Playing golf may seem straight forward enough, but when you consider how uneven the course can be - ranging from the smooth rolling green all the way up to deep rough grass that can swallow your golf ball never to be seen again - it is easy to see how hitting the ball can quickly be easy to do one minute and nigh on impossible the next.
Playing golf as an amateur, we can dread hitting the ball into the sidelines where the longest grass is, and invariably most of our shots can seem magnetized to this part of the course in the beginning.
It's pretty strange seeing professionals being able to save a miserable tee shot from even the toughest lies only to drop the ball right onto the green mere yards from the flag stick.
This is because a professional golfer understands what alterations need to be made to their shot no matter where their ball happens to be - even in the sand.
Depending on where your ball is you will have to alter the power with which you swing at the ball, your stance and club selection.
Fairway Shots Fairway shots are one of the easier grass based shots to make, usually done after the tee shot your ball will now be sat in the shorter grass of the fairway.
In order to achieve the right amount of loft you should be aiming to send a fair bit of earth and grass into the air when you hit the ball.
Depending on your distance to the flag you may need to alter your stance and swinging motion to limit the distance on your shots.
On longer par 5's you may need to effectively take another Tee shot, most of the time you will use a low to mid iron on these shots.
Rough/Deep Rough The rough means that your club will be hitting the ball less cleanly and so can affect the power and sometimes the direction of the ball.
You should be taking a steeper swing and lean forward in your stance, some people find that aiming to the left (for right handed golfers) and opening the club face can help compensate for the affect the grass can have on the shot's direction.
You shouldn't be afraid to sacrifice one shot to go sideways back on to the safety of the fairway; this could save endless hacking away trying to send the ball towards the flag.
Fringe/Edge of the green These are the shots which need the greatest control as you want the ball to land or roll as close to the flag as possible.
These shots will usually not require much in the way of a backswing and high loft clubs should make the ball come down straight on to the green.
Known as the flop shot this shot doesn't roll as much and assuming you can gauge the distance correctly you should be set up for a single putt to close out the hole.
Remember to take a few steps back before you take any shot and take a few practice swings, do this before addressing the ball as in competitions these can count as actual shots.
With practice from a variety of different lies you can develop a feel for how much power is needed in order to get the ball on the right track.