Golf Tips » November 1999: Fairway Woods

This months tip request comes from Bob Harris of Toledo, Ohio who asks :

“I have a difficult time getting the ball up in the air with my fairway woods, what can I do?”

Golfers have trouble with fairway woods because they incorrectly judge the shot. Some treat the shot the same way as they would their driver – it’s a wood right? So swing it the same way? No.

And some try to lift the ball off the ground, either collapsing their left arm (for right handed golfers) or straightening up in an effort to get the ball airborne. Both efforts result in either a topped shot , see my article on how to prevent topping, or hitting a low ball without much height off the bottom of the club.

So let’s cover what we should do with the fairway woods.

1. Ball position. This is usually the main culprit of poor fairway wood shots. Most golfers err in positioning the ball the same as their driver – off the instep of the front foot. In picture #1 I am in the address position with a fairway wood. The ball position is directly opposite my left heel. With a normal golf swing this represents the bottom of my arc which is exactly where I want to make contact with the ball.

2. Go ahead and swing, making sure you get the feeling of driving the ball forward and not up. This is accomplished by keeping the clubhead low and long through the hitting area as in picture #2.

Make an aggressive swing through the ball, and try not to “steer” the ball down the fairway. Let the follow through go right over your left shoulder!!