How to Get out of Golf Trouble Spots
By Steve Silverman
Golf is a game of challenges. Some players find it difficult to hit the ball consistently off the tee. Others find it hard to hit the ball from the fairway. Most golfers find putting to be one of the most difficult aspects of the game to master. However, almost all golfers have problems when they are in difficulty. Whether they are in a fairway bunker, a greenside bunker, under a tree or stuck in the rough, golfers have to learn how to cope with adversity.
Instructions
Difficulty: Moderate
Hit the sand behind the ball when you are in a greenside bunker. Most beginners have no clue how to hit the ball when in the sand near the green. You cannot hit the ball directly or it will fly past the green. In order to hit the ball effectively and put it on the green, you have to hit the sand 3 to 6 inches behind the ball. The sand then explodes into the ball and carries it out of the trap. This type of escape from a bunker is called an explosion shot.
Sweep the ball out of the fairway bunker with a stroke that hits the ball directly. When you are more than 150 yards from the green, you need to hit the ball and not explode into it. Hit with a sweeping motion that allows you to hit the ball cleanly. If your ball is not buried, hitting out of the fairway bunker should be relatively simple. However, you'll need a clean and confident swing. If the ball is buried -- meaning more than half of the ball is covered with sand -- hit behind the ball and let the sand take it out of the hazard. Your next shot will be the one in which you attempt to hit the ball to the green.
Pound down on the ball when you are in the rough. By hitting down on the ball with your iron, your club will force the ball up and out of the rough. You must swing with sufficient force that your club does not get held up in the high grass. If you hit down and follow through, your ball will fly out of the rough.
Chip the ball out of trouble if you are behind a tree. The path of least resistance is the one to follow. If you have a tree in front of you and you believe your chances of getting around the tree is about 25 percent or less, do not try to hit the heroic shot. Instead, hit the ball from behind the tree into the fairway and then deliver your next shot to the green. Golfers need to use good judgement when facing difficult obstacles.
Chip the ball at the hole when you are playing on a hard, sun-baked surface. In the summer, some courses tend to get hard and that makes it impossible to pitch the ball high and land it effectively. However, if you chip the ball and keep it low and let it bounce up to the green, you have a better chance of getting it to stop near the hole than if you try to hit it high with a pitch shot.
Tips & Warnings
Calm down and think your shot through before you attack it on the course.
About The Author
Steve Silverman is an award-winning writer, covering sports since 1980. Silverman authored The Minnesota Vikings: The Good, The Bad and The Ugly and Who's Better, Who's Best in Football -- The Top 60 Players of All-Time, among others, and placed in the Pro Football Writers of America awards three times. Silverman holds a Master of Science in journalism from the Medill School of Journalism.
