With three major championships down, the final opportunity for the best players in the world to enter the record books travels to Bellerive CC in St. Louis, MO. In order to take home the Wannamaker trophy, taking advantage of the par 5s will be a must to climb atop the leader board. Just as these pros will be attacking par 5s in two, so do avid golfers looking to put more circles on the scorecard. To help achieve these goals, premier fairway wood and hybrid play is required. Too often to players take too much extra time waiting for par 5 greens to clear, but then severely top or hit too heavy their approach shot. This comes from not having enough control from hitting at the ball, rather than having the discipline to correctly swing the club.
This mistake is highlighted from a change in the shoulder line during impact. When too excited from grabbing the 3 wood, there is too much of an acceleration of tempo, and the shoulder line gets lifted at impact. Resulting in the shot being miss hit on the bottom of the club and top of the ball. The opposite also frequently occurs. After taking off the head cover on similar clubs, players try to “muscle up” on the approach shot. This tightens up the muscles and creates the shoulder line being lowered at impact. This motion results in the swings pendulum to fall short of the desired impact, creating a heavy or fat miss.
To help secure the needed swing plane for solid impact, maintain your shoulder line throughout the whole swing. Focus on the buttons on your golf shirt turning during the back swing, as well as during the return to impact and finish. The more players can have their chest be the leading engine for their swing, the easier it will become to remove vertical mistakes and hit more par 5s in two this season!
