Lift

Without lift a golf ball would fall like a thrown stone. It is produced by the backspin, the reverse spin the ball receives at the moment of impact. The rotating surface drags the air across the top of the ball faster than across the bottom, creating a pressure difference that lifts the ball. The dimples, the small indentations in the ball's cover, amplify this effect and at the same time reduce air resistance. A smooth ball without dimples would fly barely half as far. Three factors determine lift: launch speed, spin rate and the surface condition of the ball.

In practice you experience lift with every cleanly struck wedge shot: the ball climbs steeply, lands softly and almost stops dead, because the high spin carries it through the air and brakes it on the ground. Conversely a thin shot shows the opposite — hardly any speed, hardly any spin, hardly any flight. Example: 90 metres to the green, you strike the wedge with a descending blow, ball first, then grass. The ball launches high and stops at the flag position. The same principle applies to the driver with less spin and a flatter curve.

The most common mistake in dealing with lift is trying to help the ball up. Anyone who "scoops" the ball and pulls upwards with the hands prevents exactly the clean, compressing contact that creates spin. The result is thin and fat shots with no meaningful flight. Instead, trust the loft of your club: the loft of the face and the correct moment of impact create lift all by themselves. Swing smoothly through the ball — physics does the rest.