All golfers will encounter tricky stances, whether the ball is above our feet, below our feet or on varying degrees of slope. These, along with all sorts of other difficult stances, occur regularly during most rounds of golf... especially if you are playing on undulating courses.
It's easy to fall into some common traps with these types of shots, often because players don’t understand how to adjust their set-up and technique to counteract the lie or slope.
However, with a few small adjustments, it's a relatively simple problem to solve. In this article, Golf Monthly Top 50 Coach Katie Dawkins shares her expert tips for brilliant ball-striking when playing a shot with an uneven stance...
1. Golf Ball Below Feet
The main mistake here is having the ball position too far forward in the stance. It should be fairly central, as the downswing will be quite steep and the ball is further away than on a flat lie.
Exaggerate your knee flex and tilt your posture over until the club hits the ground. Don’t sit back and fight gravity, because gravity will always win!
2. Golf Ball Above Feet
To play this shot, you need to imagine you’re swinging a baseball bat and flatten out your swing. Rehearsal swings with the club at waist height will help groove this rounded move.
Keep the ball position central – if it’s too far forward, you’ll either catch the ground early or top it. Again, the key is to be at one with the slope. Don’t fight it.
3. Upslopes and Downslopes
On downslopes, the biggest mistake is with finding the perfect grip. Try moving your hands lower on the club, while on upslopes it’s important your shoulders are perpendicular to the slope.
If you’re on an upslope your weight should favour your lower foot, while on a downslope it should favour the upper foot. Making these small adjustments will give you a much better chance of achieving the strike you are looking for, and could just save you a shot or two over the course of your round.
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