Most golfers will face having to play from tight lie conditions at some point.

A tight lie is one where there is very little or no grass between the golf ball and the ground. This situation is very common whenever playing links type courses where the fairways are very closely mown to provide extra distance on tee and fairway shots. But they occur where there is wear on the golf course, the grass has not been over seeded or during summer conditions where there is a lot a sunshine and very little or no rain.

Tight lies are not difficult to play from though if you understand how to approach the shot correctly. When faced with this position the next time you are out on the golf course, work on striking the golf ball cleanly from the ground by striking the ball first. To do this you need to adapt your set up position to encourage this. Play the golf ball slightly further back in your stance than usual.

This will allow you to connect with the golf ball on the downward part of your swing arc, ensuring you strike the golf ball and then the turf for a clean, crisp connection. Place your weight slightly on your left foot (for right handed golfers) and ensure that your hands are forward. To achieve this, create a straight line from your left shoulder down to your hands and then continue down the club shaft to the club head.

This will encourage you to make a steeper swing with the club head than usual, allowing you to swing the club head down towards the golf ball on a steeper angle, allowing you to connect with the golf ball first before the ground.

Work on achieving these points in your address position and swinging with a slightly steeper than usual swing and you will be hitting clean, crisp, effective golf shots from tight lies with no problem at all.