Joe,
I hear lots of advice when hitting to a green, to always take an extra club so you do not short-side yourself. Do you agree?
Dean
Hi Dean,
Not always. I would agree if there were no dangers front or back and the green was not severely sloped, but if the green is sloped from back to front, it is far easier to get down in 2 from the front. It is much harder to stop a steep downhill putt near the hole. Many people not only 3-putt from the back, but also will 4-putt from the back if they leave their first putt short because if they miss the second putt it may roll 4 feet past, and I don’t know anyone who has never missed a 4-footer.
Joe
Tuesday, March 07, 2006
Joe,
I have tried everything to correct the hitting of my second shot FAT. I've moved the ball up, to the middle and to the back. What do you recommend to help me?
Mickey
Long Beach, CA
Hi Mickey,
Fat iron shots can be caused by a number of things, among the possibilities are improper weight shift on the downswing, trying to scoop the ball up instead of hitting down, a sideways sway on the backswing, or head dipping down during the downswing. As I have said several times before, Jack Nicklaus’ instructor used to grab the back of his hair to make sure it remained steady during the swing. Helped his career but gave him a funny looking “do”. Some instructors say it is OK to move your head sideways because it can add power to your swing, but I say extra power is useless if you are prone to hitting fat shots. Keeping the head more steady also helps to prevent overswinging, which is another possible cause for fat shots.
Joe
I have tried everything to correct the hitting of my second shot FAT. I've moved the ball up, to the middle and to the back. What do you recommend to help me?
Mickey
Long Beach, CA
Hi Mickey,
Fat iron shots can be caused by a number of things, among the possibilities are improper weight shift on the downswing, trying to scoop the ball up instead of hitting down, a sideways sway on the backswing, or head dipping down during the downswing. As I have said several times before, Jack Nicklaus’ instructor used to grab the back of his hair to make sure it remained steady during the swing. Helped his career but gave him a funny looking “do”. Some instructors say it is OK to move your head sideways because it can add power to your swing, but I say extra power is useless if you are prone to hitting fat shots. Keeping the head more steady also helps to prevent overswinging, which is another possible cause for fat shots.
Joe
