Time to hit golf shots!

Tadashi70

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I have been afforded some pretty solid friends because of THP. I have meet so many quality golfers through the site. And I'm not talking about the low caps, I'm talking about guys that just know how to play.

There is a common theme among all but a couple that holds them back. The lack of golf shots. I don't know if this due to fear of missing the shot planned in their head or lack of knowledge to hit various shots. I happen to think its a mixture of both and I would love to see more people learn to hit various shots on the course.

It it is rare that we are greeted with our perfect number on the course. For example, my perfect distance with my 8iron is 167. I might end up with 155-162. That means I have to hit a hard 9iron or create a shot with my 8 iron. I know through years of practice that I can choke down an inch and take a normal swing. Or I can play it back in my stance and play a knock down or I can play a high cut. I have confidence in each choice so I'm just left to choose one.

i think learning to play golf shots can elevate your game to another level and if your tired of playing golf swing, start hitting golf shots.
 
It's something I work on all the time. 1/2 or 3/4 shots are the norm especially this spring just because of all the wind but they are needed all the time since I haven't figured out how to hit every shot straight down the middle or straight at my target and the correct distance. Some days it seems to work better than others. Feel is a difficult thing to have with you all the time in my opinion. I actually take care of most of speciality shots with setup, that is when it works!!
 
I've just recently tapped into the beauty of hitting solid shots consistently, but I LOVE trying and hitting golf shots on the range. I don't yet have the ability to execute those shots under pressure though, but it's something I want to learn so badly!
 
me, i'm just not good enough to pull off the cute shots. more often than not, and i mean far more often, i don't pull it off as i intended. at my ability, i feel like it makes more sense to try to hit the ball solidly and straight (or at least with a consistent shape). wash, rinse, repeat. i love trying different shots on the range. and in a fun round of golf i'll try to work the ball on pretty much every shot. but that doesn't really work out too well! so then i'll just try to hit the ball straight, and that usually works better for me and my skill level.
 
Great thread. This is something I want to work on this year. I have been doing it some on the range with 7-pw.

I want any to be able to have 2-3 shot types with my clubs, either a knockdown or to choke down and have some distance some off.
 
Golf is a hard game. I feel that I am so close. If I can just hit my irons shots and be consistent I could break 80 every time. But now I am in the mid and late 80's. I know it is is all mental. I will keep plugging along.
 
I have been afforded some pretty solid friends because of THP. I have meet so many quality golfers through the site. And I'm not talking about the low caps, I'm talking about guys that just know how to play.

There is a common theme among all but a couple that holds them back. The lack of golf shots. I don't know if this due to fear of missing the shot planned in their head or lack of knowledge to hit various shots. I happen to think its a mixture of both and I would love to see more people learn to hit various shots on the course.

It it is rare that we are greeted with our perfect number on the course. For example, my perfect distance with my 8iron is 167. I might end up with 155-162. That means I have to hit a hard 9iron or create a shot with my 8 iron. I know through years of practice that I can choke down an inch and take a normal swing. Or I can play it back in my stance and play a knock down or I can play a high cut. I have confidence in each choice so I'm just left to choose one.

i think learning to play golf shots can elevate your game to another level and if your tired of playing golf swing, start hitting golf shots.
I'm following along FK.....now how about a series of "how too" or some insight. THP Classroom videos could be an option...throw us a bone bro.
 
I've been working on the choke down since last year and playing around with the knockdown a little here and there, at my new club i'm hoping to really dedicate some time to this as well as perfecting the 3/4 shot with my wedges
 
I take this kind of feedback to heart. I am working on nearly everything you advise Panda, but my ability to confidently and consistently hit them as planned is a work in progress. I hit a lot of good shots, but my core swing consistency is not yet where it needs to be and remains the core of my practice. I believe I am making good progress and will continue to work on expanding the shot options I can play. I have high expectations for my golf game and will continue to put in massive effort to get there. I love this kind of challenge.
 
A lot of times I take an extra club because it feels like I can just "drop" the ball where I want to with less than a full swing.
 
Hitting different shots is my favorite part of the game. Letting the artist come out makes the game come alive. It allows you to get at pins that you previously couldn't, hit tight fairways and get up and down from jail. If you can learn to control the face and hit golf shots lower scores are sure to follow.
 
