A lot of times on
the golf course you will find that you are not in the middle of
the fairway, or not in the fairway at all. Putting yourself in
and around a tree on the practice range will help your decision
making out on the golf course on what golf club to choose, and
how to play it.
Most good golfers
put themselves in trouble shot situations and bad lies on the
practice range. Practicing this drill for a month, two or three
times a week with a large bucket of golf balls each time, will
improve your trouble shot making, and help lower your scores.
You will find with practice and persistence you can save a par,
or even birdie one or two holes out on the golf course more
often than not. Keep in mind, saving a few strokes or better is
50% skill and 50% luck that you will succeed. The odds will
increase or decrease depending on how much you practice these
golf shots out on the practice range. It is always a good idea
to play it safe, by chipping out.
By practicing golf
trouble shot drills on the golfing range, you will sometimes
visualize a prior practice shot taken on the range when you’re
confronted with a trouble shot out on the golf course.
Visualizing the golf shot from this practice routine requires a
little bit of consistent practice. The golf shot will be a lot
easier if you have done it many times over. You will need to
take six golf clubs, (3 iron, 5 iron, 7 iron, wedge, 5 wood and
driver) or your favorite golf clubs to the practice range along
with a huge bucket of balls to keep your golf memory in shape.
The idea of this trouble shot practice is to memorize distance
and ball flight using different clubface ball positions and
lies. This is a very enjoyable practice routine and exercise
that requires a little patience, imagination and memory.
Find a tree between the golf ball and the green. You do not need
a green behind the tree. It would be a lot more fun to watch
your golf shots land and roll on the green, if there was one
nearby. Stand behind the tree and hold the grip of the golf club
with your fingers, and rest the club head on the grass with the
clubface facing you. Put the bottom of your foot on the face of
the golf club and let the grip go. Look and see if the tip of
the golf club is pointing upwards and over the tree. Should the
grip end of the golf club point at any part of the tree. Chances
are, you haven’t got enough club loft to go over. You may need
to go under the tree or find a loftier club. You can do this
test with any club iron on the golf course.
The idea of
this drill is to know how low and far you can roll a golf ball
out to the fairway or green, and how much distance and loft you
need to get over a tree. The key memory for the practice would
be the golf club selection for both the loft and distance for
the target you’re aiming for. One club may be low enough to get
you under the obstacle, but may be too much club for the target
area. You may want to consider choking down on the club to take
a little distance off the shot. The other club may have enough
loft, but not enough distance. Do this routine with different
club selections often. For the distant trouble shots try a 1
wood and a 3 iron under the branches of a tree. (Use extra
caution for these clubs near a tree. Also look around for other
players before attempting any blind golf shot.)
With
your first 10 balls, practice hitting it low to the ground.
Always pick a target and put some kind of obstacle in front of
you. Practice with a tree right in front of you or 100 yards
away with the imaginary green behind it, if you have no access
to a practice green. Try to keep the golf ball from flying into
the tree, or make the ball land just before and roll beyond onto
your imaginary target or green. You will have to use your
imagination for this shot and practice with several different
clubface positions. You need to practice playing the ball in
front, middle, or back in your stance. You may want to practice
going around the tree if you’re a substantial distance from the
green. Close the clubface to help it hook, or open the face of
the club to help slice it around the tree. There are a lot of
good professional teachers, books and videos on the Internet to
help you master the hook and slice effect of the ball at will.
Practice your chipping distance for certain clubs, by chipping
out to the side of trouble. It is a good idea to know how far
you can chip a certain golf club so you don’t end up on the
other side of the fairway, and or behind another obstacle.
Practice your trouble shots in a sand trap as well. Place a
group of balls behind a big lip of a sand trap. Move some in the
front and back of the trap. Do not forget to stand on a couple
of golf balls for that buried golf ball effect. Now take your
time hitting the golf balls, keeping in mind for an open
clubface, and a slightly closed clubface for those buried lies.
Is the sand hard or soft? Take more sand for shorter distances
from the flagstick, and less sand for those longer shots. Your
target for striking the sand should be 1 to 3 inches behind the
golf ball, depending on your distance from the flagstick.
Accelerate at impact. Follow through and do not quit on the
shot. Again you will find more information on the Internet for
mastering these types of trouble shots. Practice until you
prefer to be in a trap on the golf course, because it's your
favorite golf shot. This will raise your level of confidence
when approaching a green on the course with bunkers around it.
With enough practice you will actually see the ball drop in the
hole coming out of the bunker from time to time. Eventually you
will find yourself on the green trying to read the roll of the
putting surface before you take the bunker shot.
Take out
your 5 wood to practice aiming for the tall timbers. Know your
distance. The 5 wood flies high and far. Try to put yourself
close to the trees and back, to see how close is too close, and
how far back is too far back. Do not forget to practice those
long high fades and draw shots.
When you have
practiced this drill enough times, it will almost seem like
second nature when attempting these same golf trouble shots. You
will either impress your foursome or make them stand there in
awe. The other ingredients you will need to benefit from this
practice routine are confidence and a positive mindset. The game
of golf is almost magical at times. What seems impossible at
times can have yourself shaking your head in disbelief and
saying to yourself. “I can play like a pro!”
About the Author:
Learned to play golf as a caddie. Later on made the High School
golf team. Played 54 holes a day during school summer break to
keep my game in shape. You can find discount tee times at
http://www.golfanchor.net and a
online golf store at
http://www.golfanchor.com
