Dealing With A Bad Lie

e eventually lands in a bad lie. It's just a fact of life.Coil your upper body over your flexed right knee. As
Even a good shot sometimes ends up in a divot.you coil, you'll shift your weight slightly backward,
Shots off the mark, on the other hand, sometimespositioning to hit the ball with a strong descending
land on bare ground or in the rough. Pitchingblow.
successfully from a bad lie cuts strokes from yourYou'll need force to punch the clubhead down into
score and positions you for your next shot.the back of the ball, driving it forward. Most of your
A key to pitching from a bad lie is maintaining yourweight should be on the front foot at impact, while
focus. Pitching from a divot or bare ground isn't asyour head should be centered over the ball as the
tricky as it seems, if you do. In fact, it's fairlyclubhead cuts through the grass. Also, keep your
straightforward, as I've often say in my golf tips. It'sleft-hand firm.
just a question of selecting the right club and makingIn my golf lessons I show students a photograph of
a few adjustments.a club striking the ball when hitting from a bad lie. The
Here are 5 things you absolutely must do in order tophoto shows that the angle of the shaft relative to
chip well out of a bad lie:the target is shifted forward quite dramatically. It also
1. Select a club with a sharp leading edgeshows the hands leading the clubhead through impact.
2. Position the ball in the middle (or back) of stanceA ball landing in deep rough is one of the few times
3. Keep your hands ahead of the ballon a golf course where brute force is required. Don't
4. Set wrists slightly earlierchange your swing; just put some muscle into it.
5. Take a steeper attack angle on downswingYour main goal here is simply to get of the grass and
No single club is ideal for hitting from a bad lie. While aonto the fairway, in good shape for the next shot.
sand wedge is tempting, it's better to hit a pitchingThe last thing you want to do, as I emphasize in my
wedge or a 9 iron. Their sharper leading edgesgolf lessons, is ending up in the rough again.
increase your chances of striking the ball solidly. ClubAlso, experiment with different clubs. Experimentation
selection, as I emphasize in my golf lessons, is almostwill tell you which clubs you hit best from which lie. Of
as important as technique, so choose wisely.course, not every pitch shot has to be perfect. So
Also key to hitting from bad lies is your attack angle.try hitting the ball close to the pin by landing on spots
After selecting your club assume a normal posture,other than the green, such as a few feet in front of
with the hands ahead of the ball and the club shaftthe hole, and letting the ball roll. Or, try using the
and your left arm (for right-handers) forming a directgreen's contour help funnel the shot to the hole.
line down to the ball positioned in the middle of yourLanding in a bad lie doesn't have to ruin a good hole.
stance or toward the back of it. Lean forwardIf you maintain focus, choose the right club, and
slightly. The ball position and weight shift encourage amake adjustments to your stance and swing, you'll
steeper angle of attack than usual.be able to hit successfully from a bad lie. Players with
The downswing is similar to hitting a pitch shot fromlow golf handicaps are adept at this. Players with high
a clean fairway lie, except for the wrists. Set thesegolf handicaps, on the other hand, need to practice
slightly earlier in the takeaway than normally. Alsothis. Once you've developed confidence in your ability
critical is the centering of your weight over the ball.to do so, you'll take landing in a bad lie in stride.