Taylor made flop wall challenge is it a worthy practice step?

[Ded7474]

 

I seen this and think its a good idea anyone else think this is a good practice step for the short game or maybe club control?

[GolfSpy MPR]

In practice, I am on the side of those who advocate practicing all kinds of extreme shots: high, low, massive hooks and slices, etc. Obviously, this is only a portion of practice, but it's good to be able to call on certain feels not only to be able to hit extreme shots on the course (when called for) but to calibrate "normal" shots that are just off one direction or the other.

In general, for most of us mere mortals, the high flop is not normally the high percentage play on the course, but I see no good reason not to experiment with it and learn how it works.

[jddaigneault]

It feels like all my golfers ever want to practice at the range is the high flop and the stinger. They like seeing if they can nail the range signs with stingers, and if they can flop the ball straight up in the air and get it to land back on the range mat. To their credit, one kid did have to hit a ridiculous flop over a tree to get up and down and the bugger pulled it off. Then again, if he practiced the old fashioned straight shot he might get more greens...

[cnosil]

I would advocate practicing prior to actually trying it on the course.   IMO, until you can consistently execute the basic pitch there is no real reason to practice this 

[Kizashi76]

Been doing this for years 

Makes you concentrate and gives you great satisfaction when you play a very high Lob wedge over trees.

Great for my Chikara 60dg of hard ground.

[TBT]

It definitely doesn’t hurt to practice a high flop, but the number of times that you would actually use it on the course is very small.

I used to try to hit flops to every pin and I found that I left them short more times than not. I finally figured out that getting the ball on the ground as soon as you can is a much more high percentage shot.

but that being said, it’s nice to be able to go high over a bunker and not worry about stopping the ball.

[null]

On 4/26/2021 at 11:23 AM, Ded7474 said:

 

I seen this and think its a good idea anyone else think this is a good practice step for the short game or maybe club control?

Nope. For most amateurs it would be a waste of time. Even Dustin Johnson said he almost never hits a shot like that

[RATOUR7]

Just get that 60* , open that face so it looks like a flapjack flipper with approx. gap of 1/4 "- 1/2" gap between the rear of the head and the earth , setup at an open stance give approx 45* position the ball a little toward the rear foot, swing hard .. You just have to play with the position and gap

[Kenny B]

I have to play this shot about once every couple of rounds; not to go over trees or bunkers, but to get on the #5 or #11 greens if I miss right or left.  Both of these greens are long and narrow.  Each side of those greens drops off about 8-10 feet.  The shot is from light rough and I can't see the green, just the top of the flagstick.  There is no bumping the ball into the slope; I suppose it's possible but if it doesn't make it, same shot again.  If the shot is far enough but not high enough, there is a chance the ball rolls off the other side... been there, done that.  

I use about a 3/4 swing flop with some success, and YES I do practice it in our short game practice area.  I have been practicing a new shot that Monte has shown in one of his videos that has promise to be a very easy flop without a lot of risk.  It's a shot that doesn't go very far or really high, but gets up quickly.   The 60º wedge is set up square; hands are pushed back behind the clubhead at setup so they are even with the trail leg; trail wrist is flat or slightly bowed; keeping the wrists set in that position and use a Steve Stricker type shot.  Just have to determine how much backswing to take... more than you think because the increased loft.  Not quite ready for primetime yet.  

[FmrCaddie13]

Understanding what your clubs can and can't do is vital. It also builds confidence in more routine shots when you know you can pull off higher skill shots. I don't use it often but flops don't intimidate and have improved touch and confidence on chips from various lies and my sand game. Other shots I practice are Patrick Reed's helicopter slice (basically a Tiger move I started practicing years ago), hitting out of a divot and a low punch with and without a hook. The biggest takeaways are how to work the ball at extremes with confidence and master distance control under pressure. Look at the shot Stewart Cink hit off of a sidehill lie with the ball resting against a stick at Harbortown. He hit a better shot than a lot of 130 yard wedges hit at the Zurich from the center of the fairway last weekend. You don't have any idea how to approach a shot like that without giving yourself challenges at the range.  If you're a "winter rules" player year round, don't bother but if the goal is becoming a better all around player it won't hurt your development.

 

[tommc23]

I have never taken a divot with a flop shot like those guys did in that video and if you heard them they said they never take divots either. It was for fun a flop shot is something I practice over my fence at my house for fun but I can get it to land very softly. It doesn’t get used by me often because as @TBT said I used to leave it short all the time 

[Tom the Golf Nut]

Any additional skill you can learn is great.  However in reality how many times will you have to make a shot like that. Depending on the area of the country you live and the type of courses you play you may not encounter a situation where you have to do this. This is something you need to evaluate for yourself. In my case I live at the base of the Smokey Mountains. Thus mountainous type courses with a lot of elevation changes. I probably have to pull this shot off once every other round.  We have three holes that if you are short, or to the side of the green on your next shot you are 8 feet or more below the green  If the pin placement is up front you have to hit a high lob to have a shot at making par or birdie on a par 5 if your just off in two.  I do practice this shot but I do it in my yard. I put up an 8 foot step ladder and hit over it to a flag in the yard. I don't practice this on the range because usually the teeing ground is a tight lie and I won't hit this shot off of tight lies. The ball has to be sitting up nice in the grass or sand in some cases to be able to pull this shot off successfully.     

[The 19th Hole]

The flop shot is extremely useful if you pay fast greens and miss short side a lot. I will say that what they are doing in the video is not really a flop shot so much as a how fast we can get it to go up? They even keep joking about how far Dustin's ball keeps going. They are not trying to hit to a flag or make it stop quickly which is probably why they are all taking divots and such and why they say they wouldn't try "THIS" shot on the course. Like others have said, practice it before you try it. I know I don't hit the ball very low (even when I try) so when situations on the course call for me to hit it low I need to adjust my expectation or try a different shot. If I didn't practice it then I might try still and end up in even worse shape. Same goes for the High shots...

[GrumpyGolf]

I remember watching a special on flop shots way back in the day when I was but a kid, it was on Wide World of Sports or something and thinking that was cool.  Then fast forward a few years and I pick up the game and then see Phil hit some of the most insane flop shots on the tour.  I thought this is something I needed to add to my game.  I worked on it and worked on it and would say that I am better than average with it, but no where near a pro's ability.  It has worked a more times than not when I have tried it to the point that I feel confident in using it on a tight pin position over an obstacle that a bump and run or chip shot can't be used.  That being said, I may pull it out once in a round as now I tend to be better about not getting into situations where I need it.  As for the video, getting it up over a 10' wall that is 4' from your ball is not what a good flop shot makes, but it sure looks way cool.  Getting the ball tight to the pin while if falls from the sky is what I practiced.

btw - better than average means that from about 25 yds. in, I can pop it a stop it within about a 12' circle (depending on the contour of the green around the hole), so I may still have about a 6' putt.

[heavygolffeels]

One of the big takeaways from these 'behind the scenes' looks, whether it be these Taylormade series or social media, is just how uber skilled these players are. Whether for fun to break up the monotony of focused practice, or to hone skills, these guys can do all sorts of things that they would never try on a golf course.  On one hand, whats the point or working on it if you are not going to take it to the course? But on the other hand, if you can execute shots that are even more difficult than what you are likely to see, that has to give you confidence out there. Not much different than Steph Currys pre game warm up. Yeah, he wont be shooting from 20 feet out of bounds once the whistle blows, but if you can make it from a terrible angle over the backboard from the entrance to the locker room, how easy is the baseline 3 going to look?