Best Way To Deal With Blind Shots on the Course

We believe that the idea of using an alternative target to guide your alignment is going to go a long way toward helping you deal with blind shots on the course. With that said, there are some other tips we can offer in relation to this topic. Please review these tips below, and keep them in mind anytime a blind shot comes up.

  • You should get conservative. To give yourself the best chance of success on a blind shot, it is a smart idea to play as conservatively as possible while still keeping your ball in position. Playing aggressively when you can’t actually see the target is difficult for a variety of reasons. For one thing, your confidence will likely be a bit low, even if you have done a good job of finding an alternative target. Also, you may not know exactly what you are facing up by the hole, so taking an aggressive line could mean you are playing right into trouble. Do your best to be patient and play conservatively when you can’t see your target.
  • Think twice about club selection. Since hitting a blind shot often means dealing with a significant amount of elevation change, you’ll want to double check your club selection before swinging away. Most amateur golfers underestimate how much extra club they’ll need when playing uphill, and they overestimate how much help they’ll get on a downhill shot. Uphill approach shots tend to require significantly more club to actually reach the target, depending on the severity of the slope, of course. On the other hand, downhill shots don’t always travel much farther than flat shots, especially when you are hitting a wedge. It’s hard to quantify the adjustments you need to make in these situations, so your best bet is to simply improve with experience. The more shots you play up and down hills, the better you will get at picking the right club.
  • Don’t rush yourself. It isn’t your fault that the course you are playing happens to include some blind shots. If you need to walk up a short distance to get a better view of the fairway or green, go for it. As long as you maintain a reasonable pace of play throughout the rest of the round, you shouldn’t feel like you have to rush through this tricky shot. Also, you don’t want to rush to hit your shot before checking to make sure that the group in front has moved out of the way. Take a moment to pick a target, make sure the landing area is clear, and then make a great swing.
  • Plan ahead. One of the best ways to deal with blind shots is to avoid them in the first place. There is nothing you can do about a blind tee shot – you have to play your first shot of the hole from the tee box, of course – but you may be able to avoid blind approach shots in some situations. Think ahead if you know there is the possibility of a blind approach shot and position your ball to give yourself the best possible look at the target. You should always be trying to think ahead in golf, and doing so to avoid a blind shot can give you a nice advantage over the course.
  • Let it go. When the planning is done and you have set up over the ball, there is nothing left to do other than make a great swing. So, instead of worrying about whether or not you are aimed in the right direction, put those concerns aside and just execute your swing properly. There is nothing you can do about your aim once the swing starts anyway, so you might as well focus on what you can control. Even if you aim does turn out to be slightly off, you may get away with it simply because you have struck the ball solidly. This is not only a useful tip for blind shots, but for any shot you play during a round of golf. Do the necessary planning to aim your shot correctly, but then let go of those concerns and just make a great swing.

Blind shots are never going to be the easiest part of golf, but they don’t have to ruin a good round, either. By having a plan in place before you even arrive at a blind shot, you’ll be ready when the situation presents itself. Take the conservative path when you can’t see the target, and save your more aggressive shots for later in the round. We hope the tips offered in this article help you deal with your next blind shot perfectly. Good luck!