WEBVTT

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In this drill video, we're going to look at adjusting for slopes around the

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green.

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So the simple thing is, whenever you're trying to hit shots and the slope is

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changing, you're

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going to use your body to try to recreate a flat, basically the same impact

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conditions

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that you would have on the ground.

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So essentially, if the ground is well below my feet and the club would be

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sitting like

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this, I'm going to do everything I can in my, you know, basically everything I

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can was

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set up and swing in order to get the club to still strike the ground the same

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way.

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Conversely, if the ball is way above my feet, this is a tough shot to do, so I

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'm going

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to do everything I can with my setup and swing in order to make the club work

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properly.

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So there's four possible combinations.

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I could have the ball below my feet, ball above my feet, uphill shot or a

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downhill shot, and

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any combination of the two.

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Well, the simple thing is your legs work as great shock absorbers.

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So if you can make, use your legs to essentially create the same alignment you

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had as if it

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were a flat shot, that's the easiest way to hit these shots.

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So here I have the ball below my feet, right?

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So the ball below my feet, if I were to just set up normal, well, I'm above the

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golf ball.

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So I have to get down in one way or another.

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There's a couple, there's a couple easy ways to do it.

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First one I like is if I widen my stance a little bit and kind of sit into that

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front

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leg, now that brings me back pretty much into the same alignment that I just

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had.

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So now all I have to do is make sure that I have my reference frame in my brain

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is based

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on this wide stance instead of my normal narrow stance.

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So I'm still going to get open, I'm still a little ahead of the ball.

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I'm not going to use my lower body very much during the shot.

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Then I can execute my good finesse wedge.

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So now I'll turn and face you.

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And now we've got the ball above my stance.

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So here I can obviously get a little bit closer to the golf ball.

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I can, or sorry, you can stand a little bit further away to get the club, uh,

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soling a

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little bit better, or you can get closer if the ball's sitting up enough and

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you can kind

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of take some of it out of it and do more of your block and hold style chip shot

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.

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The other thing is you need to be aware that because the club is going to be

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angled this

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way, it's going to affect where this face is pointing more so than the downhill

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shot.

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So when you're hitting the shot and the ball, I'll get it onto more of the

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slope.

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So when you're hitting the shot and the ball is above your feet, just know that

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if you

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came through normal, this club face is going to be pointing more left.

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So typically you'll have to open it up just a little bit more to counteract

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that, which

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means the ball is going to go a little higher, which means you probably have to

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take either

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less loft, like a less lofted club, or make a slightly bigger swing.

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Our other options would be uphill and downhill.

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So downhill, I'm going to make the major adjustments with my lower body.

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I'm going to take a wider stance because that gets me a little closer to the

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ground and

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that gives me some room to lean into this lead foot.

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So now my pelvis, because I'm leaning into this left leg, is going to be level

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with the

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slope.

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And now I'm just going to keep my lower body quiet as I make my normal finesse

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wedge swing

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like so.

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There's not much I can do.

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The ball is going to come out low, but because I'm leaning so much forward, I'm

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going to

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have a pretty steep angle of attack, and it's going to have a fair amount of

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spin.

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You can open the club face and you can narrow.

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You can kind of choke up just a little bit, and that will help counteract if

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you need

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to hit a shot that has a little bit more height to it.

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But the big thing for this downhill lie is you want to make sure that you go

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wide.

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The biggest mistake I see is players getting narrow like so, and then they'll

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kind of fall

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backward and end up blading the shot or chunking it.

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So then the last one would be the uphill shot.

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Now, I'll have to turn my back to you when we go through this.

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But the tendency here is to kind of hang back on the slope, or the tendency

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here is to stick

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the club into the slope like so.

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I'll demonstrate that.

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So if I'm, you'll either fall backward on that back foot and hit it too high,

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too short,

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or you will, because the slope is straight up like so, you'll just stick the

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club in

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the ground often just stuffing the shot.

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So the easiest way, I think, to work on these uphill shots is to take less loft

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and do more

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of kind of a dead hands type swing, and just make sure to put your lower body

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sort of in

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cement.

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So you're going to basically shift slightly forward.

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You'll get your upper body open.

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That's one of the other things, is anytime that it causes you to tilt back, you

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'll want

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to close your upper body, which brings the bottom of the swing back behind the

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golf ball.

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So uphill stance, still slightly open, lower body, doesn't really do anything,

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and you'll

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just do a little bit more of kind of more power source from that arms, which

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kind of

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matches the finesse wedge style.

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So those are the four basic ways to adjust for uphill downhill slow.

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With short game, it's all about creativity, so get used to using different

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clubs, play

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from different lives, play from different shots, and it'll help you

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tremendously when

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you're facing one of these shots on the course.