Rough Trouble

[Chisteve]

I'm having problems getting out of the rough lately - it seems to be draining my confidence

I tend to sweep the ball away on the fairway

I realize that I have set the ball back in my stance a little and come down on the ball, I seem to end up taking a divot and the ball flies out low or stuff it and too much grass gets between the club face and ball

I have been using my wedges and having a lot of success, but tend to take a large divot - when it comes to my mid to longer irons I seem to struggle

Any good drills at the range - its a difficult thing to replicate off a mat I think

 

[Foxholer]

Taking mid to long irons out of rough is fraught with danger - especially currently!

One of the several benefits of hybrids!

 

[the_coach]

I'm having problems getting out of the rough lately - it seems to be draining my confidence

I tend to sweep the ball away on the fairway

I realize that I have set the ball back in my stance a little and come down on the ball, I seem to end up taking a divot and the ball flies out low or stuff it and too much grass gets between the club face and ball

I have been using my wedges and having a lot of success, but tend to take a large divot - when it comes to my mid to longer irons I seem to struggle

Any good drills at the range - its a difficult thing to replicate off a mat I think

Perhaps the key to the possible problem is here in the sentence above. That would tend to indicate you are normally used to having a ways too early release of the hands/wrists to club shaft angle as the club hands/arms & shoulders start moving at transition.

Without seeing the swing there could be a few causes, ranging from not properly setting the angles going back, to maybes setting them okay but then starting transition with the hands arms & shoulders. This movement tends to throw the angles away at the top, usually combined with an out to in path & often leaving a ways too much weight coming down on the trail leg. So fats or thins, or even tops off the turf sometimes, & in the long stuff would contact ways too much grass before you get anywheres near the ball.

The key to getting out of the rough okay, is first not to be a ways too greedy, if it's buried in the long stuff, then it should be the heaviest club in the bag, sand wedge. If it's only down couple inches in not too long stuff then maybes you could use a 7i or the hybrid depending on distance.

The key to technique though is similar, more grass then you into the sand wedge. You need a slightly steeper backswing but also a steeper downswing to avoid as much grass as possible.

You have to set the hands/wrists & clubshaft fairly early going back so you get that 90º angle between left arm & shaft. You then have to transfer weight back on to the lead leg first, weight has to be on that lead leg before the hands/arms club start to come downwards, downwards motion being the key too you can't afford the shoulders arms to move outwards first as then you lose the angle and too much grass is in your path to the ball.

So weight left, then right shoulder moving down towards the ground which lefts you retain the wrist set so come in nice & steep on back of ball, so limiting the amount of grass between face & ball to the minimum possible.

So you need to be working to make sure in a normal swing, ball on turf or mat, that when you left arm is first parallel to the ground you either have or very nearly have a 90º between left arm & club shaft. Tehn you just complete shoulder turn making sure you are staying in posture, not standing up out of posture or lifting you arms (or both) aways from your body turn, body turn & arms need to stay connected.

Then you have you feel your lower half, left foot press gently down into the ground as the trigger to the downswing, so then the hands arms shoulder work downwards towards the ground & not outwards.

The first 4 inches of the right shoulders travel at transition of the downswing is crucial to moving down to impact in the best ways possible whether the balls on the turf or down in the grass, but that shoulder movement is led by the lower body. It's a downwards turning/rotating movement, & not a dropping in overall height.

 

[Chisteve]

Thanks for the quick replies I'll give it a go