Ball above & below feet advice!

[jmc.11]

Hi everyone!

The course I play on has a lot of fairways which the ball end's up either above or below your feet, between 4-10 inches.
I never know how I should play these shots, and which way is the ball likely to go in each situation!!

Any help would be great!

Thanks
Sorry I have put this post in the wrong section!!!

[TeachingPro]

Re: Ball above & below feet advice!

The ball flight will always follow the downslope. So if the ball is below your feet you're going to get a left-right ball flight. If the ball is ubove your feet you'll get a right-left ball flight.

If you are standing uphill, the ball will fly higher and if you're on a downhill, the ball will fly lower.

[ph_kingston]

Re: Ball above & below feet advice!

It's rare to get a nice flat lie on the course I play so here's what I do to get good results from these awkward positions.

The key to these shots is to keep the lower body quiet and use the hands more in the shot. By keeping your lower body quiet, it's easier to maintain the spine angle so you don't hit the ball fat or thin. You'll reduce weight transfer so the power will come more from the hands. Remember to swing easy though to ensure a crisp contact and maybe take one more club to encourage this and compensate for the reduced weight transfer.

With the ball above your feet you'll need to stand more upright to compensate for the slope. With the ball below your feet you'll need to lean over a little more and possibly increase your knee-flex, depending on the severity of the slope, to prevent yourself from falling over. Personally I also move the ball back a little in my stance to promote more of a punch shot.

[jscerbo]

Re: Ball above & below feet advice!

Ball above your feet:

You need to aim right of the target, choke down on the club, put your weight more toward your toes, and you must maintain your spine angle(stay level through the shot)

Ball below your feet:

Aim left of the target, take one more club(club up i.e. 6 to 5), put weight more towards your heels, and you must maintain your spine angle.

[jmc.11]

Re: Ball above & below feet advice!

Great advice again!

Thanks all, Lets hope I can start shooting some better scores and playing better golf.