Golf Forums - Hitting Long

Hi does anyone have any tips or can offer advice on best clubs ect for someone who does not hit the ball far, as much as my game has started to improve i do feel this costs me a number of shots each round, its also a big problem during the current weather period we have at the moment.

Andy, due to the current weather conditions you have to accept that you are not going to be hitting the ball as far as you normally would.

The air temperature is still cold and the ground is wet, so your ball won't travel as far through the air, and then when it lands it's not going to run very far.

As the ground gets drier and harder you will start to notice your ball running much further.

Try and concentrate on making a full turn and getting a good strike on the ball, the rest will come as the air temperature gets higher and the ground gets harder.

Russ

Thank you russell, i understand as regards to the air but even in the summer i still dont hit long, its just my style of play, so was just on the look for tips to try.

Answer is - as always - it depends. As a starter; how far do you hit your 7 iron? And your driver? Also, what it your shot shape (fade, draw, slice, high, low...?).

One thing you could try Andy is to move the ball back in your stance when using your irons.

Only move it back about two ball widths.

This will produce a punch like shot that will stay lower but travel further.

Not much good if you are hitting an approach to a green that is higher than you are!

But for your second shot on a par five it's worth a try.

This kind of shot would be good on a hard, dry fairway as the ball will run much further.

Try moving the ball around until you find a place that you hit well from.

Hope this helps.

Russ

Andy

Experiment - as Russ suggests - ball position, check your grip (nice and light often results in a better strike).  Try exhaling before beginning and during your backswing...  


Know your own limitations and don't worry that the next guy can hit it further, plan your way around the course - keeping within your own capabilities.... focus more on approach and short game and putting, you'll save lots more shots that way...

I played with a guy who drove 150 yrds on average but he still made par 5s, just by  being straight where he aimed. 

Know how far you are liable to hit each club, easy enough to work out... take 10 shots with a 9 iron, all the same stroke, measure the average distance and work out the rest from there (adding approx 9-11 yrds per club).  Once you know how far you are liable to hit the 7 iron, 3 iron, it's the same swing without extra effort to get the ball a bit further... 

So saying it is good to drive the ball 300 yrds now and again...

Rgds Stephen

Andy, it doesnt seem that long ago when we played your first ever round (18 months ago?!) and you are already down to playing off 25 and jugding by your entered scores you have already broken 90 once!!

My advice would be to be patience, keep playing as often as you can and it will come.........alternatively invest in some decent hybrid clubs - these will improve your distance off the fairway and are much easier to hit than the average 3/4 iron.

And as Russ says experiment with ball position.

Good luck.

Hi Andy

I am New to TSG so I hope you don't think I am butting in or anything. The best way for more distance is better swing technique (obvious I know).

The fundamentals to a powerful swing are (right handed golfers)
- A bend in the right leg at the top of your back swing, keep the same bend you have at setup, practice this without a downswing to ingrain it into your swing.
- A straight left arm throughout the swing (some bend is okay, I mention this because my dad bends his arms to look like chicken wings.
- A full turn so that your chest faces away from your target at the top of your swing
And finally (and this was one of the biggest improvement to my swing)
- You must not let your left arm collapse too much across your chest at the top of your swing, all of your power comes from a hip/back rotation not an arm swing. By that I mean, if your left arm lies across your chest at any point during the back of your swing, you will find it very difficult to allow your body to swing the club effectively (unless you are very very strong(and coordinated)). Email me back if you need me to explain this last bit any more, it's not easy to imagine without diagrams etc.

I hope this has made sense

Thanks

Neil