We’ve all been here before and you know we’ll do it again… so let’s find the easiest way to get out of jail, in the woods that is! I know this is an important subject because I run into so many people that carry an extra club in their bag, strictly for the purpose of punching out of the trees. We are going to teach you to hit this shot with one of your other clubs so that you can free up that position in your bag for another hybrid or wedge or whatever it is you need more than that one silly 2 iron with such a limited use.
Step one… do you really need to try to hit this as hard as you can? After all, if you connect, the chances are the ball is going to run through the entire fairway and into the trees on the other side! This hard swing will also tend to make the ball jump up into the air and the limbs dangling right in front of you. The lesson is to make a smaller, half swing that is more like a pitch shot than like a full swing. When using a 4-5 iron or hybrid, this length swing will easily make the ball run 100 yards or more… plenty of yardage to get out of the woods and back on the fairway.
Let’s make sure we’ve set up correctly to ensure we get the most out of our efforts. Please put the ball back in your stance, 4-6 inches back of your usual ball placement. This should put the ball close to in front of your back foot.
We’re also going to de-loft the club by shoving our hands ahead of the ball until they’re almost inline with your lead thigh. Please make sure that the club face continues to point at the target as it can be easy to let it point right when you move your hands ahead.
Now you’re ready! Use the half wedge length swing we spoke of above and focus on returning your hands and club head to the position we used at address with the handle leaning towards the target. There is no need to swing hard, just take it easy!
Step one… do you really need to try to hit this as hard as you can? After all, if you connect, the chances are the ball is going to run through the entire fairway and into the trees on the other side! This hard swing will also tend to make the ball jump up into the air and the limbs dangling right in front of you. The lesson is to make a smaller, half swing that is more like a pitch shot than like a full swing. When using a 4-5 iron or hybrid, this length swing will easily make the ball run 100 yards or more… plenty of yardage to get out of the woods and back on the fairway.
Let’s make sure we’ve set up correctly to ensure we get the most out of our efforts. Please put the ball back in your stance, 4-6 inches back of your usual ball placement. This should put the ball close to in front of your back foot.
We’re also going to de-loft the club by shoving our hands ahead of the ball until they’re almost inline with your lead thigh. Please make sure that the club face continues to point at the target as it can be easy to let it point right when you move your hands ahead.
Now you’re ready! Use the half wedge length swing we spoke of above and focus on returning your hands and club head to the position we used at address with the handle leaning towards the target. There is no need to swing hard, just take it easy!