In this video Alex Elliott explains how top hit 7 epic shots at the Belfry.
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00:00Welcome to the legendary Brabazon course here at the Belfry, home of four
00:10Ryder Cups. We've teamed up with Callaway and Alex Elliott and I are going to show
00:16you how to play seven epic shots.
00:23We're here at the third hole on the Brabazon, it's a reachable par 5 so a
00:29real tempter Alex has got his tee shot quite a way down but as you can see we've
00:34just slipped over into the rough here so there's a decision to be made. Alex what
00:40are you thinking right now? I guess there's two options depending on how
00:43your games going right now you could have started well and you might feel
00:46confident enough to take this on. Other options you've got here is if your games
00:50not feeling quite good and sometimes we have those days is we could actually lay
00:54up down this right-hand side but we've seen people play these shots I want to
00:59take it on right now as well. So we're in the rough now with this ball sat down a
01:04little bit we've got to sort of use a club that's gonna help us get it in the
01:08air. Out the fairway we could probably get away with those long irons, the four iron
01:12potentially something around there but 190 yards out I'm thinking hybrid help
01:17me get that ball in the air a little bit of help is all I need here. Great stuff
01:21right so you've decided you're going for it yes we've got the hybrid talk us
01:25through the technique of how you're going to play this shot. So I guess
01:28there's sort of a feeling I want people to use it I sort of kind of teach along
01:33sort of the feeling route so ball positions really key let's make sure we
01:37got the ball in the correct position and the feeling through the shot I want
01:40people to attach this very close to an iron shot let's not try and help it in
01:45the air let's try and feel that we get a little bit of a downwards hit and on a
01:48downwards lie as well that's really really important so in terms of ball
01:52position what I really like to see for golfers of the hybrid is a club head
01:55inside the left heel probably where they're going to attach their longer
01:59irons or potentially like a firewood or three wood but then the feeling through
02:03the hit and I do this for every single shot on the golf course make a few
02:08practice swings just inside the ball looking where I want to contact that
02:12ground so I'm really looking to sort of brush that grass in front not sort of
02:17get a feeling of scooping it up into the air and I mean I think it's amazing
02:22you see some of the best plays on tour do this they do exaggerated feelings
02:26relative to their swing thoughts from their coach but also relative to the
02:31shot that they've got absolutely all right there we go so we've got take a
02:34hybrid to help you get it up in the air make sure you're aware of that ball
02:38position and make sure you get down into it with that exaggerated feel you've
02:42talked us through it I've talked a big game you've talked it up now let's see
02:46it in action okay so here we go work for your routine take on one of these shots
02:51and we all know our playing partners will enjoy it just as much as us if we
02:55get it on
03:02oh that looks pretty go a little
03:08so you're up around the green chipping a puck for a birdie epic shots call for
03:18epic locations and it does not get any more epic or iconic than the 10th hole
03:25here on the Brabazon course at the Belfry look at that behind me we can all
03:30remember Sebi Ballesteros being the first man to knock it on there the
03:33amazing Ryder Cup moments we've seen you're here you stood on the tee what's
03:39the thought process about how you're going to tackle this incredible golf
03:42hole yes you just want to have a go I think if we look at this logically we've
03:49got a sort of put it in that category of it's just another drive now I know it's
03:53not I know it's not but if we're gonna hit our drive our best and give
03:58ourselves our best opportunity of getting it nail getting it on I think if
04:02we stick to sort of three simple rules yep good alignment try and put some good
04:08rhythm on it and in your head really try and hone in on the target rather than a
04:14wide open fairway so triple track ball what I would do in terms of like my
04:19routine and actually not just for this hole I'd do this on every single hole
04:23I'd always stand behind yep and place my lines down towards target so I know
04:31straight away I'm aligned to where I want to be yep second I'm gonna take my
04:35stance build my stance around that hone in on my target rather than looking at
04:42wide open space so in this case a very tight front flag and now all I want you
04:47to picture is can you be balanced yep because this would be very easy for any
04:52golfer of any level just to give it a little bit more because of the situation
