3 wood of hard ground

[monktonhallgc1882]

today the fairways were quite dry and i seemed to be hitting this thin (sometimes slicy) strike with my 3 wood.Is this possibly swing, ball position, body movement etc.

My 3 wood is 17 degree and i am thinking of getting a new one at the end of the season

 

[RGDave]

Always a tough one. I broke a Callaway once on a rock hard fairway and had to drive to Chessington the next day to get a replacement.

The only advice I can offer is to know your normal style and adapt it the best you can. Not that I'm any good with a 3 wood these days, I seem to remember moving the ball a touch back and trying to catch it spot on the lowest point, as opposed to slightly on the up, like a tee shot or fluffy lie.

and practise....

 

[patricks148]

today the fairways were quite dry and i seemed to be hitting this thin (sometimes slicy) strike with my 3 wood.Is this possibly swing, ball position, body movement etc.

My 3 wood is 17 degree and i am thinking of getting a new one at the end of the season

You are prob hitting down on the ball, you want to be brushing it off the surface on the upswing.

17 deg sounds more like a 5 wood to me with that loft.

 

[RGDave]

So, two opposing views. Only you can know which will work.

Thinking back to the days when we hit drivers off the fairway, (I know some crazy but talented players still do this.. ) the idea was to plan for it to come out low and fade-ish. It wasn't that hard, but I'd not even try it these days with a melon on a stick.

I tee a 3 wood (off the tee) up so the normal ball position wouldn't work for me. Some players will happily hit it off the ground or up a mm or two, so these are probably the players suited to fairway use too.

 

[DaveM]

Funny I was just practising the very shot the other day. Found for me, it was best if I moved the ball back a tad. So I hit it just as the club levelled off. They did tend to fade a tad. But if you realise that you can aim accordingly. I find I hit the fairway woods better than the irons.