my FEARED shot

[DJYoshi]

it's really 2 shots that I can't stand taking. as soon as I walk up to the ball or step out of the cart and I see it...I CRINGE.
On the 18th hole today I was 2 over going in. 435 par 4. It was a great drive and I was only 150 out after the drive.... BUT I had a side-hill down-hill lie... ok right? not a difficult shot... BUT I don't know what it is about that shot that I just CAN'T get right. It was an up hill shot....8 iron right? sure a nice smooth 8 iron.
I SKULLED it...SIMPLY SKULLED it a good 90 yards and off to the right.

I think my 2 most feared shots are downhill lies and when I have a flat lie, but an aggressive uphill slope is RIGHT after the ball.....any tips on how to play these right?

[microcrayfish]

I get left with the second of your feared shots at my home course quite a bit. I've found that you just need to take a club that will get the ball up quickly enough to get over the slope, perhaps play the ball a bit forward in your stance. You might not always be able to reach the green but it beats the ball slamming into the slope and bouncing up and only going 20 yards or so.

[Dub]

I completely agree.....downhill lies are the things that make my nerves twang like banjo strings....combine that with a downhill/sidehill lie and it's skull city.

[Jay-Bird]

I think my 2 most feared shots are downhill lies and when I have a flat lie, but an aggressive uphill slope is RIGHT after the ball.....any tips on how to play these right?

The obvious answer is PRACTICE. You're at a breakthrough point - now that you've identified your 'feared shots' you can work on them.

How I play them: downhill lie - stand over the ball at address and lean with the hill. Swing purposefully and stay down. flat lie/aggressive upslope - take a club with enough loft to safely launch over the slope without bouncing into it and move on.

[MiniMoe]

Remember, on a downhill/sidehill lie, the club is delofted a bit, so it's ok to take a little less club. Next, I open my face a little to help the ball in the air and aim for a cut. Then I put the ball back in my stance a little, stay very still, and swing the club along the slope.

with the flat lie with the hill in front I can use a few different approaches. Sometimes I take the correct club, put it in the font of my stance and really try to hit it high and very hard. The extra umph in the swing speed will create more spin and get the ball up faster. Other times I take more club, open the face and play a cut to get the ball up. And other times I take less club and try to get it up around the front of the green. Remember, even if you have 160 to the pin, if the pin is in the back, you might only have 130 to the front. That is a three club difference. It is easier to hit wedge, 9 or 8 the front than it is to hit a 7, 6, or 5 over that hump to the pin.

[Mr Eagle]

Would a shorter drive leave a better,if longer second shot.? .....just a thought

[laxbballgolf]

Yeah downhill lies make me pretty nervous, too. I just lean forward with the slope and focus on making solid contact. If it's sidehill above my feet I choke up.

[aleski]

For some reason, I haven't had to deal with sidehill lies that often. To be honest, I don't really have a fixed gameplan for coping with one. I played my worst round of golf a some 7 weeks ago in Japan with my father-in-law. The fact that it was the first time I've played 18 holes in some 8 years didn't help, but neither did the fact that the course entirely different from what I am accustomed to: Every second shot would be from an uphill, downhill or sidehill lie and I hit them fat, thin left and right.

Now that I'm back home playing on the flat, former farming lands of Southern-Finland, I have other shots that have me terrified walking to the ball. I chunk my chips from the sticky foregreens and roughs here. On par 5's that require a mid-iron lay-up in order to get me within 130 metres or so, I am usually able to hit it well enough to carry the required distance but for some reason I manage to develop a mighty draw or hit it straight but right from the target resulting in an approach from the rough.

[Dub]

For some reason, I haven't had to deal with sidehill lies that often. To be honest, I don't really have a fixed gameplan for coping with one. I played my worst round of golf a some

I spent a couple of months in Japan back in 1998....we golfed at the companies little 6 hole course at lunch every day.....but I wasn't able to play on an establised course. Land is such a valuable resource there....golf is played at a premium cost. You were fortunate to be able to play.

[aleski]

I spent a couple of months in Japan back in 1998....we golfed at the companies little 6 hole course at lunch every day.....but I wasn't able to play on an establised course. Land is such a valuable resource there....golf is played at a premium cost. You were fortunate to be able to play.

In Japan, over the past five-or-so years the price of golf has significantly went down. I paid some USD35-60 per round there (incl. lunch & full use of the facilities).

Anyways, it was great fun, although the coping with yardages, being used to the metric system, was a challenge of its own.

[mc0388]

it's really 2 shots that I can't stand taking. as soon as I walk up to the ball or step out of the cart and I see it...I CRINGE.

Not sure if this was covered. Your shoulders should be parallel to the ground you are shooting from. downhill = front shoulder down. Uphill = front shoulder up. helps your swing stay on the same plane as the ball. I think proper club selection was already discussed.