04:56and think can I get it there so be balanced and try and not make it more
05:00than it is just on shot shape obviously most amateur golfers and certainly
05:04myself included we play with a fade yeah verging on a slice of time that suits
05:09this perfectly so let's roll with it let's go with it set up allowing for
05:14that shape taking it into the hole and if we're honest if we hit a good one it
05:17does leak a little bit right we might get a friendly bounce off the tree and
05:20end up on the green well let's see how lucky we're feeling today hopefully very
05:24so ball down keep checking your target checking your alignment build your stance
05:31around those lines on the ball last thing be balanced
05:41that looks pretty good oh that's the right leg oh there you go
05:52epic moments epic shots we're on the 17th another beautiful hole here it's a
06:04par 5 it's reachable every chance to go for it in two from here Alex but just
06:09one problem those branches are overhanging but you've got to go for it
06:13right 100% I think this is a great situation risk and a bit of reward here
06:17or a lot of reward where the green set with it sort of funneling with those
06:21bunkers it sort of lends itself to that ball landing short running up towards
06:25that flag if we can pull it off so with that in mind we've got to play a punch
06:29shot essentially under these branches and running up onto the green explain
06:34to us how we do that so the first thing we've got to sort of go for is the the
06:38lowest lofted club in our back now for some people this may be a six iron some
06:42people it could be upwards of a three iron we've got a three iron here so I'm
06:46gonna choose my three iron if you've got a six iron five iron just choose your
06:49least lofted club so we're going to control a few things here how much we
06:54hit down on the golf ball and the loft the golf club has an impact also we
06:58could put speed into that mix as well so we want to feel as though we're gonna
07:02hit more down and reduce our loft there's a lot of these things that we
07:06can do at the address position so let's work through in sort of like a five
07:10stage map as I kind of like to think it so first off let's grip down that golf
07:15club it's gonna help us control the speed second we're gonna build our
07:20stance with that ball towards the back of our stance number three can we get a
07:25little bit of weight on our left side yep number four I always like to do this
07:29without going too much into detail we need to make sure that we're bodies
07:33aiming a little bit left because we're hitting it earlier in our arc so aim a
07:37little bit left with that body and then the fifth point try and put a smooth
07:41three-quarter swing on it all these factors help us control angle attack
07:45help us control the loft of the club and hopefully see that ball fizz out nice
07:49and low great stuff let's see it in action let's go so I think as we've
07:53spoken about throughout this whole series it's having a routine that you
07:56can stick to on these shots so pick the target I'm gonna walk in gripping down
08:01on that golf club place that golf club down ball slightly back in the stance
08:06weight left now we're in a position to go
08:16very nice chasing up in between the bunkers onto the putting surface you've
08:21got an eagle putt
08:28we're on the 15th another beautiful hole here Alex has hit a very very rare bad
08:33shot you've got yourself in a little bit of trouble you're short-sighted yeah
08:38it's a big old yawning bunker in front of you what are you gonna do to save
08:42your par from here well I think there's only one thing to do in the flop shot
08:45big high flop shot we're thinking Phil Mickelson style 100% like it's almost I
08:52call that the hero shot it comes off good you're here if it doesn't it can
08:55make you look a little bit of a fool so what are you assessing to decide whether
08:58you can carry that off I think the most important thing to do is I always work
09:02it from the ball to target like a ball to target line so I'd have a look at my
09:06lie I think if we're gonna hit this flop shot you want that grass just to be
09:09cushioning that ball up a little bit on a bear lie we might have to look at a
09:13different option I then would walk around this bunker probably walk to
09:17where I want to land it yep because you get a good understanding take this hole
09:20here for example we've got a bit of a backstop not a lot of green between the
09:24fringe and the flag so assessing it going to where your target is and you
09:28can get a full good understanding of where you want to hit that ball to great
09:31stuff so we're gonna go for the most lofted wedge in the bag how are you
09:36how are you setting up for this one if I keep it really nice and simple bunker
09:43shot is all I'm sort of thinking so I would walk through a routine so I'd
