Golf Tips » August 2003: The left-handed shot can get you out of trouble!

Mary Harrison of Ann Arbor, MI writes:

"I was recently up against a tree and could not take my normal stance as the ball was on the "wrong" side of the tree for me (a right hander). The rough was fairly high so a putter was out of the question. What was my next best bet?"

Mary, I suggest that you learn to play a "left-handed" shot. It is fairly simple but requires a little practice. Take your stance using a 9 iron or pitching wedge (they have the biggest faces) and flip it over as seen in picture #1, and in the close-up of picture #2:

 

You want to take a fairly short backswing to eliminate errors as you are not used to swinging the club this way.

Also abreviate the follow-through trying hard to keep the right arm straight ( normally at this point you would be attempting to keep your left arm straight!)

Spend some time on the practice tee with this shot first, so you know what to expect when you are faced with this situation on the course. Once you have it it is a great stroke saver!