Player’s Corner LESSON
Ground or Air? The best means of delivering a ball to the green should require some decision-making. By Alex Fisher
1 GOING GROUND
PHOTOGRAPHS BY CHRIS DUTHIE
WHEN YOU’RE 100 YARDS OUT, do you automatically reach for one of your wedges? If so, you’re not alone. Most golfers I see tend to defer to one type of shot when facing this situation—a high, cool-looking shot into the green. But if you do not have to fly a bunker or hazard and you have a clear path to the green, why not consider hitting a lower-flighted shot instead? In any short-shot situation, take the path of least resistance. If you can get away with using a less-lofted club and making a smaller swing, the mistakes tend to result in fewer wasted strokes. Yes, that parachute shot looks awesome when you pull it off, but the margin of error is minuscule because of the size and speed of the swing required to execute it. Before you decide which shot to attempt, first consider the quality of the lie. If you are fortunate enough to find yourself in a situation where the ball is sitting up, your options dramatically improve. You can get away with a slight mishit because the ball is sitting up. However, if the ball is sitting down—a tight lie—your options become very limited. The less grass underneath the ball, the smaller your margin for error and the greater your need to make more precise contact. That can lead to a lack of confidence because often you hit the ground behind the ball or even miss the ground altogether. Another often-overlooked consideration is how you can use the terrain that is between you and target to your advantage. For example, if you have a pin at the front of the green and your landing space is very limited, it might be easier to hit a low-flighted shot into the bank in front of the green and rolling it on than trying to fly the ball to a front flag position.
MOMENT OF DECISION • Once you’ve evaluated the lie to determine the type of shot you can hit, factor in what is between you and the flag and how you can use the terrain to your advantage. • Try to visualize the shot you want to hit—its trajectory and distance. • Focus less on the flag and more on the landing spot—always your primary target.
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1. A CHIP OFF THE OLD HYBRID • If you decide to scoot the ball up to the green, you are basically hitting a chip with a longer club.
2. ALL ARMS, NO BODY • Limit your backswing by taking the club back with your arms only.
• Grip low on the handle to give yourself more control over the shot by taking the wrists out of the swing.
• Make sure your chest does not rotate away from the ball so that your weight does not move to your back foot. Any weight shift will make it difficult to avoid hitting the ground behind the ball because the swing motion is so small.
• Keep the ball in the middle of your stance with most of your weight set on your front foot. • Make practice swings while looking at your landing spot so that your instincts can create the appropriate swing to execute the shot.
COLORADO AVIDGOLFER | August/September 2021
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3. BACKSWING = FOLLOW-THROUGH • As the club approaches the ball, your chest should have rotated past the ball before the arms and hands deliver the club. This will allow you to not let the club outrace the body and avoid the wrists from flipping at impact. • Make sure your follow-through finishes at the same length as your backswing. This will help you maintain a consistent tempo throughout the swing and avoid overshooting your target.
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