Playing In Wind

Video Transcript

Hi, this is Brent Franklin from the McGetrick Golf Academy here in Denver, Colorado. What I want to talk to you about right now is how to play in the wind or how to hit wind shots. Most people who are not very experienced in windy conditions tend to try to hit the ball way to hard. They think that if they are in to the wind that means they have to hit the ball harder. What that does is it actually creates a lot more spin on the ball, more backspin, and it creates a bigger dispersion. Meaning if you spin it just a little off line into the wind it is going to carry it a lot farther off line. What you really want to do when you are in to the wind is take a little more club and make sure you hit the ball easy. There is an old saying, when it is breezy swing easy. It is a very good rule to live by when you are playing in windy conditions. All I am going to do is choke down on the club a little bit. I am going to toe the face in just a hair so I don't hit the balloon shot that goes up to the right, and I am going to make a very controlled easy swing. I do not want to hit this hard. The ball is going to be middle or maybe a touch back in my stance for a short iron, but once again with the whole swing, it is going to be basically three quarters each way and it is not going to struck very hard. If your normal 9-iron goes 100 and 30 five yards, well if you are 100 and fifteen or 20 yards into a pretty good wind, you would be surprised how far you can hit it if you just back off, lower the trajectory and hit it a lot easier. It will tend to go a little bit farther. It won't balloon and go as high. Easy swing, three quarter swing, not very hard, just control the ball flight. Remember, when it's breezy swing easy.