Playing in the wind

Anybody got any tips for playing in the wind ?

I'm struggling at the moment on downwind shots. I always seem to overclub. And on cross wind shots. Is it best to allow for the wind ?

Or is it best to aim at the flag and try to shape the ball ? Example a fade on a right to left wind.

Thanks !

Downwind is definatly harder to get the ball closer to the hole then into the wind. You have very little distance control...even though you drive farther. I would take a Driver + 3i into the wind any day over a Driver/3w + 8i with the wind. You know the ball will stop where it lands vs. the ball rolling and rolling. Your affective landing area is cut to the size of a towel.

Ok, so now that you are playing downwind, what do you do to help your situation? Put the ball in the fairway. Very, very important. You HAVE to get good spin in the next shot to have any chance. Anything in the rough where the grass gets behind your ball is only making things worse. Even with a SW inside 100 yards in the rough is worse then 150 back in fairway. So hit the 3w off the tee, or a long iron to be sure you are in the fairway.

The second shot is now going to fly and run. To counter that, play the ball a little more forward in the stance to add hight. You want maximum hight. This will add overall carry distance, but it allows the ball to stop quicker. You need to have knowlege of your actual carry distance so you know how must to add to this shot. The more the wind the more carry will be added. It is usually a full club added per 10 mph of downwind (sorry Europe..you do the conversion).

What this translates to is usualy being able to take less club. And this all seems normal..the wind is helping you. But the most common mistake is to think that the wind is stronger then it really is, and you let up on this lesser club, hitting it with less acceleration. This causes a low ball flight. And that just destroyed the reason you picked the lesser club's advantage getting extra hight. You MUST hit the ball with your maximum acceleration, if not a little more. It will feel unusual to be hitting a ball harder then you think you have to playing downwind, but it's what is needed to make the shot do what it needs to do to get the results you want.

Playing a cut downwind is also another way to help the hight/spin advantage, but I don't like this option as much as a normal shot with less club. The cut's lateral movement is not as much as it normally is, so you end up having aiming issues.

To your question about crosswind.
Distance control is a problem, because there is a force on the ball from another direction, and any other force on a flying ball other then the direct face-on force you put on it with your strike will cause the ball to loose momentum. Heavy crosswinds will kill the flight's overall carry. So it is like playing a downwind shot. The problem is that it is about 1/2 (directly from the side) to 1/4 (45 degree) the overall force. So you have to do the math. And wind is never constant in strength and direction. You guess and that's as good as you can do.

Crosswind direction control is an art. You really have to play a lot to know what works best for you. Options are: Play the wind. Let it ride it and don't force anything. This eliminates one issue about the distance control you just figured out. So now all you have to do is guess on the amount of lateral movement. If you try to work the ball into the wind to hold a line, then you now have to make adjustments to the distance control factor, because you are now applying new forces on the flight. And you have to play a shot that requires extra finess with less predicability. Lots to factor in. But. (you knew there was a but), it is possible, and sometimes necessary. Lateral movement is always bad when there are places you do not want to be (ob, water, traps, shortsiding yourself on the green...etc). So if your tee shot has a left-to-right wind, with ob right, I would definatly consider playing a draw aiming left center of the fairway...not a hard draw, just thinking "draw" and not even getting anywhere near a "fade" swing.

__________________
I'm a golfaholic, no question about that. Counseling wouldn't help me. They'd have to put me in prison, and then I'd talk the warden into building a hole or two and teach him how to play. ~Lee Trevino

take a kite!

In the wind keep your spin rate as low as possible, irrespective of the direction. More spin creates more ball movement and in the wind you don't want that.

Sure, you have to allow for the wind, irrespective of the wind direction or strength. For improver and beginner golfers, don't ever try to fight the wind - rather play with it. By this I mean, for example: don't try to draw the ball up into the wind to fight the wind from the left, rather aim left, adjust your club selection and hit it into the wind and let the wind move it to the right.

To reduce your spin rate, take more club and hit it softer and better rather than hitting a club hard. If it's say a 7-iron and it's a 2-club wind, which means you should hit a 5-iron, take your 4-iron and focus on hitting it well and at 70% power rather than hitting your 5-iron and hitting it hard. The harder you hit the ball, the more spin you get.

Do the same downwind - say it's a 5-iron and with a 1-club wind, instead of hitting a 6-iron ... hit a 70% power 5-iron and hit it well. It'll have a lower ball flight (therefore less wind push), the lower spin rate will make the ball turn less ...

Now here's a pro tip for you, okay:
Into the wind, to reduce the spin rate, take a practice swing and fill the grooves up with dirt and grass. This will stop the grooves from doing their job and the ball will spin less!

You could also play with a harder ball becuase they spin far less, which makes playing in the wind so much easier. In a strong wind, I change from the Callaway HX Blue to the HX Hot. It spins about 20% less ... it all makes my job easier.

There are lots of things you can do to make playing in the wind easier ... keep it in play, unless you're a consistent ball striker don't fight the wind, keep the spin rate down, allow for the wind, take more time to judge the shot and be patient.

__________________
Golf is easy ... once you know how.
Graham Arnott, teaching professional
Kelrosa Golf Studios
www.kelrosagolf.com
Class 'A' PGA Member
Full Member: World Golf Teachers Federation (GB&I)

No you can't , that would be a rules violation.

"
4-2. Playing Characteristics Changed and Foreign Material
• a. Playing Characteristics Changed
During a stipulated round, the playing characteristics of a club must not be purposely changed by adjustment or by any other means.
• b. Foreign Material
Foreign material must not be applied to the club face for the purpose of influencing the movement of the ball.
PENALTY FOR BREACH OF Rule 4-1 or -2:
Disqualification.

Um ... hello!!???
Read your rule again ... that relates to foreign material. Dirt and grass from a golf course IS NOT foreign material, its all integral parts of the golf course.

You telling me that by taking a divot and then playing a shot with the dirst on the face is breach of the rules? I guess then 90% of amateurs who walk around with dirty clubs had better start adding up penlty shots.

No I am saying that if you do what you said for the reason you said on purpose, it is a rule violation, one you should call on yourself. Dirt is a foreign object if it fills in the groves intentionally. The same as if just before I hit to prevent spin I took the club and spit on the face, would also be a rules violation because you are doing it specifically to alter the characteristics of the club and prevent spin.
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Here is the actual rule:
Foreign Material (Rule 4-2b)
The Equipment Standards Committee uses this Rule when materials of a temporary nature have been applied to the face — such as saliva, grass juice, chalk, aerosol spray or other similar substances. Permanent attachments or coatings such as plasma spray, ‘balata’-type rubber or even paint are dealt with under the club face Rules in Appendix II (see Sections 1 and 5).
The most important question to ask when ruling on a club which has had something temporarily applied to the face by a player is ‘why has it been put there?’ If a material or substance has been applied to the face in order to protect it (e.g., to increase wear resistance) or to clean it, then it would probably be permitted. However, if the purpose of the application is to influence the movement of the ball or assist the player in making a stroke, it would be prohibited. Any type of tape or similar material added to the face is not permitted for any purpose.

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The highlight portion would pertain to what we are talking about, becuase you are doing it on purpose for the sole reason of preventing spin, you even said so.

Thanks everybody !