subject: How to get the golf ball airborne ? [print this page] How to get the golf ball airborne ? How to get the golf ball airborne ?
You would think hitting the ball would be easy. But golf isn't tennis or baseball, where you can react to a moving ball. In golf, the ball just sits there and stares at you, beckoning you to make it go somewhere.
Here's your first thought: "I won't turn my body too much; I'll just hit the thing with my hands." That's natural and wrong. You're worried about losing sight of the ball in your backswing and hitting nothing but air. You're not alone. We've all been through this sweat-drenched nightmare of flailing failure. But don't worry. You will evolve! You will make contact!
Okay, after a few fairly fruitless attempts, you're finally hitting more ball than air in your search for flight. Now you need a lesson in the aerodynamics of the game. The only time you want the golf ball to be on the ground is when you're close to the hole. To have any kind of fun the rest of the time, you want air under the ball; you need the ball to fly! Then you can stare with horrified fascination at the ridiculous places the ball ends up, which is the essence of the game.
One of my golf secrets is that the only time you should lift something is when you rearrange your living-room furniture. Never try to lift a golf ball with your club. You should hit down with every club except the driver and the putter. And when you do hit down, don't duck or lunge at the ball; hit down but keep your head up.
When you use your driver, the ball is set on a tee about an inch above the ground; if you hit down, the ball will fly off the top edge of the club and the shot will be high and short not my favorite combination! With the driver, you want the clubhead coming into the ball from a horizontal path, moving slightly up at impact.
When you putt, you don't want the ball airborne. A putter is designed to roll the ball along the ground, not produce a high shot. So you need to foster more of a horizontal hit with that club.
If the club in your hands is a fairway wood or an iron, hit down.
