The post Viktor Hovland’s 1 simple tip for lag putting appeared first on Golf.

The post Viktor Hovland’s 1 simple tip for lag putting appeared first on Golf.

Sure, we might go through our pre-shot routine by reading the green, figuring out the speed and distance, and checking our aim, but there’s a common mistake that then sets in — trying to hole it out.

Do you know how often a PGA Tour player makes a putt from 20-25 feet? The best golfer on Tour from this range in 2024 (Max Greyserman) only drained it 23 percent of the time, meaning an Average Joe like you or me have an even slimmer chance to do so.

Instruction

That’s where lag putting comes into play, which focuses on dialing in your speed and just putting your first putt close enough to sink the second putt.

So what’s the best approach when lag putting from long distances? In the video below, six-time PGA Tour winner Viktor Hovland shares his favorite tips, which should help you avoid the temptation of locking in on the cup and instead just worry about leaving it close.

Viktor Hovland says to ignore the hole when putting from long distances

In the video, Hovland details his approach on a putt from a whopping 45 feet — which no amateur golfer should ever seriously consider holing out, even if you’re feeling hot with the putter.

Instead of focusing on draining it, Hovland says it’s most important to just focus on speed, making sure you leave the ball somewhere close enough to the cup to make your following attempt.

“[On putts from this type of distance], it’s very important to have the right speed, which is where I’d say I spend most of my time getting ready for a new tournament,” Hovland says.

Instruction

Instead of worrying about making it, Hovland suggests picking a spot just over halfway to the hole and being intentional about rolling it over that spot.

“When you’re really far away from the hole, instead of looking at the hole and thinking how far you need to hit it to get it to the hole, I pick a spot about 60 percent of the way and think about how fast the ball needs to roll over that point to just end up close to the hole,” he adds.

As you address the ball, be locked in on that spot you’re aiming for, focusing on your stroke size to ensure you’ve got the right distance control.

“Once I get my line and get over the ball, I take a couple practice swings to kind of look and feel how far that spot is,” Hovland explains. “When I’m standing over the ball, the line doesn’t matter, the stroke doesn’t matter — all you need to be focusing on is the speed.”

By following Hovland’s tips, you’ll become a better lag putter, which relieves the anxiety to hole every putt you hit. With the right practice and feel, you’ll start to shave strokes off your scorecard in no time.

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The post This warm-up routine will get you golf-ready before the first tee appeared first on Golf.

The post This warm-up routine will get you golf-ready before the first tee appeared first on Golf.

Sure, we probably yank on the occasional shoulder, or rotate our neck and back to feel like we’re warming up, but that’s not the optimal way to prep for a round.

So what’s a trusted golf warm up that engages all those important areas of the body? In the video below, elite mid-amateur Jonathan Bale — who competed in this year’s Bridges Cup for Team Europe — shares his go-to routine, which will help you quickly and efficiently get you ready for the round ahead.

A mid amateur, Jonathan Bale, shares his most-trusted warm up routine

Bale is a stud golfer who played college golf at Louisiana Tech, so he knows what it takes to compete on a high level.

In the video, Bale squashes a common misconception that many Average Joes have when it comes to the driving range — using it as the only area to warm up and get loose.

“Most people think when you come to the range you’re coming to warm up, but most of my warm-up is done before I get to the range,” Bale says. “Typically, about 2.5 hours before my tee time, I’ll be in the gym focusing on the areas of my body that I know need more attention than others.”

Fitness

Next, Bale says that he’s used body screening to help identify which areas he should primarily focus on during a warm up. For him, it’s his hips, glutes and spine.

“If I came [to the driving range] straight from breakfast or bed to hit balls for 30 minutes, I wouldn’t be warm,” he says. “My intention is to come to the range firing on all cylinders, so I can use the range to get a feel for the turf and a feel for my swing.”

So, how does Bale get himself loose, working on those three key areas?

“Getting back into my trail side [during the golf swing] is something I really struggle with,” he says. “If I bend over to do a typical hamstring stretch, with my knees just slightly bent, for the backswing, my left leg is slightly bent and my right leg stays straight.”

