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Moving the ball both ways?

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slicer79

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How many here can say they're happy moving the ball both ways during the course of a round?

My standard shot is a draw shot. Get on fine with it most of the time, when it turns into a hook though it can be a problem

I feel I've been lazy in trying to get a fade into my game when needed and it was brought home to me yesterday.
I played two par 3's very poorly.

Both with flag close to right edge of green. Strong wind blowing right to left.
Both times my ball started at flag but with combination of big draw and strong wind must have moved close to 25 yards in the air then missed green and spun even further left when hitting the ground.
Left difficult chips which I didn't get up & down so two poor bogeys by my standards. And all down to my tee shot.

How would you play it?

I've come up with two ways.

1. Start ball well right of green and trust the draw & wind to bring it back. Then hopefully it might hit green with chance of 2 putt for par.
Problem is if it doesn't come back you're finished as there is water right so can't afford to miss the green that side. Plus you've no green left to work with for chip

2. Learn to become comfortable with a fade shot when needed. Then can try hold it up into wind and hopefully hit the green giving good chance if par

Now obviously I realise if a player can move it both ways it's a big plus. But how many can realistically expect to do it. Martin kaymer found it hard so what chance have we?

My fear is if I start tinkering I'll end up in a situation where I'm not sure what I'm doing and not have a shot I'm certain of.
Would dread the idea of setting up for a fade and then the ball draws. Could be a lost ball on the cards!!

What would most people here do? Do many feel they have both shots on call when needed?
 
In theory I have the knowledge and the ability to move it both ways. However in reality, I am more happy moving it right to left and can move it from a gently draw to a Bubba like big raking hook and will take it on most times. Not so happy going the other way and won't really take it on unless there is very little option and there isn't anything too penal should the shot not come off as planned.
 
Up until a couple of mths ago i only had right to left, in varying degrees. Having worked hard on neutralising my swingpath to all but neutral Im pretty happy if I have to shape it either way on the course (albeit on occasion bad habits resurface and I get handsy and hence double cross a supposed fade). Very rare now for me to have a round where I dont try and hit it both ways. I tend to control it via set up and resultant swingpath and hand action to control the clubface angle

Whilst I have the shots, actually hitting them to order can be easier said than done and some days just using the stock shot I have is the best option
 
Thinking back to today's round drew and faded driver pretty much on demand.

Irons, tended to be more of a hook when trying to draw it in,fade went to plan ok .
 
slicer79 said:
How many here can say they're happy moving the ball both ways during the course of a round?

My standard shot is a draw shot. Get on fine with it most of the time, when it turns into a hook though it can be a problem

I feel I've been lazy in trying to get a fade into my game when needed and it was brought home to me yesterday.
I played two par 3's very poorly.

Both with flag close to right edge of green. Strong wind blowing right to left.
Both times my ball started at flag but with combination of big draw and strong wind must have moved close to 25 yards in the air then missed green and spun even further left when hitting the ground.
Left difficult chips which I didn't get up & down so two poor bogeys by my standards. And all down to my tee shot.

How would you play it?

I've come up with two ways.

1. Start ball well right of green and trust the draw & wind to bring it back. Then hopefully it might hit green with chance of 2 putt for par.
Problem is if it doesn't come back you're finished as there is water right so can't afford to miss the green that side. Plus you've no green left to work with for chip

2. Learn to become comfortable with a fade shot when needed. Then can try hold it up into wind and hopefully hit the green giving good chance if par

Now obviously I realise if a player can move it both ways it's a big plus. But how many can realistically expect to do it. Martin kaymer found it hard so what chance have we?

My fear is if I start tinkering I'll end up in a situation where I'm not sure what I'm doing and not have a shot I'm certain of.
Would dread the idea of setting up for a fade and then the ball draws. Could be a lost ball on the cards!!

What would most people here do? Do many feel they have both shots on call when needed?
Click to expand...

For that particular scenario a block can be a very effective shot. Blocking it is often easier for someone who tends to draw it than fading a shot. Try it it's very easy and effective, was shown it by a guy who'd spent 20 years out on tour. Take an extra club swing easy and block it off, the wind should move it back a little.
 
I have been plagued with a pull hook or block with my driver, and sling hook with everything else, for the last two years.

Went down the range today and hit about a hundred balls, mostly with 6 & 4 iron, and tried to fade every single one. I managed about 2.

