Your stance can help you draw or fade a shot and also help with a low flight off the tee to help take the wind out of the equation.

THE DRAW
First up is the draw, where the ball needs to start on the right of the target and curve to the left all the way to the target point. This is an ideal shot if you are faced with a dogleg left. To get the curve you will need the club face ‘closed’ to the path it is on, and add that right-to-left spin.

For that we aim to the right with the line of our body (feet, hips and shoulders) and swing the club in this direction while keeping the face of the club on the target, so club face is closed to the path of club.

THE FADE
Next up is the fade, where the ball needs to start on the left of our target and curve to the right (dogleg right). To get the curve you will need to club face ‘open’ to the path that’s is on, which should feel left.

This time around, we do the opposite with our body, aligning our feet, hips and shoulders left of the target and swing the club in this direction. Remember to keep the face of the club on the intended target.

LOW FLIGHT
Finally, sometimes you could be faced with a straight approach from the tee, but you are playing into the wind. Here, a low-trajectory flight is perfect to help take most of that wind out of play as a high ball will get caught and stop dead. 

To achieve this, your set up in front the ball needs to be altered. Try to tee up the ball lower than normal, with the ball in the centre of your stance. Try to get a feel for something like a punch and hold your finish half way, keeping your hands, arms and clubhead lower than usual during your finish.

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Lea Pouillard is PGA teaching professional at Dubai Creek Golf & Yacht Club’s Peter Cowen Academy Dubai.

More golf tips and instruction:
The flight of the ball will dictate how far the ball will roll
How to maximise the distance off the tee
Master your short-game options around the green
Putt in place on the dancefloor
Straight to the point for short-game success
It is never too late to pick up a club for the first time — some tips to get started
Mobility and stability are key links in the chain to golf fitness
The chips are down if the hips are right
Looking for more power? It’s all about kinetic sequence forces
Understand golf’s power chain and how to avoid a weak link in your swing
Why solid putting starts with a sound set-up
Alignment is a fine balancing act to stabilise clubface
Why you are wasting your time on the range
Claude Harmon III’s simple impact drill
How Billy Horschel’s simple backswing move will make you a better ball-striker

The post WATCH: A fade, draw or low flight can get you on the dancefloor when tee shots prove tricky appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

By Lea Pouillard
Often when you find yourself on the fringe of the green, a simple chip is all that is required to get close to the pin.

However, often when I ask my students where they want to ball to land in this situation, the answer is “really close to the flag” or “right at it”. 

Almost always, this will result in overshooting the hole and leaving you with a tough, long putt.

Here we will see a few skills you can try out in relation to distance control.

Chipping is about analysing your situation, or lie, as that will dictate how you want to launch the ball. Distance control is all about trajectory and spin — a low launch will roll further than a high launch, and choosing the right trajectory will be the key to success. 

The ‘landing zone’ is influenced by the flight of the ball. For example, the lower flight of the ball will land closer to you and release, or roll far, while, a higher flighted shot’s landing zone should be closer to the hole, as it will significantly less.

For these exercises, try to imagine a landing zone — say eight metres away — and hit three shots each with low, medium and high trajectories, trying to make them all hit the same zone. This will help you see how more or less the ball will roll related upon landing in the zone, in turn helping you visualise the shot you need when the situation next arises.

I have chosen three different colours of balls to illustrate the difference and marked out a simple landing zone with tees. for each shot, you should use the same club. 

LOW FLIGHT
For a low trajectory, set up the ball more on the back foot, with your body weight slightly on the front foot. Your shaft line should be leaning more towards the target and do not move your wrists throughout the swing. 

MEDIUM FLIGHT
Aiming at the same zone, from the same distance, to get a medium flight, set up with the ball more centre of your stance, with body weight equally spread between both legs. Again keep the shaft line slightly towards the target but swing with more clubhead release.

HIGH FLIGHT
Now, to get the ball launched. Set up with the ball centred in the stance and, once again, the same goes for the body weight. The swing should see your bounce (sole of the club) on the ground, with your hands finishing closer to your body, and the head of the club higher than the hands.

You should see the difference, with the low launches rolling further and the high shots stopping almost dead if properly implemented. Keep practising until you see the desired results for all shots and, through the right selection, your distance control issues should become a thing of the past distance.

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Lea Pouillard is PGA teaching professional at Dubai Creek Golf & Yacht Club’s Peter Cowen Academy Dubai.

More golf tips and instruction:
How to maximise the distance off the tee
Master your short-game options around the green
Putt in place on the dancefloor
Straight to the point for short-game success
It is never too late to pick up a club for the first time — some tips to get started
Mobility and stability are key links in the chain to golf fitness
The chips are down if the hips are right
Looking for more power? It’s all about kinetic sequence forces
Understand golf’s power chain and how to avoid a weak link in your swing
Why solid putting starts with a sound set-up
Alignment is a fine balancing act to stabilise clubface
Why you are wasting your time on the range
Claude Harmon III’s simple impact drill
How Billy Horschel’s simple backswing move will make you a better ball-striker

The post WATCH: The flight of the ball will dictate how far the ball will roll appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

In this time poor world in which we live, making the most of your practice time is doubly important. At Dubai Creek Golf & Yacht Club’s Peter Cowen Academy, one of our main goals is to help those taking lessons cash-in by planning efficient and effective practice regimes.

Structuring your practice sessions starts with at least a five-minute warm-up. My colleague Matthew Brookes has shared plenty of tips on this at golfdigestme.com. Next, focus on technical drills depending on what aspect of your game you are working on with your coach.

When working on the full swing, ensure you change clubs often and the target you’re hitting towards just as regularly to get a feel for all the different shots you’ll encounter out on the course. Even if you are working on short shots, changing targets adds focus and builds up your touch.

Finish every range session with a brief period of reflection. It can be helpful to write this down in a notebook you keep in your golf bag so you can go back and measure your progress. Jot down the swing triggers, feelings and shot patterns during the sessions. They can be shared with your coach to ensure both parties are tracking the player’s progress and are also great to revert to out on the course when you’re not quite in the zone. A reminder of how you were feeling or what you were doing during that amazing range session you planned and executed so well can quickly help you turn around a round that threatens to get out of control. – with Kent Gray

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Lea Pouillard is PGA teaching professional at Dubai Creek Golf & Yacht Club’s Peter Cowen Academy Dubai.

The post WATCH: Why you are wasting your time on the range appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.