THICK rough

[Bug Bunny]

Well, my home course has decided to let the rough grow! If you aren't in the fairway, your ball is BURIED!!! I've given up hitting 3W and hybrids out of this as it just trickles forward and I'm usually still there!! Is my best bet to take a 9I or so and just punch it back into the short grass???

[VMAN]

Well, my home course has decided to let the rough grow! If you aren't in the fairway, your ball is BURIED!!! I've given up hitting 3W and hybrids out of this as it just trickles forward and I'm usually still there!! Is my best bet to take a 9I or so and just punch it back into the short grass???

ahhhh....golf!

I wish more courses would let the rough grow enough to discourage the 3w or hybrid. Not so long as to slow down play by losing balls, after all there are no ball markers for us like on the tour. But make it a bit penal, some courses have better lies in the rough than on the fairways.

[soloredd]

We played Torrey Pines 2 years ago after the Open and they were preparing for the Buick. Brutal rough but not as bad as the Open. Anyhow, I had a friend who WOULD NOT for the life of him stop trying to hit his 3 wood out of that crap. It was funny at first but then it got downright irritating. Problem is, he doesn't play courses that make you pay like that.

I don't mind it at all really. One of my most played courses is a links course and anything off the first cut is in tough fescue. I've learned from experience after feeling like my wrists were broken that it's better to just get it out than try to make a shot on it. I admire those who can though.

[WUTiger]

Short iron or wedge is best way for middle handicappers to get out of shaggy rough. Teaching pros I talk to say they often have to do the same.

Main reason: If ball is 2-3" deep, it has a grass wall around it. A short iron pops it over the wall, while a longer club must jam the ball partially through the wall before it starts rising. So, given two players with good ball-striking ability, the stronger of the two has the best chance of muscling the ball through the grass wall for extra distance.

So, do you want to set up a chance for an up-and-down par from 80 yards out in the fairway, or go for a one-in-20 hero shot and risk a double bogie?

[B-Con]

I'm not sure how deep a rough you're talking about, but unless it's truly a deep thicket I'd think that a 7i should get it out. Even if you don't take a full swing, you might as well try to maximize the roll of the ball if you're going to devote an entire swing to getting out of the rough.

[TinCupTampa]

One of the courses I play has pretty thick rough... thick enough that if you arent paying attention you have a 50% chance of a lost ball. Anyway... punch 5 is what does the trick for me.

[The Recreational Golfer]

I assume you're talking about terrible rough, not just politely long grass. Go to a used sporting goods store and get a sand wedge with the most bounce you can find. That will be a huge hunk of metal that will cut through the thickest rough. I have an old Spalding Al Geiberger wedge like this I call my gouge wedge, since it has never failed me in this situation, which is the only time I use it.

[double_j]

It's not really that bad to get out of thick rough if you accept that you have to give up a stroke - sometimes it's a good accomplishment just to get out. We hackers only really get into trouble when we try to bite off more than we can chew.

The shot is simple - you're just slightly exaggerating your 'hitting down on the ball' motion.

Take the lowest loft you know will get you out safe (up to a 9 iron is usually OK, maybe a 7 or 8 depending on the thickness). Back of the stance, make sure you get a good wrist set and really come down and through. You almost want to chop at the ball on your downswing to ensure solid contact. You don't need to move it far - you just need to move it.

[Bug Bunny]

Thanks!! And I was referring to THICK stuff, like you gotta walk within 2 feet of your ball to have a chance of finding it!!!!

[NI4NI]

My primary course has done the same thing, and with a fair amount of Environmentally Sensitive Areas (ESA), the extra thickness introduces carry distances which present even more trouble, for those of us not hitting many fairways.

My solution has been to hit the lowest lofted club possible for the specific lie. Sometimes, going lateral or even backwards is a positive move (to get it back on the shorter stuff). Every iron now potentially comes into play...

[zeg]

I assume you're talking about terrible rough, not just politely long grass. Go to a used sporting goods store and get a sand wedge with the most bounce you can find. That will be a huge hunk of metal that will cut through the thickest rough. I have an old Spalding Al Geiberger wedge like this I call my gouge wedge, since it has never failed me in this situation, which is the only time I use it.

Yeah, I have an old Titleist DCI wedge that fits this bill. I think it has 18 degrees of bounce. It's useful when you're, you know, actually INSIDE a bush or something. Sure, it only flies 30 yards with a full swing, but you get out of trouble. All you have to do is be sure you keep your eye on the ball and swing as hard as you can...

[JWL1957]

TaylorMade Raylor hybrids are perfect for the rough. The V sole makes all the difference.

[kafka01]

If you mishit it off the tee and land in the semirough, you shouldn´t be able to hit a hybrid or god forbid a 3w out of there, otherwise the semirough would be pretty useless in the first place. Otherwise the greenkeeper just could cut it all down and make it fairway...

Now if you look on tour, you dont see these guys hitting a lot of trainwreck shots - unless they try fancy things out of the semirough with balls that settled down. What does this tell us about the success rate of an amateur trying the same thing? That is of course if you have proper semi-rough.

[Zeph]

Grind the leading edge of a 7i to make it sharp as a knife. You get the ball out, and help with the greenkeeping!