Tips for getting out of the trees

[RayG]

Keys to getting out of the woods: 1. Actually get it out of the woods 2. See key 1

exactly- a buddy of mine has had the idea that if he swings hard enough he can get through anything... and if he swings even HARDER at the NEXT one that didn't get through, THAT one will make it. We've played together for 20 years and he has yet to figure out he could take at least 3 of those 8's or more off his card by just chipping out to a safe place. He watches me do it all the time and scramble for a bogey, with the occasional par save tossed in. And then wonders at the end of the day "why can't I break 90?". Mind you, it is hysterically funny watching him play pachinko and cursing his heart out. OR should I say "Hearing him" since he's so deep by now, we need a St. Bernard to find him again.

[SCfanatic35]

Originally Posted by RayG

exactly- a buddy of mine has had the idea that if he swings hard enough he can get through anything... and if he swings even HARDER at the NEXT one that didn't get through, THAT one will make it. We've played together for 20 years and he has yet to figure out he could take at least 3 of those 8's or more off his card by just chipping out to a safe place. He watches me do it all the time and scramble for a bogey, with the occasional par save tossed in. And then wonders at the end of the day "why can't I break 90?". Mind you, it is hysterically funny watching him play pachinko and cursing his heart out. OR should I say "Hearing him" since he's so deep by now, we need a St. Bernard to find him again.

You just described me a bunch of years ago.  I was always able to spot a 1 foot square hole in the branches of trees, that if I hit it just right I could not just get out of the trees I would be on the green putting for birdie.  99.9999% of the time it never came close and then I would be even worse off.  Then my thinking would go to, oh crap! If I don't hit this one on I have no chance of making par.  After about 3-4 of these shots I would realize that I couldn't hit the little white ball through a forest and just punched it out hoping to avoid a double digit score.  The reason why I would attempt this nonsense is because the .0001% of the time it would work.

I have since learned my lesson.  It is better to bogey than to card a 8,9, or higher and ruin my round.

[geauxforbroke]

Originally Posted by SCfanatic35

I have since learned my lesson.  It is better to bogey than to card a 8,9, or higher and ruin my round.

I learned that lesson the hard way as well. And it's not just true of woods. If you snap hook a drive into the water on a par 5, don't hit the 3-wood to try to clear the water and get home in 2 (or 3 in this case).

[mdl]

As others have said, ball back in the stance, hands forward (sometimes well forward, depending on how low you have to keep the ball).  Make sure hands stay forward at impact.  The low release or follow through feel can help with that.

One slightly more advanced thing I'll note is that it's worth practicing bending these shots.  I find the low punch out the easiest shot to shape pretty reliably actually.  My feel/key for this shot is to get the hands back to the exact same spot they were in at setup to make sure I don't un-deloft the club and just pop it up into the trees.  With that as my key, I find it pretty easy actually to significantly open or close my stance, regrip so a standard feeling grip has the club face pointing along the line I want to start the ball, and just swing along my stance line with my only thought still being to get my hands at impact back to exactly where they were at setup.

My miss off the tee tends to be a push-fade, so I'm often in the trees on the right side of the fairway.  I've saved myself many times by hitting a punch slice with the 4i that rolls up to 20-30 yards off the green (where my chances for up and down are MUCH better) instead of settling for the straight punch out to 100-150 yards.

[saevel25]

If you want a sure proof way, get a hybrid or 3-wood, and just almost do a very hard chip shot. The ball will have a lot of speed, be very low. Make sure your not in thick rough, or have to clear thick rough, but it works. I've hit this shot before about 100 yards. My only option was to punch it backwards, or take it up the outside of the tree line, and hopefully have a nice chip, i ended up pin high, about 5 yards from the green. Ball never stayed more than 5 feet off the ground.

[Brakkus]

Remember your handicap. If its above 25 then you can afford a 6 on your card. Your not looking for a 4. Lets say you push it right about 170 yards you still have 230 to go. Chip it out dead left now you have a perfect lie. Hit your 7 iron to about 80 yards left. Now a wedge which might be a sand or a pitching wedge. At worst its 2 putts for a 6 if you hit it close it could be a 5. Same scenario though you decide to punch it forward hit a tree it drops in the rough you can't reach so you hack another iron out and it snags then you have to hit a great iron from something like 120 yards now. That lands some 30 ft away now you are so frustrated you 3 putt and you card at least an 8 or maybe a 9. Lower you're handicap by nudging strokes off it incrementally not by taking huge risks. If you have strokes in allowance use them.

[inthehole]

Originally Posted by jimmer1609

I have been having an issue keeping the ball low enough to get out of trees when I do get in trouble... What club to use and what should I do ? I normally try my 3 hybrid or 4 iron with no luck

I've gotten really good at this shot (I find myself in the trees alot too) - secret is to play the ball BEHIND your right foot - not just even with the back foot - B E H I N D it.     This delofts the club so much that it only has a couple degrees of loft.    Use your 4 iron & you'll hit punch shots no more than 5 ft off the ground that look like frozen ropes.

