Golf Tips: Tiered Greens

This week keep a close eye on the short games of the contestants in the Masters Tournament.  See if they use the same concepts in today's Tuesday tip, handling tiered greens. The greens at Augusta National are very fast and difficult.  It is very important to position the ball in the proper location to have a chance at par or birdie.  Balls which finish above the hole introduce a high possibility of 3-putting, and chips which miss the green will be very tricky.  Today we are covering those chips and pitches. Many of the greens at Augusta are severely sloped, and may have tiers in them.  Tiers equate to different levels.  It can be difficult to chip to a green with multiple levels because the flight of the ball and the tier location can make a big difference in whether the shot gets close or runs far away from the hole. Most amateurs will attempt to hit high, lob-type shots to tiered greens.  This is the completely wrong way of approaching these shots.  The best shots are ones which bump into the tier or slopes, and run, but the situation will dictate the type of shot. In the case of a back pin on top of a tier, it is best to hit a low running shot which climbs the tier.  The tier will slow it down and the ball will hopefully stop near the hole.  Attempting a high shot in this scenario will most often result in the ball hitting the slope and coming back.  If the ball carries past the slope it will bounce too hard and go long. In the case where the pin is in the back on the bottom tier, a running shot which nearly stops is best.  The ball will come close to stopping at the crest of the tier, then creep over, picking up speed to the pin.  Once again a high shot is not a good idea here either.  If the shot lands on the slope it will bounce too far and go over the green.  If it lands too short, it may not run to the tier before stopping, leaving a very difficult putt. Watch the Masters this week and see how the players handle these situations, then try to implement the same strategies in your practice and subsequent golf rounds!