In the video, Bale turns into his backswing motion [without using a club], rotating his right hip upward so that his right arm stretches toward the sky and his left arm pushes against his left leg.

He then does the opposite for his through swing — all with the intention of helping his back, glutes and hips to loosen up.

“I can feel it all the way down my side and into my glute, then down into my IT band, and I’ll do 5-to-10 seconds on each side about five times,” he says. “I feel like that [stretch] just covers everything.”

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The post Powerboost your drives by doing this, says top teacher appeared first on Golf.

The post Powerboost your drives by doing this, says top teacher appeared first on Golf.

In my own experience, I’ve gained about 50 yards off the tee in the past 15 month by simply understanding where my body needs to be in the backswing and coming through at impact. It’s not always perfect, but when I connect, the damn thing launches off my clubface.

Driving

So what’s the key to generating the power you need to sequence properly and rip it off the tee?

In the video below, GOLF Top 100 Teacher Jonathan Yarwood helps answer that question, and provides a few tips to help you understand the swing moves to powerboost your tee shots in order to hit your driver farther. Now go ahead and amaze your playing partners.

Try these tips to hit your driver farther

Most amateur players struggle off the tee because they get out of the proper swing sequence, which likely leads to an over-the-top path — which produces those nasty slices we’ve all experienced more than we’d like to admit.

Yarwood recognizes this, and says that one of the reasons for this is because many players swing the driver like they would an iron, using a steeper angle of attack to compress the ball — but that’s not the goal with the driver.

Driving

“The biggest killer in good driving is either getting [the club] steep or getting the club path going from out-to-in,” Yarwood explains. “This creates a downward attack angle — and as soon as you get this, you’re in trouble, because it gets the low point too ahead of the ball.”

Yarwood says that incorporating some side tilt will be the first step in generating the right attack angle in order to hit your driver farther. To do this, drop the trail shoulder and use more of the ground come through the ball.

“What happens with a driver is, the trail side and the trail shoulder go down as the lead hip goes up and back,” Yarwood says. “So if you think trail side down and lead hip up and back, you’re going to start getting the right idea.”

To help feel this motion, Yarwood says try sticking the club in front of you and placing your left hand on top of its grip.

“Put your [left hand for right-handed golfers on top of the club’s grip], and move your trail side up and down and your lead hip up and back,” he instructs. “You’ll start to get what we call side bend, which makes the club get shallow, the club path is more out to the right, and the attack angle’s going to go up.”

Next, Yarwood says that simply sticking an alignment stick into the ground can be a good way to practice this motion.

“Put an alignment stick behind the ball and on line to the target, placing it at a little angle from the ground — just don’t put it too close to the ball,” he instructs. “Basically, swing underneath the [alignment stick] by getting some right side bend and getting the left hip up and out of the shot.”

Accessories

These changes take some time to get used to, but once you’re able to regularly incorporate them into your swing, you’ll be able to powerboost your drives for more distance.

“The path will be better, the plane will be better, and you won’t come over-the-top,” Yarwood adds. “So use some right side bend and get the left hip up.”

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The post These simple adjustments helped me nearly ace a tricky par-3 appeared first on Golf.

The post These simple adjustments helped me nearly ace a tricky par-3 appeared first on Golf.

Even if I hit a good tee shot, I somehow find myself three-putting and making bogey. And when I don’t hit the green? It’s usually because I chose the wrong club to begin with, leaving me short of the putting surface and forcing me to scramble to get up and down. Spoiler alert: which I don’t do often.

Funny thing is, I’m not alone, since par-3s can often ruin a mid-handicapper’s round due to lack of strategy or poor decision-making. Sure, these holes may be shorter and appear to be “easier,” but if you buy into that mentality, you’re probably like me and struggle with them.

So I decided to hit up my buddy for some help, GOLF Top 100 Teacher Brian Mogg, who gave me some easy adjustments to finally master par-3s — which you can see in the video below to help improve your game, too.

Try these changes for more success on par-3s

In this fun two-ball challenge, Mogg had me hit my shot as I normally would without any tips. Then he gave me some suggestions and had me hit another shot to see if I could produce a better outcome.