[tpcollins]

Originally Posted by SCfanatic35

I have since learned my lesson.  It is better to bogey than to card a 8,9, or higher and ruin my round.

I like the saying "when you get into trouble, get out of trouble, and not into more trouble" - a bogey is a good score when you hit a bad shot. And you still have a chance to make par if you can one putt.

[Ernest Jones]

Originally Posted by tpcollins

I like the saying "when you get into trouble, get out of trouble, and not into more trouble" - a bogey is a good score when you hit a bad shot. And you still have a chance to make par if you can one putt.

...or never follow a bad shot with a stupid shot.

[David in FL]

Originally Posted by Ernest Jones

...or never follow a bad shot with a stupid shot.

Yeah, but I once hit this absolute MIRACLE shot........!

[mdl]

100% agree with the sentiment of getting out of trouble with a high percentage shot instead of worsening your situation.  Just want to throw in there that the shot saevel25 and I are talking about, basically a hard chip with a low iron (my pref) or a wood/hybrid (saevel's pref) doesn't always require taking the absolutely easiest line out of the trees.  With that shot with my 4i I can easily get the ball the roll out 100 yards with at most a little 1/3 chip swing.  And just like a chip shot, there's less other movement (ie, less wrist action) in that swing too.  So it's easier to hit the ball fairly close to the line you want than with a more full swing.

My point is just that if you practice this shot, at least on the courses I play there will often be times when the absolutely easiest shot straight back out towards the fairway might leave you with 180-200 yards in, a very unlikely up and down and very far from guaranteed to even hit the green from there.  But often there will be a wide window between trees on a line somewhere between straight out to the fairway and towards the green and a very tight window (requiring the above mentioned ridiculous hero shot) on the line directly to the green.  If you get confident with the slightly longer punch out then often the wide window is the smart play, letting you get to say 100 yards out instead of 180-200, and from there you have much better chances of either a 1-putt par or at least hitting the green and 2-putting a bogey instead of missing the green with your 3rd from 200 yards then pitching on and 2-putting for a double.

[inthehole]

depends on what's in front of you ... sure, if the trees don't allow you a reasonable out, punch it back on the fairway.     If there's a reasonable look at the green between the trees - learning to hit the full swing REALLY low liner shot is the way to go - it's one of my favorite shots actually - so much fun to pull it off & so few seem to know how to approach it (at least in my circles)...

[newtogolf]

Shorty got it right, 3h with the ball back in your stance seems to work best.  I had one shot that was in such a mess I didn't have room for a 3h and used my putter.  I got the ball out to the fairway so I always keep that in my head as an option if nothing else will work.

[Slice of Life]

Find the biggest gap through, and aim directly at one of the trees...guaranteed to miss it.

Seriously though, I typically grab my 2i hybrid of 5 iron and do an almost lag putt stroke. Good for 100-130 yards depending on location/rough, and generally pretty accurate.

[jimmer1609]

That's all I'm really looking for.  100 yards or so down the fairway.  I usually have a good clearing I just have trouble keeping it low... Gonna practice with the clubs to see which one is best for me...

[RayG]

That's all I'm really looking for.  100 yards or so down the fairway.  I usually have a good clearing I just have trouble keeping it low... Gonna practice with the clubs to see which one is best for me...

It would all depend on HOW deep. The further in you are, the less likely you are to advance very far. Sure, certain courses allow more of an advance, while others would require a chainsaw and a logging permit. So the advice would be to assess each situation as it arises and make the shot that would result in the best result. And as offered- practice different methods until you find a repeatable shot that works.

[inthehole]

Originally Posted by jimmer1609

That's all I'm really looking for.  100 yards or so down the fairway.  I usually have a good clearing I just have trouble keeping it low... Gonna practice with the clubs to see which one is best for me...

There's really no reason to baby it if the line through the trees is good & the lie is decent.    Learn to play the ball behind the rear foot & you'll hit low liners that run almost as far as your full shot, provided you hit the fairway with that first bounce.    It's a pretty doggone cool shot to pull off as well - have to swing in control & make solid contact to keep it going where you expect it to, just like any golf shot.

[Spyder]

I played 9 after work today and had a "F it!" moment where I pulled a 3 wood and played a 10% success shot with great reward and literally a 1/10 chance of making it out of the trees. I lined up 3w from 245 out thinking I could hit a low cut. I take one deep breath, exhale... and let it rip. I hit the first damn tree in front of me on a full swing, giving it all I had, and it ricocheted into another tree that was about 5 yards and to the right away from me, followed by a ricochet forward. Double tree bank shot and I ended up about 40 yards forwards in the middle of the fairway...

I am just very thankful that I did not get blasted because that baby came back with some steam to still have enough momentum to go forwards 40 yards again. That definitely would have hurt! I may or may not be done having kids, and the height of that ball could have made up my mind for me if you know what I'm saying lol.