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How to play when it's wet/muddy?

BluesManDan

BluesManDan

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It's been really wet around here lately. In wet conditions, I've got 3 main problems:
1. My irons dig into the ground too easily, and I'm getting too many heavy shots and getting an upredictible loss of distance on my approaches.
2. Drives just stop where they land, so I lose a lot of distance there.
3. Pitching out of wet/muddy conditions is awful!!!

Got any tips?
 
I'm no pro by any means....but I would suggest playing the irons/wedges a tad back further in the stance. Almost like you're playing off hard pan cause you know you can't hit behind the ball.

Dial in driver to maximize carry...all you can do there.
 
For me, I try to pick it clean in those conditions. Which is sort of hard to do. I also know ahead of time if the course is going to have those conditions, I just plan on it being a practice round. If I'm in a sand bunker full of water, I will pull it out of the bunker and place it just outside the bunker no closer to the hole. It has to be really wet for me to do these tho.
 
Stay home? Haha honestly wet ground is my nemesis. I just try my best to really concentrate on ball first contact because if you don't, it's going to be a long day.
 
For me I club up swing 3/4 choke down on the club a bit and pick it clean.

I just finished playing 3days on soaked Florida courses, cart path only.


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#Cookie said:
I'm no pro by any means....but I would suggest playing the irons/wedges a tad back further in the stance. Almost like you're playing off hard pan cause you know you can't hit behind the ball.

Dial in driver to maximize carry...all you can do there.
Click to expand...


Was as doing exactly this on Saturday in EXTREMELY wet conditions. It allowed me to get ball first much more consistently. Still took some mud baths, but the ball was already gone by then. BTW, don't be afraid to get dirty. If you are, then it's a great prescription for the thins. :banghead: Ask me how I know.

JM
 
#Cookie said:
I'm no pro by any means....but I would suggest playing the irons/wedges a tad back further in the stance. Almost like you're playing off hard pan cause you know you can't hit behind the ball.

Dial in driver to maximize carry...all you can do there.
Click to expand...

golfinFF said:
For me I club up swing 3/4 choke down on the club a bit and pick it clean.

I just finished playing 3days on soaked Florida courses, cart path only.


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Click to expand...

I do both of these. Ball back with extra club and shorter swing.
 
I play in wet all the time and honestly I don't really change anything drastic. Hit ball first and swing through, and make sure your driver is launching high as opposed to low. Know your carry distances and start launching darts at the soft greens.
 
ArmyGolf said:
I play in wet all the time and honestly I don't really change anything drastic. Hit ball first and swing through, and make sure your driver is launching high as opposed to low. Know your carry distances and start launching darts at the soft greens.
Click to expand...

Like Army, I play in wet conditions more than I play in dry conditions. (I think I've forgotten what roll out even means.) When it is really wet, I like to take 1-2 extra, choke down to 3/4, and flight my irons into greens. Because it is wet, the ball will still stop. With the 3/4 swing, you get much more control, and are more likely to drive through the ball (hit the ball first) and get better contact.

When wet, the ball will not carry as far, typically, so factor that in your strategy.
 
BluesManDan said:
It's been really wet around here lately. In wet conditions, I've got 3 main problems:
1. My irons dig into the ground too easily, and I'm getting too many heavy shots and getting an upredictible loss of distance on my approaches.
2. Drives just stop where they land, so I lose a lot of distance there.
3. Pitching out of wet/muddy conditions is awful!!!

Got any tips?
Click to expand...

I'd say that you are used to hitting shots a bit fat, so when it's sloppy there is no room for error (I say this because I have the same problem). Slightly fat on dry turf can become very chunky in soft, muddy ground because the club will not skip at all, just digs in. I try to play it like I'm in a fairway bunker when it's very wet, play the ball back a bit in my stance, don't ground the club at address, and just try to make good contact. I'll even go one club longer and shorten my swing to try and ensure that I hit the ball first.

For pitching, I will chip with a longer club if at all possible. I'll skip the ball up to the green rather than lob it if I don't have to carry over anything. If I have to pitch over a bunker, I'll still take the lowest lofted club possible, even if that means that I may run past the hole. That is still better than chunking the ball into the bunker.
 
Play pick, clean and place. Give yourself a better lie.
Know your casual water rule so you're not hitting out of puddles.
 
lift clean and cheat
make sure I am getting a nice high launch with driver to maximize carry

I find the distance trade off is worth it on par 5's where a 5 wood will stop dead and hybrids will actually spin back, just fire at every pin.
 
#Cookie said:
I'm no pro by any means....but I would suggest playing the irons/wedges a tad back further in the stance. Almost like you're playing off hard pan cause you know you can't hit behind the ball.

Dial in driver to maximize carry...all you can do there.
Click to expand...

I agree. I might play the ball back a little with irons/wedges, but not much you can do with the driver.
 
How to play when it's wet/muddy?

