How to Recover When Your Golf Ball is in the Trees (Video) - by Pete Styles
How to Recover When Your Golf Ball is in the Trees (Video) - by Pete Styles

So now let's imagine we find ourselves in that awkward position where we've driven the golf ball into the trees all around us. We're going to try and get this ball out of the trees in the easiest and best possible way.

Now, the first thing here is, you know, of course, you must get the ball out of the trees. Get it back in play. Don't be too greedy or too aggressive. Just get the ball back out. Generally speaking, trees don't grow at a really low level. The branches start a little bit higher up and the green keepers probably look after the area so that the under area is fine and clear. The upper area in the branches is very difficult to hit the ball through. So we've got to try and get this golf ball going out at a nice low level.

Now, even if we've only got a hundred-yard shot or normally a hundred yards [indiscernible] [00:00:50] a pitching wedge, that's going to go too high. So here, I'm going to set to play a 100-yard shot, but I want to play with a five-aim [Phonetic] [00:00:57]. I'm going to play the ball back in my stance. I'm going to grip down on the golf club for control. I'm going to set my body weight into my left-hand side for a good strike. I'm going to play a short backswing with quite a stiff wristed action and the ball flight will come out very low shooting forwards and then quite a lot of rolling. I'm not telling you need to fly the ball 50 yards at about head height to a chest height. Just zoom the ball forwards at low level and then get it scooting out.

So my set-up is very different to a normal five-aim [Phonetic] [00:01:26]. It's more like a pitching shot. I'm going to scoot the ball out low and it's going to land at about 50, 60 yards and then you shoot up to the length of the fairway and hopefully up onto the green, eventually.

So as I'm setting up this shot, I've changed my set nicely. And now I just got to look around and to see if there's any areas where I could hit a tree in my swing particularly in my practice swings. Because if I had to trim my practice swing and knock a leaf or a branch off, that's actually going to cost me a penalty shot straight away.

If I was to hit that leaf or branch during my real swing, that would be okay. No penalty for that. But anything that hits a branch off in a practice swing is going to give me a penalty shot.

If you're in a position where you just physically can't see a way out to play the shot, there is an option of playing as an unplayable lie or re-hitting the shot that got you into this position. So have a look through the rule book and hopefully you'll understand the rules that are permissible in this situation if you don't think you can play it. But if you can play it, get this ball out lower rather than higher and make sure you take a nice safe route straight back onto the fairway.

 2012-05-09

So now let's imagine we find ourselves in that awkward position where we've driven the golf ball into the trees all around us. We're going to try and get this ball out of the trees in the easiest and best possible way.

Now, the first thing here is, you know, of course, you must get the ball out of the trees. Get it back in play. Don't be too greedy or too aggressive. Just get the ball back out. Generally speaking, trees don't grow at a really low level. The branches start a little bit higher up and the green keepers probably look after the area so that the under area is fine and clear. The upper area in the branches is very difficult to hit the ball through. So we've got to try and get this golf ball going out at a nice low level.

Now, even if we've only got a hundred-yard shot or normally a hundred yards [indiscernible] [00:00:50] a pitching wedge, that's going to go too high. So here, I'm going to set to play a 100-yard shot, but I want to play with a five-aim [Phonetic] [00:00:57]. I'm going to play the ball back in my stance. I'm going to grip down on the golf club for control. I'm going to set my body weight into my left-hand side for a good strike. I'm going to play a short backswing with quite a stiff wristed action and the ball flight will come out very low shooting forwards and then quite a lot of rolling. I'm not telling you need to fly the ball 50 yards at about head height to a chest height. Just zoom the ball forwards at low level and then get it scooting out.

So my set-up is very different to a normal five-aim [Phonetic] [00:01:26]. It's more like a pitching shot. I'm going to scoot the ball out low and it's going to land at about 50, 60 yards and then you shoot up to the length of the fairway and hopefully up onto the green, eventually.

So as I'm setting up this shot, I've changed my set nicely. And now I just got to look around and to see if there's any areas where I could hit a tree in my swing particularly in my practice swings. Because if I had to trim my practice swing and knock a leaf or a branch off, that's actually going to cost me a penalty shot straight away.

If I was to hit that leaf or branch during my real swing, that would be okay. No penalty for that. But anything that hits a branch off in a practice swing is going to give me a penalty shot.

If you're in a position where you just physically can't see a way out to play the shot, there is an option of playing as an unplayable lie or re-hitting the shot that got you into this position. So have a look through the rule book and hopefully you'll understand the rules that are permissible in this situation if you don't think you can play it. But if you can play it, get this ball out lower rather than higher and make sure you take a nice safe route straight back onto the fairway.