it back in your stance, stand tall, take
one extra club and swing easy.
On tricky downhill pitches, use your most lofted club, play ball back
slightly in stance, set perpendicular to slope, draw right foot back and
swing along slope.
When hitting from deep grass, choke down on the club and play the ball
back farther in stance.
When you're between clubs, use the stronger club and choke down on
the grip.
When you want to keep the ball low:
-- play it in the middle of your stance.
-- take half your normal backswing.
-- make a limited follow-through.
-- sweep the ball off the ground with no divot.
-- don't swing hard.
When the ball is in deep greenside grass, use your most lofted club, a
light grip, an open stance and a long swing.
BEST TIP: With bad lies, forget distance and
concentrate on good contact.
Sweep the ball off "fluffy" lies.
Hitting into the wind, move ball back in stance, take more club, make
three-quarter backswing and swing easy.
With sidehill lies, aim to right of target when ball is above feet. Aim to left
of target when ball is below feet.
For downhill lies:
play ball back in stance
lean a little left at address
set your shoulders parallel to the slope
keep the clubhead low to the ground past impact
ball tends to go right.
For high iron shots, play ball forward one inch. Hands should be even
or slightly behind ball, weight on back foot.
For "flyer" lies, take one less club.
When you have a bad lie, forget distance and choose a club that will
maximize your chance of making good contact.
When pitching from an uphill lie,
play ball in back half of stance.
When hitting from hardpan:
-- play ball in center of stance
-- keep most of weight on left side
-- keep hands ahead of ball at impact
On "digable" hardpan, play ball back two inches from center, use an
almost wrist-free swing and hit ball and ground at the same instant.
The ball will go lower with more roll.
When you need to hit the ball a certain distance, but the normal arc of a
ball might bring it into a tree, take a lower-lofted club and choke up on
the grip.
For uphill lies, play ball off inside of left foot with most of weight on left
foot. The ball will tend to go left.
Use only 80% of effort on all hilly shots.
When ball is in a sand divot, play it back in your stance, stand tall, take
one extra club and swing easy.
On tricky downhill pitches, use your most lofted club, play ball back
slightly in stance, set perpendicular to slope, draw right foot back and
swing along slope.
When hitting from deep grass, choke down on the club and play the ball
back farther in stance.
When you're between clubs, use the stronger club and choke down on
the grip.
When you want to keep the ball low:
-- play it in the middle of your stance.
-- take half your normal backswing.
-- make a limited follow-through.
-- sweep the ball off the ground with no divot.
-- don't swing hard.
When the ball is in deep greenside grass, use your most lofted club, a
light grip, an open stance and a long swing.
Tom's Golf Tips
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| We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit -- Aristotle |
| xxxx If there's serious xxxx trouble on one side xxxx of the hole - say, an xxxx out-of-bounds on xxxx the right - slightly toe the clubface in, closing it a little to be sure you'll move the ball away from the trouble. Gary Player www.garyplayer.com |
How to get "bite" on the ball It's one thing to hit the ball to the green. To cause the ball to hold the green or stay near where it lands is another matter. If you make good contact with the ball (i.e., ball-before-ground or divot-after-ball), use a ball with a reasonably soft cover, and are approaching a green in relatively good condition (i.e., not extraordinarily dry or hard), you should have no problem getting the ball to hold or even back up, depending on your club head speed. To get the ball to really pull back a significant distance (which may look cool but is almost always undesirable) you need extremes (i.e., more club head speed along with good quality contact, a very soft-covered ball, very soft greens or all of these). Good swing mechanics and a correct concept of what's happening in the swing are important for making the kind of clean contact you need to create adequate backspin. I cover the mechanics of the swing and swing concept in detail in my golf instruction books. Tip provided by PGA Professional Mark Blakemore. See Mark's website for more golf instruction tips and lessons. |