by Paul Aitken, CPGA Professional
As golfers, we know that it is virtually impossible go through a round without hitting your ball into some kind of trouble. The key to scoring the best that you possibly can is to get back into play without getting yourself into more trouble.
Picture this, we’ve all done it: We have just hit our ball into the trees and when we get to it we see a small opening in a tree or look at the trees and figure that we can go over them. Unfortunately the ball usually hits a tree and ends up in another poor position and frequently, still in trouble. You may even find yourself in a worse position after the shot than you were in before.
What I recommend that you do is take out a 6 iron or 7 iron or a club of your preference that will allow you to hit the ball low and under the trouble in front of you. When setting up for this shot you will want to place the ball back in your stance, take a shorter swing than normal and finish with your hands a little lower than normal. Your main goal is to hit the ball under the trouble and advance the ball into the fairway towards the green.
Remember to keep the ball low to the ground when getting out of trouble. The result will be felt immediately as your next shot will be back in play and out of the trees.
Good golfing and see you at the course.
