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The
Lesson Tee
Issue 18: May/June 2019
05.
Chewelah Golf With so many people crowding the big cities on the West Coast, some are looking for a smaller place to live. Chewelah, Washington is one of those idyllic places.
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Cool Cups With the summer golf season upon us, it’s important to stay hydrated out on the course and keep your favorite libation cool and refreshing for as long as possible.
You have to admit, trees are really quite lovely. On the golf course, trees have a specific purpose and give definition to the holes we play. Sometimes they can save a poor shot, other times they can wreak havoc on players.
Bandon Cottage For nearly 20 years, Bandon Dunes has been touted as one of America’s great golf meccas, a place you just had to play. Now there’s a great place to stay.
If you play golf in the Pacific Northwest, you spend a fair amount of time around and under the trees. This month’s lesson will give you a few hints and tips to help you escape their grasp.
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Common Mistakes Too much club and not enough loft: I see a lot of 4-irons, hybrids, and fairway woods from the trees. This is a problem because the first thing we need in the strike is a little lift. Under a tree, the ground will either be loose pine needles, dirt, or unkept grass. None are beneficial to a longer club with minimal loft. On loose ground the player will often times hit behind the ball in an effort to keep the flight low, leading to chunky shots that don’t go far or pop up into the branches. In long grass, the club face can close at impact.
The Great 48 San Diego, California is a nearly perfect vacation spot, especially if you have a limited amount of time. The city has great lodging options, and amazing golf options.
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How to Escape From the Trees Setup: Take a normal stance and place the ball near the middle of your stance. Place slightly more weight into your lead foot. This will encourage a downward strike and in this body position the player is more likely to hit the ball first. Club Selection: Unless the tree has limbs that go all the way to the ground you will want to grab a club with some loft, like a six or seven iron. This will give the ball much needed lift at the strike, but the flight can still be controlled with proper pace. Swing: If your swing is fairly restricted the goal on this shot will be to simply put the ball back in play. In the backswing, take the club about hip high without setting the wrists. For the downswing we are looking to rotate our trunk through and finish with our hands and club pointing towards your target. Pace is a big key for this shot. The faster the motion, the more spin you will impart to the ball and the higher the flight will be.
Uneven golf swing: This happens a lot with a longer shafted club. The player will take a short and fast backswing and stab through the ball. The pace of the golf swing is typically too fast for the intended swing.
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for extra strokes on the scorecard.
Unrealistic Expectations: This is where the “hero” shot comes into play. The player tries to do too much with the shot. This is a recipe
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Alan Reese PGA Professional Salem Golf Club areese@pga.com
June 2019
