Golf. 5 Top Bunker Shot Tips To Help Lower Your Handicap

Golf. 5 Top Bunker Shot Tips To Help Lower Your Handicap In 2009

Article by Roger Carter

Greenside Bunker Shots – Bunker Shot Tips

Top Tip No.1

Good Lie in Bunker – Bunker Shot

Open your stance a little by keeping your left foot back ( right handers) and also open the clubface slightly. Swing the club parallel with your feet with an out to in action causing a steeper swing which makes the ball rise quicker and also produces backspin which means the ball will stop quickly on the green. Aim slightly left of target as the ball should tend to fly to the right.

Top Tip No.2

Plugged Lie in Bunker – Bunker Shot Tips

Instead of opening the face of the club you should keep the club face square.This shot should be approached with reasonable speed following through keeping the clubface square and therefore digging into the sand behind the ball with the sand and the ball coming out of the bunker together. The very action required to come out of the bunker from a plugged lie means that there will not be any backspin and the ball will roll on some distance.

Top Tip No.3

Downhill Lie In Bunker – Bunker Shot Tips

If the ball finishes on a downhill lie in the bunker open the clubface and adopt an open stance with the weight on your left foot. The shot should be played near to your left foot trying to follow the slope of the bunker. At impact the weight should be focused on your left foot allowing the ball to be sliced out of the bunker providing you complete a full follow through.

Top Tip No. 4

Uphill Lie In Bunker – Bunker Shot Tips

For this type of shot you do not need to adopt an open stance or open up the face of the golf club. Instead follow the uphill slope of the bunker and position your body parallel to the slope and swing solidly also parallel to the slope.The golf ball should come out of the bunker with a higher trajectory and therefore not run on too far

Top Tip No.5

Stating The Obvious! – Bunker Shot Tips

Whether you are playing out of a greenside bunker from a good lie, a plugged lie, on a downslope or on an upslope or however you are placed in the sand one of THE most important tips is to keep your head still, eye on the sand 1 or 2 inches behind the ball, until the shot is executed.You could otherwise have an excellent technique but it will probably go wrong if you come up to look for your golf ball too quickly.This may sound like stating the obvious but it is a very common error made by many mid to high handicap golfers and is often brought about because the player is anxious and nervous about playing bunker shots.Have you ever said

Golf: Shooting in the 70’s

Article by Victor Aragon

I remember when I first attempted to play a round of golf, how frustrating it was and how much I disliked it. The only reason for my ill feelings were because I was very bad at it. I could not understand that, because I was very good in all other sports, like football, basketball and baseball. Why was I so bad at golf? So I decided to actually practice this sport and before long, I was getting better. I learned quickly that becoming frustrated when I hit a bad shot was a very big nono. So I then read a book and put these suggestions to practice.

7 Golf tips on how to improve your next round of golf!

1. PREPARE LIKE A PRO: Show up an hour before your tee time so you can check your golf equipment. Are your golf clubs, golf balls, golf shoes clean? STRETCH! Warm up, then check your golf swing mechanics. Hit the putting green,then head over to the Continue reading “Golf: Shooting in the 70’s”

Golf Short Game Tips – Chipping Practice Lowers Golf Scores

All golfers know the short game is important. Here are some great golf chipping tips to help you improve your short game.

Let’s begin with the disclaimer that there are many types of chips you can make when you get close to the green. In other words, there is no single approved method for getting the ball closer to the hole. The effectiveness of your chipping will depend on the lie you have, the length of the grass, how far you are from the hole, and the condition of the green.

Short Game Practice Drills for Chipping and Pitching:

This shot is played when you are close to green but not on it. Generally, you play it with either your nine-iron or any wedge you are comfortable using. The rule of thumb is that a good chip will fly about 1/3 of the way to the cup and then roll the rest of the way. This shot should be played in the center of your stance with your hands well ahead of the ball and the club face square.

As we proceed with our golf chipping tips, we’ll take a look at the soft shot. This type of shot allows the ball to fly farther and land softly close to (and hopefully rolling into) the cup. The most common club used for a soft chip shot is the lob wedge, but the sand wedge can also be used.

For the soft shot, you should address the ball with your club face open a bit. Play the ball forward and keep your hands behind it during the swing. It is imperative that you learn to accelerate the club head for this shot. When performed correctly, the ball will fly high for a short distance and then land softly and roll just a little.

When to hit a high chip shot or a low chip shot in your short game:

If there is a lot of green between you and the hole, you might try the low chip shot. This shot is normally done with a mid-iron, such as the six- or seven-iron. You must play the ball toward the back of your stance to get the descending type of impact you need. Again, keep your hands ahead of the club head and the club face square to the target.

This shot creates the most roll once the ball lands on the green, and is good to use when you can aim right at the hole but are worried about going too far past it. This can occur if a sand trap or water hazard is close to the rear side of the hole.

Above all, the best golf chipping tip you can get is to practice by regularly using all of your chip clubs, from mid-irons to wedges. Each requires its own setup and swing, and the only way to master all of these options is to get to the range and put them to work.

Start with the standard shot and move on to the soft shot, the two shots you will use the most on any given day. Once you have these mastered, move on to the low shot. This may take more time to learn than the others, but it is well worth the investment.

By putting these golf chipping tips to work for you, you can begin to master your short game and achieve a lower score, time after time. Be patient, and keep practicing.

Want to add yards to every golf shot, read this post.