Since every golfer has probably done something like this on their own — where they hit a shot after going through a normal routine, botch it, then quickly hit another one without thinking and execute it to perfection — Mogg and I decided we should just show the differences on video to help other amateur golfers.

The hole we chose was the iconic 15th at Chambers Bay, which was playing about 140 yards from an elevated tee box with some headwind.

Here are some simple takeaways worth noting if you struggle with par-3s.

Always take more club than you think

After choosing to hit my pitching wedge (which is my 130- to 135-yard club), Mogg says I made a common mistake.

“I see so many amateurs pull out the perfect club for a par-3, hoping to hit the perfect shot,” he says. “The challenge on a downhill par-3 with your wedge is that, ultimately, your ball can plug in [the front] bunker really easy — which we never want to see happen.”

So Mogg suggests clubbing up from a pitching wedge all the way to an 8-iron, choking down, and committing to hitting my shot at about 80 percent effort instead. This gives me the confidence to be aggressive on this particular par-3.

“I was going to go 9-iron, but I’m actually taking the 8-iron out since we have a little bit of wind — so just choke it down and work on flow and tempo,” he says.

Tee up on the side of the flag on par-3s

After landing on my ideal club choice, Mogg picks apart my pre-shot plan, saying he didn’t like how I teed up in the middle of the tee box, and suggests moving to the side of the flagstick for my second attempt.

Instruction

“If the pin’s on the left, tee up on the left. If it’s on the right, tee off on the right,” he says. “It forces your shot to the middle of the green as a general miss.”

Ignore the flag when aiming

I’m not sure about you, but when I play a par-3, I always lock in on the flagstick — but this is a huge mistake.

With an entire green to land the ball on, Mogg tells me to find a different target instead.

“You’re lined up more toward the middle of the green, so pick out one of those hills near the back bunker,” he says. “Then just use a three-quarter swing with good rhythm and tempo.”

After making Mogg’s adjustments, even a slight mishit resulted in a near hole-in-one, with my ball hitting the slope just to the left off the green, rolling onto the putting surface and down near the flagstick, leaving me about four feet from the pin.

“You didn’t try to force a pitching wedge or try to hit a hard 9-iron,” Mogg says. “So [using a different] strategy is important on par-3s.”

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The post As an average player, is steep or shallow better? I did a deep-dive to find out appeared first on Golf.

The post As an average player, is steep or shallow better? I did a deep-dive to find out appeared first on Golf.

I’m the guy who stays on the range till sunset, not the one who hits a few balls and then analyzes each shot. That may be how some golfers improve, but for the current state of my game, more reps is what I need to feel the changes I need to make.

After all, just because you identify a problem with your golf swing doesn’t mean you know how to immediately fix it.

Instruction

Sure, I have access to the top golf teachers under the sun, but it’s not like they’re a secret elixir that instantly makes me shoot lower. With so many voices and philosophies, I need to try and pick and choose the tips that I’m most comfortable with.

That’s not a knock on them as teachers, but more of an admission that there’s a boatload of golf instruction out there — so filtering it to match your game can be tricky sometimes.

One debate that’s seemingly confused a lot of average golfers is the idea of being steep vs. shallow in the short game. Like, which one is suggested?

As someone who’s more of a shallow player, I’ve heard the argument from the other side about why being steep is best — but what do the experts say?

Steep vs. shallow: What’s better for the average golfer?

When it comes to learning the short game, two names really stand out: Parker McLachlin and Joe Mayo — with the former being more of a shallow guy and the latter being more of a steep guy.

Both work with pro players and have accolades that prove how their methods work for the best types of golfers. But what about the average golfer who still struggles with chunks or skulled shots? Which one is better: steep or shallow?

The case for being steep

Many people point to the viral video of Viktor Hovland from a couple of years ago as the coming out party for being steep in the short game.

In the clip, Hovland hits a soft flop shot and then immediately reacts by saying, “I’ve never been able to do that before. That was sick.”

But when you dive into the stats, Hovland’s short game hasn’t necessarily been all that much better than before he made the change.

In 2024, Hovland ranked 179th on Tour in strokes gained: Around-the-green, 165th in Scrambling, and 130th in Scrambling from the rough. By comparison, in 2021 he was 124th in strokes gained: Around-the-green, 59th in Scrambling, and 35th in Scrambling from the rough.

