Pete Finch – PGA Teaching Pro

How can I read my lie in the rough? Now if you hit an errant tee shot and you find yourself in some rough, it can be quite a tricky shot to judge, because there is a lot more grass around the ball than you see in the lie rough or in the fair way. Now to be able to judge how your ball is lying, don’t be afraid to get up close and personal. So get down to the level of the ball, have a really good look and see anything which is around the ball.

If you sat down in a lot of rough you might be able to see that the rough is slightly lighter behind and therefore you can play a bit more of an expansive shot, but don’t be afraid to get down to the level of the ball and check out the surrounding area. Now to get a feel and to get a good read of how the ball will react and how the club will react, find the patch of grass next to your ball as long as you don’t disturb your ball, take a few practice swings and actually see how the rough feels. This will give a really good indication to how the club will react when you actually hit your shot and how the ball is likely to come out.

A big mistake would be, if you actually got over that ball, you had a very quick look and then just decided to hit whatever could be fancied. You need to get down to the level of the ball, you need to see how it’s lying, you need to kind of analyze it in minute detail. The more effort you put into reading your lie, the better the resulting shot will be, because you’ve taken the time to execute some proper course management and that will carry over into the shot.

So the next time you’re in some rough, take your time, read the lie, then select the club, have a few practice swings in the rough nearby and then go ahead and execute the shot. And when you are executing the shot, fully commit to it. Don’t stop at the ball, swing through and let what happens, actually happen. But if you judge the rough correctly and you’ve judged everything out correctly, hopefully it will be a positive outcome.