Great post, Panda. I know I get stuck if the distance is between clubs or the hole is at an odd direction/angle or obstacles are in the way. I usually tense up and shank one, badly. I am going to try choking down and see how that works.
 
... if your tired of playing golf swing, start hitting golf shots.

For me this is about remembering that golf is about making the ball go where you want it to go rather than getting hung up on all the swing things. For example, picking the 100 yard target at the range, and hitting every club to that pin. Low, high, cut, hook, whatever comes to mind.

Not only great for practicing feel, but also for breaking the pattern when my full swing is off. I find my full swing has all sorts of time to make compensations, but hitting a 4 iron 100 yards will simply go nowhere if the basics aren't right. It is also great for feeling how the ball interacts with the club face, which I find makes it easier to do on fuller swings, or at least know where the ball is going when I mess it up!
 
me, i'm just not good enough to pull off the cute shots. more often than not, and i mean far more often, i don't pull it off as i intended. at my ability, i feel like it makes more sense to try to hit the ball solidly and straight (or at least with a consistent shape). wash, rinse, repeat. i love trying different shots on the range. and in a fun round of golf i'll try to work the ball on pretty much every shot. but that doesn't really work out too well! so then i'll just try to hit the ball straight, and that usually works better for me and my skill level.

I've been working on these kinds of shots too, and what I'm finding out is that they arent cute at all. They are actually a more aggressive move that takes the cute out of it. It helps my confidence knowing that I have a shot to go to where I feel I can attack the ball without launching it over the green or not committing and chunking one in a pond.

The thing is, I've learned that learning these shots takes dedicated and focused practice. Every range session for the last two weeks, has been 90% practicing one shot with no more than 3 clubs. I don't know if this kind of thing can be learned by just working through the bag at each range session like I've usually done.

I cant believe that I've only opened my eyes to this now, though. Honestly, never even crossed my mind. Very thankful that it finally has.
 
I'm just happy to be able to hit a shot that goes in the intended direction. LOL

Of the times I've tried to say bend it around a tree, or hit a stop and drop, or try a draw. Never successful, but then again I'm not even sure if I am doing it right to begin with to even have the right setup for them.
 
Really good thread and idea. I am nowhere near good enough to hit a majority of these shots yet, but the point is really good.
I have gotten good at controlling flight up and down. I have worked on being able to shoot a lower shot into a green if needed. Still not perfect by any means but it is something I an gaining confidence in.
As far as hitting shots that are needed to be shaped laterally, I am not able to do that at all. I have tried here and thier but it's not a good thing for me.


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Great thread. I'm not consistent or good enough to do it on demand all the time, but some of my best strikes are when situations dictate a specific shot. Low punches out of the woods or high over a tree, low hooks or high fades around objects. I'll keep this thought in mind going forward.
 
I have a pretty good punch shot to get out of trouble the driver got me into. Does that count, Freddie?
 
I have a pretty good punch shot to get out of trouble the driver got me into. Does that count, Freddie?
It does when you use it to hole out for net par
 
I can do knockdowns (thanks to all the years of playing under trees) and choke down/change ball position to alter distance and flight but I do not shot shape at all. I play my natural baby draw in my irons and driver and can usually slice or hook on purpose if I need to get around a dog leg but I have no shot shaping in my game.
 
It does when you use it to hole out for net par
It's been two years. Does it still sting? YOAJVCG brought it up some time back as well. I didn't even get to see it.
 
I'm trying to learn how to hit some of those, but I'm really just at the point of hitting the standard shot consistently. It was a ton of work just to get to that point.

I can hit a standard 8 iron, or I can take a shorter swing to adjust the distance but that is about it for me. I'm not great at flighting the ball up or down and I really only have a draw I couldn't fade it right now. I'd love to learn how to hit a number of shots but need someone to teach me.
 
It's been two years. Does it still sting? YOAJVCG brought it up some time back as well. I didn't even get to see it.
Stings like the day it happened lol. I didnt actually see it either. I was helping jhstew look for his ball.
 
I was actually going to start a thread about some of this as I prep for the two events I'm playing in, but here's a good enough place to discuss as any. Freddie - I'm to the point where between the equipment I've got and the swing I have, I'm pretty confident in my stock swing. Sure, occasionally there's a big miss or my swing goes sideways, but those happen.

I'd like to think a bit more about hitting different types of shots. What do you suggest to try to get working first? Flighting the ball up and down? Trying to draw/fade the ball? Some other type of shot?
 
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