News

Why are those two seasons important to reference? Because Hovland famously said he “just sucks at chipping” in 2020 following a victory at the Puerto Rico Open. So how much did changing his attack angle really help him in the three years since?

I’m not saying being steep is a bad thing, but it sure is riskier — even for a pro of Hovland’s caliber.

Making things a bit more confusing is this: An old clip from a lesson between Mayo and pro Pat Perez, where Mayo instructs him to be shallower in the golf swing, highlighting the reasons for doing so — with the overarching theme being it’s simpler.

Sure, being steep is an option, but if you’re an average golfer like me, it’s a much riskier play — because you’ve got to be perfect in order to get that crisp feel of ball-first contact.

The case for being shallow

In my opinion, being shallow is the easier play as an amateur golfer. In fact, the whole premise is to protect the player from having a bad shot, with the shallower angle of attack meant to engage the bounce of the club — giving you a greater margin for error on mishits.

Since being shallower means having better control of both the clubhead and path, even a mishit can still be OK.

Now, that said, there are still risks — like chunking it if you get your weight leaning back, because the club can hit way before the ball and dig into the ground. But if you maintain proper fundamentals, a shallower attack angle is easier for the mid-handicapper to execute.

Short Game

McLachlin often preaches this, and prescribes to the mantra “sweep, not steep.”

“Around the greens, bounce is a savvy player’s insurance policy, so the trick to taking advantage of it is to avoid coming into the ball too steep,” he said. “It’s been proven that if you trace a wider swing arc, your probability of success on a pitch shot goes up.”

He then provided a visual to help understand why the bottom of the club should “glide” across the grass.

“Picture the bounce on your wedges as the bottom of a surfboard: If you come in at the correct angle, it helps the club skim across the turf. As it skims, it allows you to contact the ball on grooves two to five, which, due to the way wedges are designed, is where you’ll generate the most spin.”

While being steep vs. shallow in the short game is personal preference, if you’re like me, you’d rather play it safer near the greens in order to limit strokes. Being shallow tends to help me with that.

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The post A go-to guide for translating speed-training gains to the golf course appeared first on Golf.

The post A go-to guide for translating speed-training gains to the golf course appeared first on Golf.

Accessories

That’s where speed-training aids and programs really help the most.

But what happens when you’re starting to make progress during practice but can’t apply the learnings to the course? I asked GOLF Teacher to Watch Matt Henderson this very question, so he gave me some tips that can help every golfer seeking speed to stay confident, trust the process, and avoid any frustration.

Follow this plan to translate speed-training to your next round

“Plenty of golfers have turned to speed-training to gain more clubhead speed, utilizing different products or systems to properly develop more power,” Henderson says. “Typically, players use weighted clubs, go through a training plan, and chart their progress — likely through an app on their phone.”

While speed-training is a great option for players, Henderson cautions against doing it rogue, which can lead to inconsistencies, possible frustration, and even injuries.

Instruction

“Working on gaining speed can be a great option for a lot of golfers, and if your body is physically prepared to go through the training process, I’d recommend all players try it,” Henderson adds. “But I’ve noticed that lots of my students who have engaged in speed-training programs struggle to see their progress reflected on the course.

“While their clubhead speed is increasing and their distance numbers are going up during training, when they don’t see the gains translate to their next round, they can get irritated.”

To help avoid experiencing this for yourself, Henderson shares a four-phase system that helps bring any speed-training gains from practice to performance — so here’s his step-by-step approach.

Phase 1: Driver, no ball, no radar

In this first phase, take a high-intensity swing with your driver — but don’t use a ball or a radar, just pure speed. This eliminates concerns about direction and center-face contact, allowing you to focus purely on accelerating your swing with your actual driver, not a training aid. Practicing at full-speed and with intent helps build comfort and confidence with your own club, as opposed to adjusting to the difference between the weight of a training aid and your driver.

