Growing up in South Florida, LPGA star Lexi Thompson learned a thing or two about playing in the wind, and during her recent GOLF cover shoot, the 29-year-old — who is set to compete on her seventh U.S. Solheim Cup team — shared her keys for success on the latest edition of Pros Teaching Joes.
“Usually you just focus on more solid contact when it gets super windy,” Thompson says. “So a little slower speed, more center contact.”
Lexi Thompson’s 3 keys to success playing into the wind
To execute a lower, more penetrating ball flight into the wind, Thompson makes three adjustments to her setup, including changes to her grip, ball position and swing length.
1. Grip
“I already grip up a little bit on the club, but I do a little bit extra when I want to hit a controlled shot,” she says. “Usually about half an inch to an inch on the club for me.”
2. Ball position
“I play a little bit further back in my stance instead of middle to more up front,” she says.
Lexi Thompson portraits, photographed by Michael Williams at Panther National in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.
The best Lexi Thompson moments from her GOLF Magazine cover shoot
3. Swing Length
“I usually take one club more and swing about half to three quarters, especially when it’s windy,” she says. “You don’t want to have to over-swing or swing full in a club because it adds spin to the ball and it just will shoot up. So the key is less spin, the lower the ball will play, the more controlled.”
Thompson demonstrated hitting the shot with her 8-iron, which she said is usually her 150- to 155-yard club.
One thing to remember: it’s okay to club up in the wind. What you don’t want to do is try to hit the ball harder. Thompson suggests using a nice, even tempo with a shorter-than-normal swing. Also: pay attention to the wind direction. On our blustery day at Panther National, Thompson made sure to give herself a 10-yard aiming cushion on her target to account for movement from the wind.
On my attempt to incorporate Thompson’s tips, executing the shot felt natural. Moving the ball slightly back in my stance and taking a three-quarter swing helped the ball stay lower, with a more penetrating ball flight than normal, and no distance loss. I was delighted with the result after just one swing.
Lexi Thompson, master instructor. We’ll add that to her lengthy list of accomplishments.
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As a four-year member of Columbia’s inaugural class of female varsity golfers, Jessica can out-birdie everyone on the masthead. She can out-hustle them in the office, too, where she’s primarily responsible for producing both print and online features, and overseeing major special projects, such as GOLF’s inaugural Style Issue, which debuted in February 2018. Her original interview series, “A Round With,” debuted in November of 2015, and appeared in both in the magazine and in video form on GOLF.com.
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