Fixing Your Golf Swing Now

Archive for November, 2009

There are two kinds of position shots – the kind you hope ends up on the green,
and the kind you hope to put in position so that you can play the next shot
to the green.

If you are serious about lowering your score and becoming a better golfer,
then you should be hitting more of the latter type.

However, I realize you can easily reach a lot of holes out there in two
shots if you hit a good drive, and you you will most often try to do that.

So if you’ve got anything more than a 5 iron in your hand and you’re playing
toward the green, consider the following advice

The first thing to think about is club selection. Many golfers are not big
fans of long irons, but I realize that most players carry at least a 4 iron.
You might even prefer the 3 iron for all I know.

I just suggest a green light for long irons when the situation has all of
the following attributes:

- There is no trouble in front of the green that is going to prevent the ball
from running onto the green if you mis-hit it.

- You’re playing into the wind.

- The hole is cut in the back of the green.

- The green is at least average in depth, preferably even deeper than normal.

Notice Anything Odd About Those Suggestions?

They make an assumption – and that assumption is that there a big chance that
you are going to hit the ball thin. That is the most common mistake with long irons.
But if you play them only when the shot has all of the above characteristics,
you’ll be fine.

If you hit it well, you are in business. If you hit it badly, you’re still in
business. I also suggest that you aim for the side of the green that will offer
you the most room between you and the hole in case you miss the green to that side.

In other words, if the hole is on the left, aim for the right side of the green,
and if the hole is on the right, aim for the left side of the green. If you mis-hit
the ball, you’ll probably miss the green on the side you aimed at, and you’ll be
facing an easier up-and-down situation.

Now if it is a toss-up between a long iron and a fairway wood, you should
always reach for the fairway wood if:

- The green is elevated, that is, it’s higher than the fairway.

- There is a bunker or other hazard directly fronting the green, or close enough
that it presents only a narrow gap that a ball would have to get lucky to run through.

- You are downwind or there is virtually no wind.

- You need the ball to stop almost immediately when it hits the green.

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