Spectacular Shots: Tips On How To Play These Epic Shots

welcome to the legendary Brabazon course here at the Belfry home of four rider cups we've teamed

up with Callaway and Alex Elliott and I are going to show you how to play seven epic shots

we're here at the third hole on the Brabazon it's a reachable par five so a real

tempter. Alex has got his tee shot quite a way down, but as you can

see, we've just slipped over into the rough here, so there's a decision to be

made. Alex, what are you thinking right now? I guess there's two options. Depending on how your game's going

right now, you could have started well and you might feel confident enough to take this

on. Other options you've got here is if your game's not feeling quite good, and sometimes

we have those days, is we could actually lay up down this right hand side

But, we've seen people play these shots I want to take it on right now as well so we're in the rough

now with this ball sat down a little bit we've got a sort of user club that's

going to help us get it in the air out the fairway we could probably get away

with those long irons the four iron potentially something around there but

190 yards out I'm thinking hybrid help me get that ball in the air a little bit

of help is all I need it great stuff right so you've decided you're going for

it yes we've got the hybrid talk us through the technique of how you're

going to play this shot so i guess there's um sort of a feeling i want people to use it i sort of kind

of teach along sort of the the feeling routes so ball position is really key let's make sure we've

got the ball in the correct position and the feeling through the shot i want people to attach

this very close to an iron shot let's not try and help it in the air let's try and feel like we get

a little bit of a downwards hit and on a downwards lie as well that's really really important so in

terms of ball position what i really like to see for golfers with a hybrid is a club head inside

their left heel probably where they're going to attach their longer irons or potentially like a

five wood or three wood but then the feeling through the hit and i do this for every single

shot out on the golf course make a few practice swings just inside the ball looking where i want

to contact that ground so i'm really looking to sort of brush that grass in front not sort of get

a feeling of scooping it up into the air and i mean i think it's amazing you see some of the best

players on tour do this they do exaggerated feelings relative to their swing thoughts from

the coach but also relative to the shot that they've got absolutely all right there we go so

we've got take a hybrid to help you get it up in the air make sure you're aware of that ball

position and make sure you get down into it with that exaggerated feel you've talked us through it

i've talked a big game here you've talked it up now let's see it in action okay so here we go

Work for your routine, take on one of these shots and we all know our playing

partners will enjoy it just as much as us if we get it on

Oh that looks pretty. I'll go a little. So you're up around the green chipping a puck for a birdie

epic shots call for epic locations and it does not get any more epic or iconic than the 10th hole

here on the Brabazon course at the Belfry look at that behind me we can all remember

Seve Ballesteros being the first man to knock it on there the amazing Ryder Cup moments we've seen

you're here you stood on the tee what's the thought process about how you're going to tackle

this incredible golf hole I think first and foremost if you're here you want to have a go don't you yes you just want to have a go I think if we look at this logically we've got to sort of

put it in that category of it's just another drive now I know it's not I know it's not but

if we're going to hit our drive our best and give ourselves our best opportunity of getting it near

or getting it on I think if we stick to sort of three simple rules good alignment try and put some

good rhythm on it and in your head really try and hone in on the target rather than a wide open

fairway so triple track ball what i would do in terms of like my routine and actually not just for

this hole i'd do this on every single hole i'd always stand behind yep and place my lines

down towards target so i know straight away i'm aligned to where i want to be yeah second

I'm going to take my stance, build my stance around that, hone in on my target rather than looking at wide open space

So in this case, a very tight front flag. And now all I want you to picture is can you be balanced

Because this would be very easy for any golfer of any level just to give it a little bit more because of the situation and think can i get it there so be balanced and try and not make it more than it is and just on shot shape obviously

most amateur golfers and certainly myself included we play with a fade yeah verging on a slice at

time that suits this perfectly so let's roll with it let's go with it set up allowing for that shape

taking it into the hole and if we're honest if we hit a good one and it does leak a little bit right

we might get a friendly balance off the tree and end up on the green well let's see how lucky we're

feeling today hopefully very so ball down keep checking your target checking your

alignment build your stance around those lines on the ball last thing be balanced

that looks pretty be good oh if that's the right length

oh he's right over the top of it on the green there you go

epic moments, epic shots. We're on the 17th, another beautiful hole here

It's a par five, it's reachable. Every chance to go for it in two from here, Alex

but just one problem, those branches are overhanging, but you've got to go for it, right

Oh, 100%. I think this is a great situation, risk and a bit of reward here, or a lot of reward

Where the green's set, with it sort of funnelling with those bunkers, it sort of lends itself to that ball, landing short, running up towards that flag, if we

can pull it off. So with that in mind, we've got to play a punch shot essentially to get it under these

branches and running up onto the green. Explain to us how we do that

So the first thing we've got to sort of go for is the lowest lofted club in our bag

Now for some people this may be a six iron, some people it could be upwards of a three iron

