By Todd Smith

The golf courses in the North Shore area are well known for being set within the beautiful terrain of New England. One of the challenges of playing golf on this terrain is having to play a majority of your shots from uneven lies. The keys to being able to successfully execute solid shots from these lies include recognizing how the hills will affect the ball flight, customizing your setup for a given amount of slope and accentuating certain swing moves based on the slope.

In the photos that follow, I?m using a 6-iron, but the fundamental adjustments will apply to all full swings, finesse swings, chipping and putting. The degree to which you will adjust depends on the severity of the slope, the club loft and the swing speed through impact.

Study these photos diligently and try to repeat each one physically and mentally with as many quality repetitions as possible. This will lead to quick and natural adjustments on the course.

In evaluating how the slope will affect your ball flight, you can generalize that an uphill lie will promote a higher trajectory, a downhill lie will promote a lower trajectory, and a side hill lie will give the ball more sidespin, curving down the slope. While each slope has its own distinct setup principles detailed in the pictures on the facing page make sure that you always setup with absolute balance, great posture and relaxed arms. You may recognize that aside from having adjusted your setup to the specific slope, it will also be beneficial to accentuate a particular swing move. What usually happens as we swing from a tilted lie angle is that our normal swing flaws are magnified and the resulting shots are less solidly struck and usually drift farther away from the intended target line.

I recommend taking at least one practice swing to familiarize yourself with a particular lie angle followed by stepping up and trusting that you have prepared for the slope and you are ready to fire a great shot.

Uphill lie

1. Adjust club selection using less loft
2. Angle left foot 45-degrees to the
target to increase left hip mobility
3. Tilt the right shoulder lower than normal
4. Standard spine angle of 55 degrees
5. Accentuate shifting your weight toward the target

Downhill lie

1. Adjust club selection using more loft
2. Position the ball slightly back in the stance
3. Tilt the left shoulder lower than normal
4. Standard spine angle of 55 degrees
5. Accentuate swinging low through impact

Ball above feet

1. Aim right of the target (ball will start left and curve left)
2. More upright spine angle of 60 degrees combined with less knee flex
3. Choke down making the club shorter
4. Accentuate swinging down the target line

Ball below feet

1. Aim left of the target (ball will start right and curve right)
2. Lower spine angle of 50 degrees combined with more knee flex
3. Angle left foot 45-degrees to the target to increase left hip mobility
4. Accentuate keeping your spine angle low through impact with full arm extension

Todd Smith, 37, is originally from South Dakota and has lived in the Boston area since 1998. He is the owner of and instructor for Sensory Golf and teaches out of Weston, Middleton,  and Burlington. You can contact him by calling 617-719-2567 or by visiting www.SensoryGolf.com