Phase 2: Driver, net, and radar

Once you’re comfortable swinging at high speeds, move to a net and introduce the radar, hitting actual balls. Practicing in a net allows you to focus internally, ignoring direction or distance, and to concentrate only on the speed numbers showing up on the radar. This phase trains you to push your limits, achieving higher speeds without the mental confines of trying to keep the ball in play.

Phase 3: Driving range, ball, and radar

In this phase, it’s time to transition to the driving range with your driver, using a radar to monitor your speed. Focus on the clubhead speed and trying to get the numbers to be similar to what you experienced in the previous stage. In this controlled setting, it’s not uncommon to add in some light cardio (such as jumping jacks) to boost your intensity and keep your swing as fast as possible.

Phase 4: On-course proofing

Finally, bring your driver to the course and test yourself in real-life conditions, using a launch monitor to assess your true on-course speed. This phase emphasizes taking your swing intensity up a notch in real play — a skill that I found with students is essential for maintaining speed gains made in training. Testing on-course reveals the true transfer of your training gains and helps you adjust for competitive situations.

“Small changes can make a significant difference when translating training gains to actual rounds,” Henderson adds. “By using this four-step process, you’ll have a clearer, more consistent path to improved clubhead speed on the course and not just in practice.”

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The post How a baseball and glove can help you master the perfect takeaway appeared first on Golf.

The post How a baseball and glove can help you master the perfect takeaway appeared first on Golf.

Instruction

For instance, if your takeaway is inconsistent, your club path is probably off, your clubface probably isn’t square and your body sequencing may be a little wonky.

Outside of practicing over and over how to get the feel of a good takeaway, there are some awesome drills that can help, too.

In the video below, GOLF Top 100 Teacher Jason Baile shares one that uses a baseball and a glove, which can help you feel and see the critical components of a proper takeaway.

Improve your takeaway with a baseball and glove (seriously!)

“For somebody like me who has struggled with the takeaway, I like this imagery [of using a ball and glove],” Baile says. “If I have a ball and a glove after fielding it, and I was going to take it out to throw it, I would kind of curl my right wrist up as I take the ball out of my glove.”

He then demonstrates how many amateurs struggle with the takeaway, showing how many roll their wrists over, which can create the wrong kind of path.

“[The wrong way] is rolling the right wrist [more behind you],” he adds.

Instruction

But by feeling (or envisioning) the same sensation you get when taking the ball out of the glove, you can keep your arms in the proper spots and your club on-plane — leading to more consistent ball-striking.

“If I take my golf club and feel like I’m just taking the ball out of my glove, I curl my knuckles right up to my right wrist, the club stays just a little bit outside the hands, stays square to the arc, and I can then put both hands on [the grip] to feel that same kind of levering action,” he says. “I tend to get the club rolling in [behind me] quite a bit, so this image [of taking a baseball out of a glove] helps me a bunch.”

So, sure, it may look funny bringing a baseball and glove to the driving range, but you’ll have the last laugh with your pals when you start hitting straighter, longer shots thanks to better contact.

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The post This ‘Simon Says’ drill gave me confidence to hit all sorts of shots appeared first on Golf.

The post This ‘Simon Says’ drill gave me confidence to hit all sorts of shots appeared first on Golf.

Unlike other lessons, which tend to focus on swing fixes or fundamentals, GOLF Top 100 Teacher Jamie Mulligan tested my resolve by throwing me right into the lion’s den, working with former LPGA player Veronica Felibert to do a “Simon Says” golf drill.

So how’s it work? Just like the kids game, Felibert would hit certain shots and I would need to duplicate those — which, as a mid-handicapper, was no easy task. But to get better at golf and improve my ball-striking skills, I had to learn how to get comfortable being uncomfortable.

That doesn’t mean this particular golf drill was easy.

Instruction

At one point during filming, I turned to my cameraperson, Tiff, and whispered, “There’s no way in hell I’m going to be able to do that.” With the help (and encouragement) of both Mulligan and Felibert, though, I was able to surprise myself.

Whether it was improving my clubface control or learning how to master distance, this tricky drill gave me confidence to see positive results — which is the first step towards trusting the process and continuing to learn.

Check out my lesson below, and see why this golf drill is a great way to elevate your game.

