VIDEO: Ryder Cup crunch shots

Hazeltine head pro Chandler Withington reveals three key Ryder Cup shots

Hazeltine head pro Chandler Withington reveals three key shots the stars will need to hit – pick up the latest issue of Today’s Golfer for Chandler’s instruction piece on how you can play them.

1. 18th tee shot

The further and straighter you can hit it in matchplay, the more pressure you’ll put on your opponents.

But if you find a bunker off the tee here, you’re giving them hope.

Tour pros are athletes these days, but for most amateurs distance with accuracy is mainly about rhythm.

US captain Davis Love is a great example. He’s been one of the longest drivers of a ball, but he never swings out of his shoes.

As a kid Davis was taught by his dad to hit 150-yard drives with a full swing.

Rhythm is about getting parts of the body to move in the right sequence, and this drill helped Davis feel that swing through a slower swing speed.

Good sequencing also helps create a centred strike, another key to long hitting.

2. 17th tee shot

None of the 24 Ryder Cup players will hit his irons dead straight. Every player has a stock shape, but they will adapt this to suit the task in front of them.

Will it be a high fade held against the wind, or more of a punch with a bit of draw?

When choosing the best shape, the biggest call you need to make is where you can and can’t miss the green. In matchplay, the biggest enemy is water; find it and it usually results in loss of hole.

Once you’ve established this, you also need to take into account where the wind is coming from and what ball flight you would play to give you the biggest room for error.

The short 17th at Hazeltine is a great example of this.

Because the water is right I look to play a bit more of a low draw, starting it off the tree on the right side of the green. I know that if I hit it and it doesn’t draw, I’m OK.

If it draws too much I’m missing to the left of the green and I’m still dry.

I’d be nervous about playing a fade that could get away from me and end up in a hazard.

3. 15th approach

If players can execute a right-to-left tee shot on the 15th, the ball will run leaving about 80 yards in.

You can expect to see the pin in the back corner, a location that needs a low, scudding pitch shot to access it.

Controlling trajectory is about controlling your follow-through.

If your hands finish high, the shot will fly high. If they finish around your belt, the ball will fly a lot lower.