Short Sided Short Game...

[DKunks]

Im curious as to what shot most low handicappers would use for a short sided shot, w/ the green sloping away.

ive been working a on a little high chip shot but i seem to always be over shooting it by a couple of paces.

what do all the low handicappers out there do for this?

[65withatriple]

It totally depends on whats on the other side, water, bunker, ect. I usually suck it up and try not to make more than bogey. If you get too cute you can bring a big number into play. Whatever you choose..flop, pitch, just try to give yourself a chance at an up and down. Remember a 15 foot put can go in, and it should be easy to leave yourself an uphill putt.

Best thing to do is to not short side yourself. HA!

[Fourputt]

Im curious as to what shot most low handicappers would use for a short sided shot, w/ the green sloping away.

I'm not any better than you are, but in my opinion you are doing it correctly. The key in such a case is to make sure you get the ball on the green at all cost. The biggest mistake most amateurs make is to try and get too cute and leave it short with the same (or a similar) shot all over again. Trying to drop a 30 foot flop just over the fringe to trickle to the hole is a shot with a very low probability of success. Playing a high pitch with a 58° or 60° wedge and a normal pitch swing may tend to leave a longer putt, but you have a nearly 100% chance of being able to putt the next one.

If I'm overshooting the hole by a couple of paces, I'm going to be pretty happy with the shot. A 6-8 foot putt is a lot more makeable than a 2nd or 3rd attempt at a flop (or maybe a chip back from across the green after I skull one ) If I have a 6 foot putt I'm really confident about my chances of holing it.

[TomDonS]

depends if there is a hill or knoll in your way. if it is level running away. Just a slide flop to the fringe or collar to land it soft and run out. But if there is a hill or similar us a less lofted club and kill it into the hill to take the spin and velocity off of it. It creates a good bump and run, that is speed controllable.

[goblue107501]

One of things I always look at when confronted with this type of shot is to look for a good landing spot. If the green is running toward the hole and away from you, find a spot to land you chip/flop/pitch. That might be a foot off the green, or on the fringe, or on the green. The ball is going to roll to the hole, the key is to try and figure out the spot that the ball can land, lose its momentum and then gravity takes over and it starts rolling to the hole.

I usually will find my spot to land and try and hit a flop shot. If there is enough room between myself and the hole, I will hit it as high as I can so it lands soft on the green. If there isn't much room I try and pick a spot to land short of the green and see what happens.

[iacas]

Depends on too many things. Sometimes I'll blade it with a sand wedge (putt it, kind of) if it's close enough to the green or fringe. Other times I'll pop it a few feet and let it tumble down - almost a mini-pitch. Sometimes you can chip.

I've even, the few times I've used it, done well with a shot that breaks all the rules about how you're supposed to hit these kinds of shots: I swing the club back without moving my arms, pure wrist hinge, and hinge back through the ball. If you don't move contact should be good but the ball will just pop up with very little speed. You can be aggressive and the ball will still only fly five feet. There's RARELY a time to use that shot, but the few times I've used it I've gotten up and down or, once, holed out.

[1Greatgolfguy]

You probably not looking to hear from another 12 handicap, but more opinions the better. This is a shot I practice on the putting green of my home course. It is to a green, 2 feet above the ball, green sloped away from you, from the rough.

Open the face of the club and your stance. Ball slightly back of middle. Hands ahead of the ball. Swing down on the ball (Not literally down, but not the low sweep most do with a flop shot.) This will pop the ball nearly straight up and executes a nice, high spin, high trajectory shot.

I have quiet wrists (chip shot like) from 4 feet, to 1/2 swings from 40 feet.

Oh, and 65withatriple has a point, the best way to do this is to not short side yourself.