Exploring the fade

Many top players - including Nick Faldo, Lee Trevino and Jack Nicklaus - use the fade as their stock shot. Although you can't hit the ball quite as far with a fade as you can with a draw, you have greater control over the shot - as the ball has a high flight path and lands softly.

Hitting the fade for control and accuracy is not the only way to play this shape of shot. Make full use of the fade to set up birdie chances on awkward holes.

Fading favourites

You can play the fade to counter the effects of both slope and wind. If the fairway slopes from right to left and is hard and running, a straight shot or draw is likely to roll too far left and end up in the rough. But if you hit the fade the ball moves from left to right and runs slightly uphill on landing, which holds the ball on the slope.

 Aim the clubface square to a target on the left of the fairway and align left of the ball-to-target line so that when the shot cuts back it has plenty of room to work with. Even if the ball doesn't fade it shouldn't run too far into the left rough.

The fade is also useful to hold the ball in a right to left wind. Instead of aiming right of the target and letting the wind drift the ball back, set it off on a line just left of the flag and cut it back on to the target. The ball lands softly - especially helpful if the green is firm.

Play one or two clubs more than usual - depending on the strength of the wind - as the ball doesn't fly as far when cutting into it.

Target right

Hitting the left to right shot is also very useful for getting at a hidden target on the right.

Some dog-legs right are angled so sharply that you can hit only a long iron to the corner before running out of fairway. But if you hit a driver and move the ball from left to right you can slide a shot around the corner, leaving you with a much shorter second.

Controlled slice

Exaggerate the fade - so it becomes a controlled slice - to hit a shot around trouble, usually trees. The technique of the swing is almost the same as normal. The only difference is that your body aligns well left of the target but the clubface is still square to the ball-to-target line. The ball sets off well to the left of the target and cuts back a long way.