Bunker Do's & Don'ts and The Low, Spinning Lob Shot

Hello all,

Hope you've had a great week in general and hopefully some good rounds of golf as well?

Last weekend saw the final major of the year, The USPGA Championship played at Kiawah Island. This major is often referred to as 'Glory's Last Shot' because it is the last opportunity of the year to win a major; which are so career defining. Rory McIlroy stormed through to a dominating eight shot victory. Two shots of his which really stood out during the week was the quality of his bunker shots and his ball flight control around the greens to hit shots in low but with loads of spin. So this week I have decided to give you a couple of tips on how to hit these two shots.

Bunker Do's & Don'ts

RELEASE/DO

Unhinge the club quickly and then re-hinge it so you ‘miss the rope’

Skipping the clubhead moving fast and skipping through the sand is like hammering a nail – you use your wrists, not your arm. Release your wrist angle early and fast and then get the shaft in an upright position quickly after impact.

 

RELEASE/DON’T

Pushing the handle toward the target creates width and dig, not speed and lift

Most people I see struggle out the sand push the grip towards the target which causes them to either hit too far behind the ball or hit the ball on the way up causing a thin. When trying to hit a nail with a hammer would you do a big wide, rigid arm swing or do you use your wrist to add extra hit to the nail? This type of swing would almost certainly ‘hit the rope’.

SETUP/DO

Keep your weight forward, arms soft and club leaning backwards to make consistent contact

Everyone’s been told or heard the same bunker basics: ball forward, open stance, open clubface BUT there’s more to hit than that. For me it is more important to: tilt your spine slightly towards your target, shoulders level and left eye behind the ball…and throughout the swing. The key component for consistently good bunker shots is to make contact with the sand where you want to and every time.

SETUP/DON’T

A rigid left arm pushes the leading shoulder higher and head too far back

Most players know they need the weight forwards in a bunker but do it in the wrong way. They do it be stiffening their left arm and shifting the hips towards to the target. The pushes your head behind the ball and sets the shoulders on a steep angle (right below the left – right handed golfer); this setup is perfect for crashing the club into the sand too far behind the ball or thinning it over the green.

The Low, Spinning Lob Shot

Ever seen Phil Mickelson or Tiger Woods hit one of those pitch shots that comes in low but has loads of spin on it? Well now it’s your turn and here’s how you do it;

SETUP/DO

Lay the clubface open so the ball can skim across the grooves

The first key is the quality of the lie. You need a nice lie on the fairway to hit this shot. At setup the clubface needs to be open and laying almost flat to the ground with the ball position a touch further back than normal to promote a steep angle of approach with the shaft leaning slightly towards the target.

SETUP/DON’T

Closing the clubface just leads to a low shot with no spin

Although we are trying to hit a low shot we also want spin on it. So the clubface needs to be open and not closed. If you close the clubface and hit down on it then there won’t be enough spin on the ball for it to check up on the green.

RELEASE/DO

Hold the hinge in the wrists through impact

On the backswing I have hinged my wrists as per a normal shot and then I hold this hinge through impact with the shaft leaning towards the target and the clubface pointing to the sky after impact. This coupled with a positive body turn through the ball (as you can see my chest is turning to face the target) allows me to maintain the loft on the club. When you watch the video below you will see that my head height does not change until AFTER I strike the ball.

 

RELEASE/DON’T

A static body leads to a closed clubface or mis-hits

A common thing I see is for players to only use their arms on short shots and not turn their bodies. This causes the arms to rotate through the swing and closes the clubface which will cause mis-hits and a loss of control over the ball flight.

BACKSWING/DO:

Turn the body on the backswing as you hinge the wrists

You can almost see my entire back in this photo showing that I’ve still turned by body even though I’m only hitting a 60-yards shot. One key here is that my shoulders have turned around my spine and have maintained an angle with my left shoulder lower than my right.

BACKSWING/DON’T

Lifting up the body causes thin shots

Commonly I see people turn by lifting their spine angle and causing their shoulders to be level. This makes it very difficult to return the club to the ball and strike it correctly; it will normally lead to a thin shot. A baseball swing would be made with the shoulders level but we’re trying to hit a golf ball on the floor not half way up in the air!

Let me know how you get on with these shots and any feedback on them.

Until next week,

Happy Golfing

Ed 

Coaching educational book I am currently reading: Outliers: The Story of Success by Malcolm Gladwell

General book I am reading: QI: The Book of General Ignorance by Stephen Fry et al

Next on my list: The Chimp Paradox by Dr Steve Peters (British Cycling Performance Coach)

Next week................Hole more Putts and Stop that Top

Ed Chapman is a Class AA British PGA Golf Professional @ Al Badia Golf Club by InterContinental, Dubai Festival City

PGA Certificate in Golf Psychology Coaching - May 2012
UKCC PGA Certificate in Golf Coaching Level 2 - October 2007

Bibliography

Secrets of the Short Game by Phil Mickelson
The Art of the Short Game by Stan Utley