09:47place that club down with the face open on the ground I would then take my hold
09:52if you look at that there kit like my hold to me is relatively neutral but
09:56relative to the club face the club face is really really open and then place
10:00that club down behind the back of the golf ball and for a lot of people now
10:04it'll be a bit of a scary situation that club face looks like it's pointing a
10:07little bit to the right but we'll correct that in a second so then take a
10:10nice wide stance with the ball just favoring the left half yeah and then
10:15this is the key thing here you sitting down a little bit I'm getting the weight
10:19a little bit left actually we'll get that loft pointing somewhat to target I
10:24want you to actually work through a different sort of feeling in release I
10:28want you to imagine there's a little smiley face on that club face as you're
10:32swinging through can you point it back at you rather than most people would
10:36release a club like this we want to feel a little bit more of an element of this
10:41make sure you take a few practice swings get used to the lie as well you've got
10:45to get used to that club working through the grass picture how much force you've
10:51got to put into it because I think the hard thing for most amateur golfers and
10:55club golfers is it requires a lot more speed than you think yeah so place your
10:59club down take your hold ball up in your stance sit down a little bit mirror that
11:05loft back at you
11:09very high very solid soft catch it on the right level and that is a very
11:15makeable par putt it's the tricky 16th now we've got an approach but it's a
11:27difficult one we all know how tough it is to be good from fairway bunkers
11:31you're in one right here Alex that pin is tucked what are you going to do I
11:36think again it's like we've had in this whole series have a little bit of a
11:40formula for these big epic shots so first and foremost have a look at the
11:44lie because if this is not lying well we can get a bit of a clump of sand
11:48behind it sometimes even get a fried egg here we've got to take our punishment
11:52and just just take it out the bunker and use a most lofted club then I'd have a
11:56look at the side profile how quick have I got to get this ball up over the lip
12:00because how many times do we think yeah you know what I can get a six iron get a
12:05five iron out of there leave it in the bunker double bogey staring us back in
12:10the face so we go lie we look at the side profile I then choose a club so I've
12:15got 135 here this is probably a comfortable nine iron for me but I'm
12:19gonna go wedge I'd rather get this ball out come up short and I've got a chance
12:24of making a bogey at worst if I can if I leave it in here we're talking making
12:29some big scores so then take a nice normal hold I wouldn't change too much
12:34on that I tend to go with my wedges anyway in the middle and an even amount
12:38of grip at the top and the bottom normal ball position and this is where
12:43it differs from what we would have as a traditional bunker shot we usually screw
12:46our feet right into the sand we're staring a fat shot so I think we want to
12:52sort of make sure we've got a compacted bit of sand under us so we've got a
12:56stable base so our final point is then pick out a little bit of a mark in front
13:01of the ball make sure the legs stay a little bit quieter through the shot and
13:04really focus on trying to hit down on the ball not get it in the air
13:09just one other point are we doing anything with the ball position here to
13:13encourage that we make sure we get contact on that little white sphere
13:16before the side you might want to put it a little bit further back in your stance
13:19I mean with a wedge traditionally you're gonna have it sort of towards the back
13:22of your stance anyway if you're on a bit further away taking more like a 7-iron
13:278-iron you might want to put it half a ball to a ball back in your stance
13:30brilliant let's see you take it on if you can get it close to that pin that
13:33really is an epic shot it's a tight flag so a little bit of digging keep the
13:37legs nice and quiet
13:42beautiful contact
13:46a little bit short but I'm not turning this situation into a double bogey give
13:51yourself a chance to save your part
13:55here we are on the 18th tee at the Brabazon it's a beautiful golf hole but
14:05what an intimidating shot sometimes you just have to take it on and when there's
14:10water lurking short and you know the more you bail out the more difficult
14:15that second shot is going to be this is one of those moments isn't it Alex
14:19definitely like you said there you bail out right you're probably laying up for
14:23a second here yeah so how are we going about hitting that absolute bomb off the
14:28tee well we've got to stand up and deliver that's first and foremost and
14:31we'd go with driver here definitely so I would tend to have in my golf game and
