Golf Tips: Downhill Long Iron

You're on a down slope, some 195 yards to the pin.  This distance for you is perhaps a 4-iron in normal conditions, flat and no wind.  But do you hit 4-iron from a downhill lie? First off, hitting a long iron on a downhill lie is very tough.  Typically we put the ball toward the front foot in our stance and hit up on the ball a bit.  But that is extremely difficult to pull off on a downhill lie. The difficulty of the shot is one issue to deal with.  But let's talk geometry for a minute.  If you are on a downhill lie, the launch angle of the ball will be reduced.  That means a 4-iron from that lie may launch at the angle of a 3-iron.  Plus, you're downhill.  Think about it.  So the first thing to do is pick the right club.  Instead we will go to a 5-iron.  The combination of the launch angle and downhill will go as far as a 4-iron most likely.  As a bonus, a 5-iron is easier to hit than a 4-iron. Next is to get the ball in the right position.  Rather than toward the front foot, we are going to put it back in the stance, toward the back foot.  This will help is make clean, solid contact on the ball without hitting the ground first.  To fine tune it, some practice swings, noting where the club "bottoms out" would help.  Note that place in the stance and play it from there. Try It In shot, the long iron downhill lie is played differently by using one less club and putting the ball farther right in the stance.  Try it!