We've got a three iron here, so I'm going to choose my three iron. If you've got a six iron, five iron, just choose your least lofted club

So we're going to control a few things here. How much we hit down on the golf ball and the loft the golf club has at impact

Also, we could put speed into that mix as well. So we want to feel as though we're going to hit more down and reduce our loft

Now, there's a lot of these things that we can do at the address position. So let's work through in sort of like a five-stage map, as I kind of like to think it

So first off, let's grip down that golf club. It's going to help us control the speed

Second, we're going to build our stance with that ball towards the back of our stance

Number three, can we get a little bit of weight on our left side? Yep. Number four, I always like to do this without going too much into detail

We need to make sure that we're bodies aiming a little bit left because we're hitting it early in our arc

So aim a little bit left with that body. And then the fifth point, try and put a smooth three-quarter swing on it

All these factors help us control angle attack, help us control the loft of the club

and hopefully see that ball fizz out nice and low. Great stuff. Let's see it in action

Let's go. So I think, as we've spoken about throughout this whole series, it's having a routine that you can stick to on these shots

So pick my target. I'm going to walk in, gripping down that golf club

place that golf club down, ball slightly back in the stance, weight left

now we're in a position to go. Very nice, chasing up in between the bunkers onto the putting surface, you've got an eagle putt

We're on the 15th, another beautiful hole here. Alex has hit a very, very rare bad shot

You've got yourself in a little bit of trouble, you're short-sided. There's a big old yawning bunker in front of you. What are you going to do to save your par from here

Well, I think there's only one thing to do, isn't there? Flop shot. Big, high flop shot

We're thinking Phil Mickelson style here, aren't we? Oh, 100%. It's almost like the hero shot

If it comes off good, you're a hero. If it doesn't, it can make you look a little bit of a fool

So what are you assessing to decide whether you can carry that off? I think the most important thing to do is I always work it from the ball to target

like a ball to target line. So I'd have a look at my lie. I think if we're going to hit this flop shot

we want that grass just to be cushioning that ball up a little bit. on a bare lie we might have to look at a different option i then would walk around this bunker

probably walk to where i want to land it yep because you get a good understanding take this

hole here for example we've got a bit of a backstop not a lot of green between the fringe and the flag

so assessing it going to where your target is and you can get a full good understanding of where you

want to hit that ball to great stuff so we're going to go for the most lofted wedge in the bag

So how are you setting up for this one? I keep it really nice and simple. Bunker shot is all I'm sort of thinking

So I would walk through a routine so I place that club down with the face open on the ground I would then take my hold If you look at that there Kit my hold to me is relatively neutral but relative to the club face the club face is really really open

And then place that club down behind the back of the golf ball. And for a lot of people now, it would be a bit of a scary situation

That club face looks like it's pointing a little bit to the right, but we'll correct that in a second. So then take a nice wide stance with the ball just favouring the left half

And then this is the key thing here, you sitting down a little bit

and getting the weight a little bit left actually will get that loft pointing somewhat to target

I want you to actually work through a different sort of feeling in release

I want you to imagine there's a little smiley face on that club face. As you're swinging through, can you point it back at you

Rather than most people would release a club like this, we want to feel a little bit more of an element of this. Brilliant

Make sure you take a few practice swings. Get used to the lie as well. You've got to get used to that club working through the grass

picture how much force you've got to put into it because I think the hard thing for most amateur golfers

and club golfers is it requires a lot more speed than you think. So place your club down, take your hold

ball up in your stance, sit down a little bit, mirror that loft back at you

Well, that is very high. Very soft. Band and soft. Catch it on the right level, and that is a very makeable par putt

it's the tricky 16th now we've got an approach but it's a difficult one we all know how tough

it is to be good from fairway bunkers you're in one right here alex that pin is tucked what are

you going to do i think again it's like we've had in this whole series have a little bit of a formula

for these big epic shots so first and foremost have a look at the lie because if this is not

lying well we can get a bit of a clump of sand behind it sometimes even get a fried egg here

we've got to take our punishment and just just take it out the bunker and use a most lofted club

then i'd have a look at the side profile how quick have i got to get this ball up over the lip because

how many times do we think yeah you know what i can get a six iron and get a five iron out of it

leave it in the bunker double bogey staring us back in the face so we go lie we look at the side

profile i then choose a club so i've got 135 here this would probably be a comfortable nine iron for

me but i'm going to go wedge i'd rather get this ball out come up short and i've got a chance of

making a bogey at worst if again if i leave it in here we're talking making some big scores so

then take a nice normal hold i wouldn't change too much on that um i tend to go with my wedges

anyway in the middle and an even amount of grip at the top and the bottom normal ball position

and this is where it differs from what we would have as a traditional bunker shot we usually screw

our feet right into the sand we're staring a fat shot so I think we want to sort of make sure we've

got a compacted bit of sand under us so we've got a stable base so our final point is then pick out

