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Re: Have i gone crazy?

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Thu, Aug 20 2009 6:57 AM (6 replies)
  • dingers
    55 Posts
    Thu, Aug 20 2009 5:35 AM

    Playing on hole 5 at Bethpage i seem to be between 160 and 170 out after most drives , then its an iron shot to the green , even with a 6-10 mile wind straight at the pin using a 4 iron (180 yards ) from 163 out i fall short in the bunker . I use backspin does this make it fall short ?.

    Seems to be only this hole where the distance from the second shot to green seems to be inconsistant with other iron strokes , any thoughts or have i gone completly crazy ?

  • greysub
    1 Posts
    Thu, Aug 20 2009 5:51 AM

    pretty sure the more you backspin the more distance you lose.....

  • dingers
    55 Posts
    Thu, Aug 20 2009 6:12 AM

    If thats the case do you lose distance on the roll or where the ball actually first lands.

  • YankeeJim
    25,827 Posts
    Thu, Aug 20 2009 6:25 AM

    The longer the iron the flatter the flight path of the ball is. Backspin inhibits the roll after landing, topspin enhances it BUT if you're not on flat ground the elevation rise in front of you at the landing area is going to interrupt that flat arc and you wind up short. Longer clubs might get you up there but the ball is going to roll like a freight train. Pick your poison.

  • AvatarLee
    1,644 Posts
    Thu, Aug 20 2009 6:29 AM

    That is true greysub, it only reduces the rated distance by a couple of yards at most.  

    Dingers, what you need to keep in mind is the elevation of the green and the lip of that bunker.  I believe that the shot you are talking about is a good 25-30 feet uphill, so you need the next club up at least to get it there.... be careful though, because now the shot is coming in with a lower trajectory and will be very hard to hold the green.  You'll probably end up in the bunker or weeds behind the hole which is a much much harder shot to get close to the hole.

    Here is what I've tried to do in the past:

    Left to Right wind - Aim left of the bunker and try to skip it out of the rough to the left side of the green, this is a low percentage shot and usually leaves a medium length pitch for an up and down. Sometimes it will pay off but it is a very hard birdie putt.

    Right to Left wind - The safe play here is to aim right of the bunker at the front lobe of the green and try to hold the green.  Low percentage again but short is an easy pitch to an uphill hole location, and long is a not so easy chip/pitch to a sloping right to left green.  So better short than long here.

    Head or Tail wind - Take a low trajectory club and try to blast it through the bunker and dribble onto the green.  When executed well it can be as close as 10 feet for birdie.  Most of the time the lip of the bunker will reject it and you have a relatively easy pitch from the sand or the rough between the sand and the bunker.  WARNING:  Make sure you do not fly the bunker here... you will be in the trap at the back, or worse, in the weeds.  THIS IS THE WORST PLACE TO BE ON THIS HOLE IF YOU WANT TO SAVE PAR!

    Hope this helps!

    Lee

    *edit* Ninja'd by YankeeJim but Ninja'd Faterson... 50% is not bad... much better odds than getting birdie on this hole! 

  • Faterson
    2,902 Posts
    Thu, Aug 20 2009 6:31 AM

    greysub:
    pretty sure the more you backspin the more distance you lose.....

    I wouldn't necessarily say so. When there's tailwind, using back spin actually increases shot distance, although not upon the ball hitting the ground, which is just as well! That's what you often want, especially when attacking greens or dog-legged fairways from the tees.

    As to attaining the green on hole 5 & many other Bethpage holes, one must also take into consideration not just wind direction & speed but the greens' elevation as well, which is quite significant on many Bethpage Black holes. (Yup, multiple ninjas at work in this thread.)  

  • SWDE
    21 Posts
    Thu, Aug 20 2009 6:57 AM

    The most consistant shot for me is to play through/over the trees on the left; my results vary from on the green (20%), behind the green with a short makable chip (40%), left side of green in the rough for a pitch (20%), behind the green in bunker (10%), in deep *** or trees (10%).

    SWDE

     

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