Rethink your practice with this fun golf drill

As golfers, we can put a lot of pressure on ourselves to get better. So we grind on the range, obsess over seeing improvement, and use more than a few curse words when things don’t go our way.

But Mulligan says part of this golf drill is to relieve some of that golf stress and just enjoy the process.

“Everybody tries too hard at this sport, it blows me away,” Mulligan says. “So we’re going to have some fun today, play ‘Simon Says’, and walk you through a little practice [drill].”

Instruction

So Mulligan has Felibert and me address the ball with just one hand on the club, instructing us to take a small swing to just feel the club drop.

“Use a ‘I don’t care’ [kind of swing],” Mulligan says. “Just really tiny, and don’t worry so much about hitting the ball. Allow the club to just fall back down.”

Mulligan steps over to me and helps guide the club with his hand, telling me to overcome the “trepidation” I have about swinging one-handed so lazily. But that’s the whole point of this drill — just to help feel the low point of the club hitting the turf.

He asks me to explain the difference in feeling when I released control of the club to let him swing it.

“I let the club do the work,” I reply. “You can tell when I’m trying to grip and guide [the club], that that’s where I’m having the mishits.”

Learn to master distances on pitch shots

Mulligan then moves to the next Simon Says drill, and has Felibert work on controlling distance with pitch shots — literally standing in the line of fire and having her softly hit balls to him.

“If I was a tiny kid and you were going to pitch a shot to me, can you do so by landing it [just a few feet between us], making sure it rolls to me really lightly,” he asks.

After watching Veronica do it, Mulligan has me work on the same drill, which forces me to really dial back my swing length and use supremely soft touch — more so from fear of hitting the person standing 10 feet in front of me.

“[Use a] really tiny swing and good touch,” Mulligan instructs.

Short Game

Mulligan then backs up about 8-to-10 feet, making sure we execute the drill to a farther distance — but still maintaining soft touch and distance control.

“The length of your swing is increasing, but still be back and through,” he tells me. “You’re getting some nice touch, so just allow the club to do the work.”

Thanks to the added pressure of having someone else standing there in front of me, it loosened me up, and forced me to let the club do the work to ensure that I was coming up short and rolling the ball to the person.

So this is a fun way to loosen up before a range session or a full round, just helping clear your mind and trust yourself in key scoring situations.

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The post Is cross-handed chipping for you? Here’s why it could improve your wedge control appeared first on Golf.

The post Is cross-handed chipping for you? Here’s why it could improve your wedge control appeared first on Golf.

Although you might think about different putting grips as the place players experiment the most, another area that’s worth exploring is the cross-handed chipping grip, which isn’t extremely popular but can be extremely effective in improving your short game.

So is it really all that it’s cracked up to be?

Short Game

To find out, I asked GOLF Top 100 Teacher Joey Wuertemberger to give me a full guide on the benefits of cross-handed chipping. His biggest answer? More consistent clubface control to help make better contact.

But how does this funky grip work, and is it something you should try for yourself? Wuertemberger explains below, and encourages any player struggling with his short game to consider making the switch.

The benefits of cross-handed chipping

“When you watch a golf event on TV, you’ve probably heard the commentators praise a player for being ‘creative’ in the short game,” Wuertemberger explains. “In most cases, they’re referring to the player’s ability to see and adjust to challenging lies, and then to execute the precise shot required to knock it close to the pin.”

So what helps the pros pull off those pressure packed up-and-downs that so many amateurs have a hard time with? Wuertemberger says it all begins with having better clubface control — which starts in the hands.

News

“Pros use more of a body-driven motion with reduced tension in their arms, helping them ‘quiet’ their hands to better control the clubhead path through impact in the short game,” he adds. “This improved contact allows them to execute the shot they envisioned before ever addressing the ball.”

But just because a pro’s a pro doesn’t mean the mid-handicapper reading this can’t steal some of their secrets to increase their up-and-down percentages. And one way, albeit unconventional, is to try cross-handed chipping, according to Wuertemberger.

