How Can You Cope With Hazards While Out On The Gold Course - By: Don Saunders

While nobody wants their ball to finish up in a hazard you have to admit that it is the presence of hazards on the golf course that makes the sport both challenging and exciting. Who amongst us has not watched a tournament and delighted in the spectacle of watching a player negotiate his way out of a sticky situation?

Having said this, it is one thing to see others attempting to hack themselves free of the thorn bushes but you do not really want to have to experience it yourself. And So, how can you at at the very least reduce the possibility of this happening?

The trick comes from and ability to read the golf course and plan ahead.

Before playing each hole you must think carefully about where the particular hazards for the hole are and evaluate how each one is likely to affect your game should you fall foul of it. After you have done this you can then determine how you should play the hole so that you can minimize and damage should you be unlucky enough to end up in one of the traps.

So, just what are the hazards you will encounter on virtually all golf courses? There are essentially 6 hazards that you are likely to run into:

1. The Rough. While challenging the rough is possibly the easiest of the problems that you will encounter and it is usually reasonably simple to get your ball back onto the fairway.

2. Hilly Terrain. Getting your ball into a good position on the fairway so that you can take your approach shot to the green is always preferable to achieving distance and therefore, if you are looking at a substantial uphill slope to the fairway, you may want to think about playing short of it instead of going for distance and then watching your ball roll back down the course and away from your target. This is particularly true if the gradient falls away to one side of the course and your ball is likely to not only roll back down the fairway but to roll off into the rough or into some other form of hazard.

3. Bunkers. Bunkers are essentially a hazard for beginners rather than for anyone else and, with a little practice, it is generally not too difficult to get your ball out of the sand and indeed you can frequently make some quite excellent shots out of the sand. Having said that, all bunkers are not the same and getting caught under the lip of a deep and steep sided bunker might present you with considerable difficulty.

4. Trees and Bushes. Bushes and trees can be quite nasty and even if you are unable to play your ball and are forced to take a drop you might well find that the lie inside the regulation 2 club lengths is not very much better than the original lie.

5. Water. Landing in the water will usually mean that you have to accept a penalty and reposition your next shot. Having said that, it is sometimes possible to hit your ball from the water if it is accessible and not lying too deep, however these occasions are few and far between.

6. Out of Bounds. Probably the worst of all hazards is firing your ball into an 'out of bounds' area because you will be required to take the shot again and will also have to take a penalty stroke. This is certainly something which you want to avoid if you can because there can be nothing worse than driving off into an out of bounds area and being forced to return to the tee and begin all over again with what in fact will be your third shot to the hole.

About the Author

Donald Saunders has been publishing articles on a variety of topics for many years now. visit his latest website which offers information on Club Car golf carts and Club Car golf cart parts together with a great deal more.

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