Might have been fighting a lost cause as was playing with a strongish right to left breeze, but still, nearly everyone I ended up double crossing myself and hitting it about 40 yards left of target.

Incredibly annoying.
 
slicer79 said:
How many here can say they're happy moving the ball both ways during the course of a round?

My standard shot is a draw shot. Get on fine with it most of the time, when it turns into a hook though it can be a problem

I feel I've been lazy in trying to get a fade into my game when needed and it was brought home to me yesterday.
I played two par 3's very poorly.

Both with flag close to right edge of green. Strong wind blowing right to left.
Both times my ball started at flag but with combination of big draw and strong wind must have moved close to 25 yards in the air then missed green and spun even further left when hitting the ground.
Left difficult chips which I didn't get up & down so two poor bogeys by my standards. And all down to my tee shot.

How would you play it?

I've come up with two ways.

1. Start ball well right of green and trust the draw & wind to bring it back. Then hopefully it might hit green with chance of 2 putt for par.
Problem is if it doesn't come back you're finished as there is water right so can't afford to miss the green that side. Plus you've no green left to work with for chip

2. Learn to become comfortable with a fade shot when needed. Then can try hold it up into wind and hopefully hit the green giving good chance if par

Now obviously I realise if a player can move it both ways it's a big plus. But how many can realistically expect to do it. Martin kaymer found it hard so what chance have we?

My fear is if I start tinkering I'll end up in a situation where I'm not sure what I'm doing and not have a shot I'm certain of.
Would dread the idea of setting up for a fade and then the ball draws. Could be a lost ball on the cards!!

What would most people here do? Do many feel they have both shots on call when needed?
Click to expand...

Amateurs arent 'happy' and I'll bet 'can't' move the ball either way to order.

Anyone over a 3 h/cap who says they can are either kidding themselves or have the worst short game a potential scratch player can have:whistle:
 
CMAC said:
Amateurs arent 'happy' and I'll bet 'can't' move the ball either way to order.

Anyone over a 3 h/cap who says they can are either kidding themselves or have the worst short game a potential scratch player can have:whistle:
Click to expand...

Is pretty much the right answer!

Having had consecutive birdies on Saturday (there were 3 more but I still only won 2 skins!!) I tried the gentle Draw with an iron that I'd acquired on the range during the week. Result was a horrible chunky pull that ended behind a tree! Similar happened when I tried it with the Driver - carving it into huge ferns for a lost ball! I'll stick with straight/gentle fade for now!
 
I can happily move the ball both ways, would prefer to hit a fade/straight shot though.
A fade is my natural shape do seeing the ball move left is a little harder to judge. Very rarely hit draws into a greens, off the tee for doglegs is about the only time
 
I can do it on demand at the range with good results. On the course I draw it with decent results most of the time, however getting the fade on demand on the course is proving an issue. This is only with my irons though. For some reason the driver is not working at all at the moment. I either fire it a mile right or hook it left with only the very odd one going up the middle.

Really need to get it sorted again before the season is finished !!!
 
I can move it both ways - hook or shank.

In my opinion, the fade is the best shot to rely on. By fade, I don't mean a shot which sets off at the left rough and ends up just on the right edge of the fairway. That isn't a fade. A fade flies straight and then just falls a bit right from the apex.
 
Ethan said:
I can move it both ways - hook or shank.

In my opinion, the fade is the best shot to rely on. By fade, I don't mean a shot which sets off at the left rough and ends up just on the right edge of the fairway. That isn't a fade. A fade flies straight and then just falls a bit right from the apex.
Click to expand...

virtuocity said:
Uh-oh.
Click to expand...

He's, technically, right.

All depends where he's where the initial aim is.
 
I can't, I have one shot, which tends to be a draw of a few yards. Faced with the situation you described, I aim at the right half of the green, not at the hazard and most definitely not at the pin.

Of course the proper answer is to learn to hit it both ways but the since you don't yet have that shot, starting the ball at the pin in the conditions you describe was bad course management IMHO.
 
I'm comfortable hitting the ball both ways but for the hole in question mentioned by the OP, trying to hit a precise draw in a decent wind just seems like way too high a risk for me. Open up the stance and aim at the left hand side of the green and fade or block it (depending on your skill set) should leave some kind of putt or simple chip. Take it and run leaving the heroics for an easier hole.
 
Draw; maybe 1 in 20.
Fade; maybe 15 out of 20.

Most of my shots go straight, and providing my alignment is good I'll shot a decent score.
 
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