“Cross-handed chipping promotes the use of your larger muscles (like the shoulders and upper torso),” he explains. “By simply swapping your hands on the grip (with the left hand low for righties, and the right hand low for lefties), you gain a new sense of control and stability — which naturally helps reduce the tension in the wrists and forearms to allow for a smoother and more relaxed swing. This encourages a straighter, more controlled club path — a must when you’re seeking clean contact and more accurate shots.”

Wuertemberger says that this new hand stability will free your mind and allow you to focus more on the proper weight transfer and shoulder rotation — instead of trying to compensate for flaws in the downswing.

“Too many amateurs either ‘break the wrists’ or ‘flip the club’ to save the shot at the last moment while chipping,” he says. “But there’s no consistency when doing these small hand and wrist adjustments, which is why you probably blade or chunk your wedges more frequently than you’d prefer.”

How to practice cross-handed chipping

OK, so now that you understand why cross-handed chipping can help your short game, Wuertemberger explains how to actually practice the unique technique — which simply starts with using your favorite wedge on the range to help get the feel for the switch.

“Begin by placing the lead hand below the trail hand on the club, ensuring both hands feel comfortable. The lead hand should be firm but not overly tight, which helps allow for a smooth motion,” he instructs. “Next, shift 60 percent of your weight onto the lead foot and position the ball just slightly back in your stance to promote a descending strike.

“When swinging, use your shoulders rather than your hands. I suggest taking some small practice swing at a slow pace to feel how the cross-handed grip quiets your hands (and prevents excessive wrist movement) throughout the swing.”

Instruction

After taking some practice swings, Wuertemberger reminds players to use solid fundamentals to make good contact.

“Notice where the clubhead’s striking the ground and adjust the ball position accordingly, since you want contact with the ball first and not the ground behind it,” he adds. “Now hit 6-to-8 standard chip shots, trying to land the ball a few different places on the green to see how far they run out. Once you’re comfortable, try incorporating more variety, such as a bump-and-run or some short pitches to increase your creativity around the green.”

While cross-handed chipping may seem unusual, it can be a game-changer for the player who feels stuck with an inconsistent short game. So if you experience bad results while chipping and tend to chunk or thin chip shots, try making the switch to the cross-handed grip, which can lead to better contact, added clubface control, reduced wrist movement, and more positive results.

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The post Don’t let tricky downhill lies ruin a hole, do this instead appeared first on Golf.

The post Don’t let tricky downhill lies ruin a hole, do this instead appeared first on Golf.

The key to hitting these wonky-looking shots is having solid fundamentals — with the setup being most important.

That’s where GOLF Top 100 Teacher Shawn Callahan comes in.

Below, Callahan offers up tips for those who struggle with downhill lies and provides some guidance to gain more confidence, find more success, and, eventually conquer uneven lies without any fear.

Make these adjustments to master downhill lies

OK, so you’ve hit a great drive down the middle of the fairway and are beaming with confidence. But then you realize your upcoming approach shot has left you with an uneven lie — a tricky shot to negotiate.

Since it’s common to hit this shot either fat or thin, Callahan says you need to first focus on your setup, and avoid shifting your weight back.

“The inclination for a lot of golfers is to keep their weight on the back foot and try to help the ball into the air by swinging up on the shot,” he explains. “This can cause you to either hit behind the ball (producing a fat shot), or glancing the top-half of the ball (producing a thin shot).”

Instead, Callahan offers up simple techniques to use that’ll keep you from ruining a great drive with a poor approach shot.

“First, take one less club for the distance, since the slope decreases the dynamic loft of the shot,” he adds. “Next, play the ball slightly forward in your stance, square your shoulders to the slope that you’re on, and make sure to feel your weight is slightly forward at address.”

After locking in your setup, Callahan says shortening the backswing can lead to more success on downhill lies.

“I suggest making a three-quarter-length backswing, since over-swinging in this situation can cause a mishit. Keep it short like a punch shot,” he instructs. “Control is the main objective, so make sure to swing down the slope, feeling the club stay closer to the ground on the follow-through.”

By following the tips above, you should produce a solid shot with a lower ball trajectory.

“Ball control and scoring are the name of the game, and a lot of golf is simply avoiding big mistakes,” Callahan adds.

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The post Don’t let tricky downhill lies ruin a hole, do this instead appeared first on Golf.