Elevated Greens

When the green is higher than the fairway or tee you're standing on, you have a problem to solve. Elevation adds yards to the shot. As the ball descends, it is also still going forward. When the ground the ball will land on is higher than the ground the ball took off from, the descending arc gets cut off. The ball will not fall as far, and it will not carry forward as far, too.

You therefore have to do two things when hitting toward higher ground: take more cub, and hit a ball with a higher-than-normal trajectory. But first, you have to read the slope.

This diagram below shows how an elevated green changes things. The curve does not truly reflect actual ball flight, but the general idea is the same. A ball starting off at point O on the left will land on the green between points A and B. If the green is elevated, now defined by points A' and B', a ball hit in the same way will land short of the green. Also, its angle of approach to the elevated green, θ', is shallower than the angle of approach to the coplanar green at θ.

One kind of elevated green is easy to see. The fairway runs reasonably level toward a sharp upslope that the greens sit atop of. Another kind can fool you if you aren't paying attention. This would be a green that sits at the end of a gentle but constant rise from where the ball is, up to the green. A three-degree slope doesn't look like much, but it rises almost 8 yards over a distance of 150 yards.

A higher target requires more club. Figure adding one club for every thirty feet of added elevation. Always err of the side of extra club.

You might have to hit the ball with a higher trajectory if you are significantly lower than the green. As the diagram shows, the ball will land at a point in its downward arc where it still has a significant horizontal component to its flight, it will run farther than usual after landing. If the pin is in the back of the green, you can aim for the front of the green and let the ball release the rest of the way. If the pin is in front, you have to hit a shot with a high trajectory so the ball will fall down straighter and stop faster.

To hit the high shot, take out one more club than the distance calls for. Set up to the ball as you normally would. Step back with your left foot about one inch, moving your body and hands back with it. You are now behind the ball. Swing so that you keep your hands behind the ball at impact. This will add loft to the club so you hit it higher than usual. Do not try to lift the ball in the air.


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