Ask the Top 100: How to stop hitting fairway woods fat
Dear Top 100 Teacher,
I'm having a horrible time hitting fairway woods. I'm getting these huge divots that are bigger than my sand-wedge divots.
Charles L., via email
Big divots with your fairway wood are usually caused by a steep downswing (think of a chopping motion). You should also check that your ball placement isn't too far back in your stance.
To cure a steep downswing try the following two drills:
1. Tee up some balls at driver height and try to sweep the ball away (using a 5-wood or 3-wood) without clipping the tee.
2. Practice hitting a 5-wood from a sidehill lie with the ball above your feet. Grip down on the handle and concentrate on making a flatter backswing.
Making some exaggerated, inside-out practice swings will also help to "shallow" out your swing and develop a feeling of the correct motion.
Good luck,
Keith
Golf Magazine Top 100 Teacher Keith Lyford is director of instruction at the Golf Academy at Old Greenwood in Truckee, Calif. You can read more about Keith at lyfordgolf.net
Posted by: Matt | May 16, 2009 11:22:40 PM
You are probably thinking of hitting them like irons with a decending blow, probably because they are not teed up. I find this a problem when i hit irons of a tee, on par 3's, i will hit them like a driver with an ascending blow, never good. Though its difficult to do, the best thing to do is to hit them with a sweeping action. Do not hit balls, just practice grazing the grass. Its a tricky shot for those who take big divots with there irons. What i do is take an intermediate set up from my normal iron position and my driver position. So somewere inbetween the middle of my stance and inside my left foot. This position will force me to have to graze it because if i take a divot i will be so far out on my front foot that i would probably fall over. Though i will move it back a bit if i hit it out of the rough, which i try to take a small divot to promote contact with the ball first, but i wouldn't recommend hitting a fairway wood out of the rough to begin with... Good luck