Five shots you’re bound to find in the rough, and how to execute them (Part 1)
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One thing I tell all my students is to evaluate each situation as they would a traffic light: red light, yellow light, green light. Unfortunately, many of them only see green. They think every shot requires that they go for the flag.

Here in the Northeast, where the rough is particularly severe and penalizing, this is a recipe for disaster. If you have 175 yards to the flag and your ball is nestled in the thick grass just off the fairway, you’re not getting home. Simple as that. This is especially true in the Met Area, where the grass tends to grow thick and grabs and twists your clubhead like an alligator wrestling with its prey. Here, there are no green light situations, only yellow (proceed with caution) bordering on red (nowhere to go).

On the following pages, we’ll look at five different shots from the rough, and how you should eveluate and play each one. Remember, there is no shame in making bogey from the rough. Just don’t turn a five into a seven or an eight by hiting off more than you can chew.

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THE  BASIC RECOVERY

Examine your lie. If you have no reasonable chance of reaching the green, play the ball to an intermediate target in the fairway (1) that al­lows you to advance your next shot to the hole. Most amateurs make the mistake of taking a middle iron, in some cases even a fairway wood, and trying to power the ball home. But anytime you rely on phys­ical strength in lieu of technique, you’re asking for trouble. The harder you swing at it, the more likely you are to lose your balance, which leads to poor contact (i.e. a chunked or topped shot).

When the rough is very heavy (2), the grass has a tendency to grab the hosel first and flip the clubhead over, closing the clubface at impact. This delofts the club, often resulting in a shot that travels left and low with very little distance. To counteract this closing action, se­lect a club with more loft. Some other keys:
.Photography by Leonard Kamsler

• Preset clubface slightly open;
• Increase grip pressure in the left hand, particularly in the last three fingers (to resist flipping action) (3);
• Play the ball in the middle of your stance;
• Put more weight on your left side.