TWO-MINUTE CLINIC
STEP THREE SWEEP IT, DON’T SMASH IT • Don’t swing down steeply into the ball. • Feel as if you’re • sweeping the ball off • the ground. • Keep the clubhead low after impact ( left ). • Stay in your address
Take It Over the Trees
Hit your irons higher than ever BY MICHAEL KOLAR
posture into the follow-through.
Obstacles on a golf course are no fun. They force you to create a shot you
STEP ONE VISUALISE THE FLIGHT • Play the ball slightly forward of centre in your stance. • Settle your weight 50-50 between your feet. • Visualise a “window” you want the ball to fly through ( right ). • Keep your lead shoulder high. might not normally hit. Maybe you have to keep one under a branch or curve a ball around a tree trunk. Then there are times when your best option (or perhaps only option) is to hit a high- flying iron that soars over the top of something. It’s a valuable shot to learn, and I’ll show you how to execute it with some simple steps here.
STEP FOUR FINISH TALL
• Let your weight shift fully to your front foot. • Keep swinging until the club is wrapped around your body. • Finish tall with your chest up ( right ).
STEP TWO SWING BACK WIDE
• Make a lower and wider takeaway than normal.
• Feel your arms stretching as you turn your body back ( left ). • Keep your weight fairly centred.
MICHAEL KOLAR, one of Golf Digest’s Best Young Teachers, is lead instructor at The Club at Ibis in West Palm Beach, Florida
PHOTOGRAPHS BY J D CUBAN
40 GOLF DIGEST SOUTH AFRICA
GOLF DIGEST SOUTH AFRICA 41
MARCH/APRIL 2026
MARCH/APRIL 2026
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