Solid pointers here, if I get to play again before it dries out I'll be using some of this advice, it's been really squishy here.
The only thing I'll add is: Wear glasses of some sort. Mud in the eye is no fun.




Sent from the magic know everything box in my pocket
 
I understand that a fat shot in wet, muddy conditions is much more punishing than dry conditions, but if you need to move the ball back in your stance to prevent it couldn't you do it all the time? If it helps you make ball first contact more often than not wet or dry it could benefit you all the time. This is an honest question, I don't have any other suggestions for irons.

Not much you can do with the driver except get the ball flight raised up and not be dependant on roll.
 
so-illhacker said:
I understand that a fat shot in wet, muddy conditions is much more punishing than dry conditions, but if you need to move the ball back in your stance to prevent it couldn't you do it all the time? If it helps you make ball first contact more often than not wet or dry it could benefit you all the time. This is an honest question, I don't have any other suggestions for irons.

Not much you can do with the driver except get the ball flight raised up and not be dependant on roll.
Click to expand...

If you do it all the time then in drier harder conditions you'll get jammed on your release. You can actually get injured doing this... To steep of an AoA into harder ground... Really only appropriate in softer conditions


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BluesManDan said:
If you do it all the time then in drier harder conditions you'll get jammed on your release. You can actually get injured doing this... To steep of an AoA into harder ground... Really only appropriate in softer conditions


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Click to expand...

Ok, I get that. What I was getting at is it seems like there is just something else going on other than where the ball is in your stance. Something that if you fixed it you could see improvement year round, your ball striking isn't really effected by how wet the ground is, is it? You could take a video of it and post it in the swing tips with Freddie forum and get a lot better feedback.
 
For pitching, try dead handed pitching as the swing tends to be more shallow. Also use a lower lofted club and bump and run when possible so if it gets stuck in the ground the miss will be a little better result usually.
 
so-illhacker said:
Ok, I get that. What I was getting at is it seems like there is just something else going on other than where the ball is in your stance. Something that if you fixed it you could see improvement year round, your ball striking isn't really effected by how wet the ground is, is it? You could take a video of it and post it in the swing tips with Freddie forum and get a lot better feedback.
Click to expand...
Fat shots are worse when it is wet. It is also way harder to work the ball when the ball and clubface have water on them.
 
when its wet, I just play the same, and expect to shoot a bit higher than usual
 
so-illhacker said:
Ok, I get that. What I was getting at is it seems like there is just something else going on other than where the ball is in your stance. Something that if you fixed it you could see improvement year round, your ball striking isn't really effected by how wet the ground is, is it? You could take a video of it and post it in the swing tips with Freddie forum and get a lot better feedback.
Click to expand...

My ball striking is generally pretty good. I did shoot a 75 yesterday. But I had several shots which were fat and splatty and I gained several strokes because of it. I'm working towards breaking 70 so I've got to fine tune and make plans for the irregular shots and playing conditions. Like wet/muddy conditions.

The blades I play with don't have much sole width or bounce, so a normal swing for normal conditions results in deeper divots because of the mud. So some of the shots that would normally be a tad heavy but still have acceptable results now have the mistake exaggerated and the result is bad. It's more problematic for short irons and pitching. Especially pitching to an elevated green where there isn't much option for the bump and run.

I think what folks have said about clubbing up and choking down with ball back a bit is the way to go. Just have to practice the shot and see how it goes.


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Don't wear WHITE! :clapp:

1. always take more club than usual ... you want to try and catch the ball first to "pick" it off the turf
2. Everyone will suffer from this one ... so might I suggest moving up a set of tees so it's not so long for you.
3. nature of the beast I'm afraid ... make sure to "feel" under your feet so if it seems too wet, move it to a better location. The idea is to have fun ... no one likes to play in those conditions, so be kind to yourself and take relief. We aren't pro's (that's for another thread) and ... BTW ... you would never see the Pro's playing in the conditions like what we die-hard players play in.

So, do as we all do ... suck it up, play in whatever conditions you can play in. It beats working! Unless you like staying in the office?
 
BluesManDan said:
My ball striking is generally pretty good. I did shoot a 75 yesterday. But I had several shots which were fat and splatty and I gained several strokes because of it. I'm working towards breaking 70 so I've got to fine tune and make plans for the irregular shots and playing conditions. Like wet/muddy conditions.

The blades I play with don't have much sole width or bounce, so a normal swing for normal conditions results in deeper divots because of the mud. So some of the shots that would normally be a tad heavy but still have acceptable results now have the mistake exaggerated and the result is bad. It's more problematic for short irons and pitching. Especially pitching to an elevated green where there isn't much option for the bump and run.

I think what folks have said about clubbing up and choking down with ball back a bit is the way to go. Just have to practice the shot and see how it goes.


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Click to expand...

I gotcha now after some more details, in your OP it just sounded like it was happening a lot more often and could have been a swing flaw.

I gotta say clubbing up and choking down does sound like the way to go, that and just coming into with lower expectation like mentioned above. Good luck on breaking 70 this year!
 
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