14:36as I go through a round I've sort of three different tee heights my low one
14:41if it's a little bit of a chippier one into the wind my medium one one which I
14:45sort of class as my fairway finder and then what I call is my bombs away tee
14:50so what I look for here is as I'm addressing the golf ball he's actually
14:57having half a ball above the face I tend not to have this I sort of have a
15:01quarter usually on like my fairway finder shot so first and foremost half a
15:06ball above the face and I want to address the ball ball up in the stance
15:10that's really really key and just remind yourself check what you could do nice
15:13and simply address it in the middle your stance with your feet together just turn
15:18your left toe out move your right foot away I know right away I've got that ball
15:22in the correct position next point can I make sure my shoulders are actually
15:27feeling as though they're parallel to my feet line a lot of golfers ball up in
15:32the stance sort of get a little bit this way and all this is going to encourage
15:35sort of this motion if you think about it logically if you get behind it we've
15:40got a better chance of this upwards hit and finally I call that my gears sort of
15:45theory most of the drives that I hit sort of fairway finders sort of gear 4
15:49in our car this one we've got to step up we've got to go gear 5 so we've got to
15:54feel like we've got to be balanced yeah but we give it just that little bit more
15:57absolutely well this is a new tee box here for the British Masters you are the
16:03first person to hit a ball off it so no pressure I feel it let's give it the
16:08bombs away so walk in right shoulder back gear 5 with some balance there's a
16:20bit of turn on that as well so the line here is trying to start at the bunker
16:24and if you do get it to turn on that left edge you're absolutely in the
16:28perfect position perfect so aggressive off the tee committing to it nailed it
16:33and now you've set yourself up for that iconic approach into the 18th here at
16:37the Delphi here we are in the fairway then at the 18th and what an epic shot
16:50you are faced with right now Alex we've got the plaque down there from Christy
16:54O'Connor's magical to on in that Ryder Cup fortunately to on isn't one of the
17:00options we need today with all the technology at our disposal we've got a
17:04few options here you can go hybrid long iron perhaps even a lofted fairway wood
17:09what are you going to do from this position I'm gonna go three iron
17:13notoriously a probably difficult club for most club golfers for a couple of
17:19reasons really if I don't quite get it I know I've got the cover over the water
17:23and if I hit my Sunday best I'm not gonna go along so that middle of the
17:28road sort of club for me there I think if it went a little bit longer back edge
17:32downhill chip no you don't want that using that long line though that brings
17:37the microscope onto your ball striking as amateurs we can often struggle when
17:42we get into those long irons yeah I think we look down on it we don't see a
17:46lot of loft on the club nine times out of ten get a little bit thinny in that
17:50right shot and that's certainly in a lot of wet trouble right here so I think if
17:54we just think of three simple things and these can be thought of off the golf
17:58ball number one ball position number two can we feel that club is traveling a
18:04little bit lower through impact rather than trying to scoop this ball up high
18:09and the final one sort of ties into that second one and I would simply make some
18:14movements I mean if we look at all the top tour players we mentioned this in
18:17the series before of having a feeling to take into a shot most club golfers a
18:22little bit faded so I would really try and feel we have this sort of long right
18:27arm feeling and this released down towards target so make some little
18:32practice motion just like this without a golf club and you're getting a great
18:37feeling and nine times out of ten this will probably send it dead straight
18:40right we've got the pin tucked away there on the top of the three tiers yeah
18:45this is your moment I think the pressure show us something epic come on you've
18:49got this walking in ball position I want to feel it's a club head and sort of on
18:55the right edge of this club head here on the heel side inside my left heel
18:58down mirror that feeling hit it away
19:07oh what a strike that is if that is the right club that is all over it it's up
19:13there on the back tier I think you might have about six foot that is a truly
19:18epic golf shot there we have it that is how to hit seven epic shots here at the
19:26Belfry I hope you enjoyed those tips from Alex next time you're on the course
19:31and you're faced with one of those situations do what he said and you'll
19:35have some epic shots of your own thanks for watching