Golfing on a windy day can be very frustrating.
In fact, if the wind is extremely hard, you have indeed considered stopping the round and leaving the course.
When golfing in the open, winds are an unavoidable phenomenon, and at times, you don’t have to cause a fuss.
But, When Is It Too Windy To Play Golf?
If the wind starts to fly objects and break loose the catering and hospitality tents, then it’s too windy to play golf. In addition, when your hat gets blown off multiple times and you have to chase it down the fairway, it is a good sign that you can’t play golf. If the wind starts picking the disc up out of the basket, it may be best to call it a day and head home.
So, if the wind in your area is 25 to 30 mph, you should do yourself a favor and skip golfing. You won’t enjoy your time on the golf course. Any windy conditions above 25 mph make disc golf less of a sport and more of a comedy. It will blow your ball off the green and make you miserable when you try to hit an iron shot or a drive.
Four Reasons To Leave The Golf Course And Go Home
The most challenging part about playing golf in windy conditions is standing over a putt and properly hitting it.
The fact that the golf ball is oscillating and your eyes are watery make it challenging to play in windy conditions.
Let’s go through a checklist, and if your answer is ‘yes’ to any of the statements, it is more likely too windy to play golf.
1. Golf Bag Blowing Over
If your bag is sitting on level ground and the wind is blowing so much that your bag blows off, this is a sign that it is too windy to play golf.
2. A Flag That Does Not Rest
This may be too obvious to you, but if a flag is continuously whipping around without resting, it is most probably a lot too windy to play golf.
I am not talking about the flag’s slow movement; you should look out for the aggressive wind whip.
If you can hear the whip from the flag, the wind is blowing too aggressively.
3. Too Much Debris
Most golfers don’t like doing the workers’ ground job.
If you are playing and you gradually require to carve a path in the putting green due to too much debris, it is most likely too windy to play golf.
4. Having A Difficult Time Keeping Balance
If the wind is getting you off balance, this is a good sign.
When the wind starts to mess with your golf swing and prevents you from achieving a proper swing, it is probably too windy to play golf.
Nine Tips for Playing In Windy Conditions
Golfing in the sun on a calm day is hard enough.
However, playing golf in windy conditions can be more challenging and exhausting.
Even more, controlling a little ball weighing less than two ounces in the wind can feel impossible to even the best golfers.
However, there are times when you stand over the ball and take the swing, although you know it will get the best of you.
Although it’s frustrating, a windy day presents a new challenge and an opportunity to test your skills.
When playing golf on a windy day, there are some things you can do to enhance your chances of scoring high, including;
1. Loosening Your Swing
You should not try to beat the wind by hitting the ball harder.
The truth is that you cannot beat a strong wind by just swinging harder.
Swinging harder will only affect your score negatively as it will mean more backspin, making your shot more affected by the wind and landing short.
So, the best move on a windy day is swinging easily.
Try to swing at about eighty percent intensity instead of a hundred percent, and you will have a higher chance of hitting the face’s center.
Swinging slower launches the ball lower, reduces the spin rate, and increases the speed of the ball, which serves as a perfect mix in windy conditions.
2. Stay Balanced
If you have difficulties balancing yourself during a typical day, you should be prepared to get worse if it gets windy on the course.
A significantly strong wind will magnify your balance issues.
To help maintain balance, you should consider widening your stance slightly more.
This will enhance your stability by lowering your gravity center and providing you with the essential balance for your shots.
3. Concentrating On Footwork
The most significant challenge when playing in the wind is maintaining proper footwork.
Making many little steps is required in making sudden adjustments.
Taking large steps as you prepare to hit can make you get caught off-guard when the wind moves the ball before you swing.
Ensure to take small steps to enable you to change your position to hit the ball cleanly.
4. Taking Lesser Risks
The best way to do this is aiming at the middle of the green rather than the hit irons or flags from the tee more.
This will give you a more significant error margin.
The wind will more significantly affect your ball without it pushing you out of balance.
Windy conditions push you to play boring golf, but this will help ensure you win.
5. Hitting The Ball Under The Wind
A slight adjustment to your ball position might help you to make a hit under windy conditions.
To lower the impact of a stiff breeze, you should consider hitting the ball lower than usual.
You can do this by playing the ball further back in your stance.
Try to put it back about an inch farther back than the normal position, and the ball will come out lower and stay under the wind much better.
The ball flies out lower and will be less likely affected by the wind.
6. Adjusting Your Shots
Sometimes, when there is a crosswind, you should consider changing your swing and tee position appropriately.
For instance, if there is a left to right crosswind, you should place your tee to the left side of the tee box and hit it into the wind appropriately.
This will provide you with the best opportunity to play the wind and allows your shot to straighten out on the fairway and ride with the wind for more distance instead of fighting it.
If you are fortunate, you will have a local range that allows golfers to hit shots on both ends.
7. Selecting The Right Club
If you are taking nice and loose swings in windy conditions, you should also consider selecting the right club for these conditions.
As a general rule, for each 10 mph wind, you will be required to hit one more club.
This means that if you are about 150 yards to the green and usually hit a 7 iron, you will hit a 6 iron when there is ten mph.
However, this is not a universal rule as other factors such as golf course elevation differ depending on your specific location.
For example, for a location about 1,000 feet sea level, I club equaling ten mph is well applicable. You should hence find out how the rule applies to you and adapt it.
But in a regular tail or head wind situation, the general thumb rule is adding one club for each ten mph of wind when hitting against the wind direction and subtract one club for each ten mph when hitting along the wind.
8. Using The Wind
Another tip to help you play golf in windy conditions is using the wind rather than abusing it.
Allow the ball to go where the wind wants rather than trying to fight it.
If the wind is traveling from right to left at 30 mph, you should aim your ball right and allow the wind to blow it back.
Do not aim left and try hooking it back into the wind.
Overall, the point is that you should drop the idea of fighting the wind and instead focus on working with the wind.
Just hit the ball solidly and with a smooth tempo, and this will give better results.
However, always remain realistic and know that it will be more challenging to get a good score in windy circumstances, and that’s fine.
9. Mastering The Overhead
Overheads can be challenging to hit in solid wind.
If the golf ball is sufficiently high, you might consider allowing the ball to bounce before hitting the overhead.
Waiting for the ball to bounce makes it easier to adjust the movement after bouncing because there will be less disturbance from the wind.
Wrapping Up
Regardless of your location, wind can have a noticeable impact on your swing and golf game.
Keeping these tips in mind and using them when playing golf in the wind will significantly improve your game.
But as they say, practice makes perfect.
Keep practicing in windy conditions and try producing all the different scenarios and shots you may come across during windy days.
This way, you will be ready when the windy day comes.
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How much wind is too much to play in?