Throughout a round of 18 holes, most golfers are going to face a variety of lies. Uphill, downhill, ball below their feet, ball above their feet.
In addition, they are also going to have shots from the fairway, tee box, the rough and the sand.
Being able to adjust to the variety of conditions on a course is essential to reaching your full potential.
We set three priorities on every shot:
- Making solid contact
- Starting the ball on the correct line
- Controlling our distances
The tips you find below will help you accomplish the three priorities listed above. On the more difficult shots it is important to manage your expectations and hit a shot that won’t destroy our round (out of bounds shot) and keep the ball moving forward.
How to hit from uphill lies in golf?
The golfer should make the following adjustments:
- Play the ball slightly forward
- Aim a touch to the right
- Take an extra club and maintain balance
Tip #1: Play the ball slightly forward
If the ball gets too far back on an uphill lie, you might hit the ball with too steep of an angle. So be proactive and move the ball 1-2 inches forward of where you normally play the shot. The key is to swing slightly along the slope and use the slope to your advantage. If you get too steep, the club will slam into the ground and cause potential poor contact.
The key here is to make adjustments to ensure solid contact and moving the ball 1-2 inches forward should help you with that.
Downhill lies in golf (3 Tips)
How to hit your irons pure (5 Tips)
Tip #2: Aim a touch to the right
When hitting an uphill shot the ball is going to want to fly a bit left due to the angle of attack on the shot. Anytime you are hitting more up on a shot, the ball will naturally want to go left for the right handed golfer. Once again, don’t fight the slope and instead make the proper adjustment to hit a quality shot.
Tip #3: Take an extra club and maintain balance
Anytime you have a lie that is difficult, taking an extra club and making a less than full swing is helpful. By taking more club and swinging less than 100%, the golfer can maintain balance on this difficult angle. Remember the goal is to make solid contact, start the ball on the right line and control your distance.
If you are swinging 100% from an off-balanced lie, chances are your shot is going to fly off line, you could have poor contact and your distance will suffer. Have the goal of maintaining balance and hit a quality shot. You don’t have to hit a spectacular shot, just an average to above average to keep your round going!
Bonus Tip: Manage Your Expectations
The goal on any shot in golf is to manage your expectations. Knowing some key stats can help you with your expectations.
Here are some key stats to keep in mind if you are growing frustrated with your lack of execution with any portion of your game. Some of these stats might help put your shots into a better perspective and stop beating yourself up after every shot you hit or every putt you miss!
- The average proximity to the pin from a 100 yard shot in the fairway on the PGA Tour is 18 feet.
- The average proximity to the pin from 125-150 yards from the fairway on the PGA Tour is 23’4”
- The average proximity to the pin from 150-175 yards from the fairway on the PGA Tour is 28’6”
- The average make percentage from 8 feet on the PGA Tour is 50%
Now consider these stats but from a difficult lie for an amateur golfer. If you have 100 yards left from a tough uphill lie, anything on the green is a fantastic shot. Or if you are at the 150 yard marker, anything around the green from a difficult lie can be considered a victory.
Don’t add unnecessary shots to your round by taking unnecessary risks. Manage your game, your emotions and your decisions and at the end of your round your score has a better chance of reaching your expectations!
Next Steps: Take Action
One thing I would highly recommend is ensuring you truly know how far you hit each shot in golf. Too frequently, golfers overestimate how far they hit their irons. This leaves difficult situations when there is a front bunker or water hazard.
The fault we see most is when a golfer hits a 7 iron 155 yards one time and they think this is their average distance, when in reality they only hit it 145 yards. I would highly recommend using a launch monitor to map your bag.
When you get to the uphill lies, you can adjust accordingly with a bigger club and balanced swing.
How can I improve my distance control?
My Secret To Golf Improvement
Let’s face it, in order to get really good at golf, we must practice frequently. About five years ago, I made the leap and invested in a golf simulator build for my garage. I went with a SkyTrak Launch Monitor and the TGC software and can now play over 100,000 courses including Augusta, Pebble Beach, Bethpage Black, Whistling Straits. St. Andrews and many other of the top 100 courses in the world.
This golf simulator setup, which is more affordable that you might imagine, has been a game changer. I can now play golf everyday of the year regardless of rain, snow, cold weather or time of day. I can practice or play rounds of golf. I can stand in the 11th fairway at Augusta and with the auto-rewind feature I am able to practice my approach shots from various differences.
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