a little bit of a mark in front of the ball make sure the legs stay a little bit quieter through

the shot and really focus on trying to hit down on the ball not get it in the air and just one

other point are we doing anything with the ball position here to encourage that we make sure we

get contact on that little white sphere before the sand you might want to put it a little bit

further back in your stance i mean with a wedge traditionally you're going to have it sort of

towards the back of your stance anyway if you're on a bit further away taking more like a seven

iron eight iron you might want to put it half a ball to a ball back in your stance brilliant let's

see you take it on if you can get it close to that pin that really is an epic shot it's

a tight flag so a little bit of digging keep the legs nice and quiet

beautiful contact just a little bit short but I've not turned in this situation into a double bogey

give yourself a chance to save your partner Here we are on the 18th tee at the Brabazon. It's a beautiful golf hole but what an intimidating

shot. Sometimes you just have to take it on and when there's water lurking short and you know the

more you bail out the more difficult that second shot is going to be. This is one of those moments

isn't it Alex? Definitely like you said there you bail out right you're probably laying up for your

second here yeah so how are we going about hitting that absolute bomb off the tee well we've got to

stand up and deliver that's first and foremost and we'd go with driver here definitely so i would

tend to have in my golf game and as i go through a round have sort of three different tee heights

my low one if it's a little bit of a chippier one into the wind my medium one one which i sort of

class as my fairway finder and then what i call is my bombs away tee height so love it So what I look for here is as I addressing the golf ball is actually having half a ball above the face I tend not to have

this I sort of have a quarter usually on like my fairway finder shot. So first and foremost

half a ball above the face and then want to address the ball, ball up in the stance that's

really really key and just remind yourself check what you could do nice and simply address it in

the middle of your stance with your feet together just turn your left toe out move your right foot

away i know right away i've got that ball in the correct position next point can i make sure my

shoulders are actually feeling as though they're parallel to my feet line a lot of golfers ball up

in the stance sort of get a little bit this way and all this is going to encourage sort of this

motion if you think about it logically if you get behind it we've got a better chance of this upwards

it and finally I call it like my gears sort of theory most of the drives that I

hit sort of fairway finders sort of gear four in our car this one we've got to

step up we've got to go gear five so we've got to feel like we've got to be

balanced yeah but we give it just a little bit more absolutely well this is

a new tee box here for the British masters you are the first person to hit

a ball off it so no pressure I feel it let's give it the bombs away so walk in

right shoulder back, gear five with some balance. There's a bit of turn on that as well. So the line here is trying to start at the

bunker and if you do get it to turn on that left edge you're absolutely in the

perfect position. Perfect so aggressive off the tee, committing to it, nailed it

and now you've set yourself up for that iconic approach into the 18th here at

the belfry. Here we are in the fairway then at the 18th and what an epic shot you are faced with

right now Alex. We've got the plaque down there from Christy O'Connor's magical two-iron in that

Ryder Cup. Fortunately two-iron isn't one of the options we need today with all the technology at

our disposal. We've got a few options here. You can go hybrid, long iron, perhaps even a lofted

fairway wood. What are you going to do from this position? I'm going to go three iron. Notoriously

a probably difficult club for most club golfers for a couple of reasons really. If I don't quite

get it, I know I've got the cover over the water and if I hit my Sunday best, I'm not going to go

long. So that middle of the road sort of club for me there, I think if it went a little bit longer

back edge, downhill chip don't like the fancy of that one using that long iron though

that brings the microscope onto your ball striking as amateurs we can often struggle when we get into those long irons

yeah I think we look down on it we don't see a lot of loft on the club nine times out of ten

get a little bit thinny in that right shot and that's certainly in a lot of wet trouble right here

so I think if we just think of three simple things and these can be thought of

off the golf ball Number one, ball position. Number two, can we feel that club is travelling a little bit lower through impact

rather than trying to scoop this ball up high? And the final one sort of ties into that second one

And I would simply make some movements. I mean, if we look at all the top tour players

we've mentioned this in the series before, of having a feeling to take into a shot

Most club golfers, a little bit fadey. So I would really try and feel we have this sort of long right arm feeling

and this released down towards target so make some little practice motion just like this

without a golf club and you're getting a great feeling and nine times out of ten this will

probably send it dead straight all right we've got the pin tucked away there on the top of the

three tiers yeah this is your moment i feel the pressure show us something epic come on you've got

this walking in ball position i want to feel it's a club head and sort of on the right edge of this

club head here on the heel side inside my left heel down mirror that feeling hit it away

oh what a strike that is if that is the right club that is all over it it's up there on the

back tier i think you might have about six foot that is a truly epic golf shot

There we have it, that is how to hit seven epic shots here at the Belfry

I hope you enjoyed those tips from Alex. Next time you're on the course and you're faced with one of those situations, do what

he said and you'll have some epic shots of your own