Hitting a Golf Ball

To hit the ball, the club is swung at the motionless ball wherever it has come to rest from a side stance. Many golf shots make the ball travel through the air (carry) and roll out for some more distance (roll).

Every shot is a compromise between length and precision, and long shots are often less precise than short ones. A longer shot may result in a better score if it helps reduce the total number of strokes for a given hole, but the benefit may be more than outweighed by additional strokes or penalties if a ball is lost, out of bounds, or comes to rest on difficult ground. Therefore, a skilled golfer must assess the quality of his or her shots in a particular situation in order to judge whether the possible benefits of aggressive play are worth the risks.

Types of shots

Strictly speaking, every shot made in a round of golf will be subtly different, because the conditions of the ball's lie and desired travel path and distance will virtually never be exactly the same. However, most shots fall into one of the following categories depending on the purpose and desired distance:

An approach shot.

• A drive is a long-distance shot played from the tee or fairway, intended to move the ball a great distance down the fairway towards the green. The driver or 1-wood is used for this shot which is the longest and largest golf club.
• An approach shot is made with the intention of placing the ball on the green. A drive may place the ball on the green as well, but the term "approach" typically refers to a second or subsequent shot with a shorter-range iron club, usually a 4-7 iron is chosen depending on the distance required.
• A putt is a shot designed to roll the ball along the ground. It is normally made on the putting green using a putter, though other clubs may be used to achieve the same effect in different situations. A lag is a long putt designed less to try to place the ball in the cup than simply to move the ball a long distance across the putting green for an easier short putt into the cup.
• A chip shot is a very short lofted shot, generally made with an abbreviated swing motion. Chip shots are used as very short approach shots (generally within 35 yards/32 meters), as a "lay-up" shot to reposition the ball on the fairway, or to get the ball out of a hazard such as a sand trap. This requires a sand wedge or a 10-iron. A bump and run is a variation of a chip shot, which involves running the ball along the ground with a medium- or high-lofted club using a putting motion.
• Punch or knock-down shots are very low-loft shots of varying distance. They are used to avoid hitting the ball into the canopy of trees or other overhead obstructions, or when hitting into the wind which causes the ball to climb higher than normal.
• Lay-up shots are made from the fairway after a drive or from the rough, but intended to travel a shorter distance than might normally be expected and/or with a higher degree of accuracy, due to intervening circumstances. Most often, a lay-up shot is made to avoid hitting the ball into a hazard placed in the fairway, or to position the ball in a more favorable position on the fairway for the next shot. They are "safe" shots; the player is choosing not to try to make a very long or oddly-placed shot correctly, therefore avoiding the risk that they will make it incorrectly and incur penalty strokes, at the cost of requiring one or more additional strokes to place the ball on the green.
• Flop Shot is when a player uses a very open club like a lob wedge to get the ball high very quickly over an obstacle or to get the ball to stop quickly when it hits the ground.
• A draw is when a player shapes a shot from right to left in a curving motion (or left to right for a left-handed player). This occurs when the clubface is closed relative to the swingpath. A shot which draws too much, or unintentionally and thus uncontrolled, is called a "hook" or a "pull".
• A fade is when a player shapes a shot from left to right in a curving motion (or right to left for a left-handed player). This occurs when the clubface is open relative to the swingpath. A shot which fades too much, or unintentionally and thus uncontrolled, is called a "slice" or a "push".
• A hook might be needed to go around a tree or obstacle. It has a strong right-to-left ballflight and is a larger version of the draw.
• A slice also might be needed to go around a tree or obstacle. It has a strong left-to-right ballflight and is a larger version of the fade
• A shank occurs when the club strikes the ball close to the joint between the shaft of the club and the club head, called the hosel, and thus flies at a sharp angle to the right of the intended direction (or to the left, for a left-handed player).
• A topped or bladed shot occurs when the forward edge of the club head strikes the ball too high, ie at the centre of the ball or "over the top" instead of underneath as intended, and the ball thus flies very low or rolls along the ground.
• A duffed shot occurs when the club head strikes the ground behind the ball, instead of striking the ball cleanly, thus slowing the club head velocity as it propels the ball and/or altering the alignment of the club head to the ball, with various consequences for the quality of the shot. This is also known as "hitting fat".
• A chunked or turfed shot occurs when the club head strikes the ground behind the ball at a steep angle, causing the club to nearly stop as it pulls up a very large divot, or "chunk" of turf, causing the ball to come up extremely short of the desired target.