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From James,
golfer: |
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I am the worst greenside bunker player
in Wisconsin. Any tips? I seem to strike the ball first, no matter how far
behind the ball I am aiming. |
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PGA/LPGA
TEACHING
PROFESSIONAL
RESPONSES: |
California
"Change your set up in the following ways to encourage yourself
to hit behind the ball:
1. Play the ball more in the front of your stance to bottom out
behind the ball.
2. Do not choke down on the club, making the club-lever longer thus
bottoming out deeper in the sand.
3. Make sure your hands or shaft angle are not to the left( in front
of the ball)
4. Hit the sand forward down the target line.
5. Follow through.
- Mike
Davis, Teaching Professional |
California
"James: The sand shot is the
only shot in golf you want to splash the sand and not the ball. Position
the ball off the front foot open the stance and swing the club on the body
line and keep the weight on the front foot so you will get a steep
angle and you should splash the sand behind the ball with no trouble. Do
not close the face at impact." - Eddie
Jones, Teaching Professional |
Florida
"James: Try these pointers. One, stand closer to the ball. Two,
for you out of the firm Wisconsin sand - square the clubface. Three, pick
the club up. Four, swing with some zest so most importantly you can have
your arms fully extended at impact (throw a lot of the sand out and be
happy when it goes out to 15 ft)." - Sean
Gorgone, Teaching Professional |
Florida
"Hello James: Don't feel like the Lone Ranger here James. All players
are intent on striking the ball until they get in the bunkers when they're
told to make a swing but don't hit the ball. I've had success having
people actually bury a ball in the sand, set a 2nd ball right on top of
the 1st and then try to hit the buried ball out of the bunker. Something
else to think of in perhaps a different way is the club head position.
With your normal grip, loosen your fingers so you can turn the club head
to "open" it. I prefer to think that the heel end of the
clubface is ahead of the toe end. You don't want the toe to ever catch up
with the heel. This will mean that although you set your hands, or break
your wrists on the back swing, you return your hands to the address
position and hold as the club passes through the hitting area. Good luck
James and keep swinging!"
- John Brott,
Teaching Professional |
Florida
"To James: In proper bunker
play, the weight is set 60-70% on your front foot from set-up through to
the finish. And the swing should be "flat-footed" - that is your
feet should stay planted in the sand from set-up to the finish. A drill
that will help you with this is to set up with all your weight on your
forward foot with the ball opposite that foot. The rear foot should be
pulled back and set on its toe, and should stay up on the toe throughout
the swing. Your fault is either: 1) shifting your weight backwards during
the downswing trying to help the ball up in the air, or 2) releasing off
your rear foot forward during the downswing. Both errors can be corrected
with the proper set up and feel of a flat footed motion."
- Joe
Sciortino, Teaching Professional |
Georgia
"On your bunker shots, first thing is check for your ball
position, make sure it is off your left foot, just like a driver set up.
Focus on a spot about 2 inches behind the golf ball, set your angle of the
golf club quickly and SPLASH the sand onto the green. If your sand
actually gets onto the green, the ball will be there too. It may also be
you're using to much of your wrists and getting too scoopy. Hope this
helps."
- Bin
Brandon, Teaching Professional |
Illinois
"James:
You are obviously swinging in the sand trap like you would swing in the
fairway. This is wrong. Here are some ideas for you. Set up with your
shoulders and feet open (slightly left of your target) Open your clubface
so it aligns right of your pin. Swing the club along the body line or
outside -in. It will feel like the club will be picked up to the
outside on the back swing and will be swung across the ball thru
impact. Other tips that might help would be: (1) Set up with your
weight on the left side and keep it there throughout the entire back
swing.(2) Play the ball off the left heel, (3) Weaken your grip (turn both
hands to the left) (4) Hit down into the sand at least 2 inches
behind the ball, and (5) Turn your body the left through the hitting area
and make sure you finish your swing. Good luck and come down and
visit me at Cog Hill in Lemont, IL, and I will guarantee that you will get
good at this shot."
- Dr. Jim
Suttie, Teaching Professional |
Indiana
"First of all, relax more when playing bunker shots. Aim 45
degrees left of target, open the face so that you expose the bounce of the
club for playing a greenside bunker shot. allow the sole of the club then
to glide in the sand approximately 2 to 3 inches behind the ball in a
rather steep motion and keep your knees flexed throughout the motion and
make a good finish." - Bruce
Cohen, Teaching Professional |
Indiana
"James, I know it can be
tough to play out of the bunkers when you don't have any confidence so try
this. Take out a dollar bill and lay it on the sand, draw lines off of
both ends of the dollar bill parallel to the end of the bill. Take your
sand wedge and lay it down with your grip starting where your the line
begins. Once the club is on the sand push down to create a straight line
in the sand. Do this with both lines you created from the length of the
dollar and you should have two parallel lines in the sand that are
separated by the length of the dollar bill. I would have you start by
playing with a square to slightly open face and addressing the back
or right line in the middle of your stance. This is your entry point
for the golf club with the front or left line being your exit point. Make
swings, without a ball, that enter the sand on the back line and exit on
the front line and work your way down the line making a number of swings
until you run out of line. The idea is to develop a swing that gets you to
take the proper amount of sand to play a successful bunker shot. You will
figure out, once you start, the proper way to attack this shot. Remember
that this is the one shot in golf that you actually do not want to hit the
ball so focus your eyes on the entry point not the ball. The next step is
to put a ball in the middle of the lines and then place another ball
to the right touching the first ball. The right ball is the proper ball
position. Now it's time to hit some shots so repeat the process exactly
like you did the first time, trying to take the proper length divot while
focusing on the entry point not the ball. Pay attention to how well
you are striking the sand and I think your success rate will go up. Good
luck."
- Scott P.
Pieri, Teaching Professional |
JAMAICA
"First, an understanding of what creates flight from a bunker is
needed before attempting to play the shot. By making contact with the sand
behind the ball, the sand will displace, taking the ball with it. This is
why the sand shot should be the easiest of all as there is quite a large
room for error. If you are consistently striking the ball first you may
need to check out where your weight is in the set up and where your weight
is at the end of the shot. "Thinning" the ball is usually caused
by trying to "scoop" the ball up into the air causing the swing
to bottom out early and letting the leading edge of the club hit the ball
too high. Next time you are in a practice bunker try to take some swings
without the ball, just making sure that the sand you hit is moved out of
the bunker. Then place a small stone in the sand and try to remove all the
sand surrounding the stone, out onto the green. Gradually increase the
size of the stone until you can replace it with the ball. Hope this
helps."
- Kevyn
Cunningham, Teaching Professional |
Minnesota
"You are moving your center of gravity forward during the
downswing. Focus on keeping the top of your sternum in the same place
until after the club slides through the sand."
- Jim
Manthis, Teaching Professional |
Nevada
"James: Set your Ball Location forward,
about at your Target Heel. Draw two lines in the sand behind the Ball. The
first about two inches aft and the second about four or five aft. Now
swing down and through the five inch line and remove the sand between the
two lines. FEEL like you are 'Splashing the Sand out of the Bunker' and
forget the Ball for a few minutes. I think you are what our team calls
'Ball Bound'. Remember, the Clubface does NOT touch the Ball. Just the
sand and the sand move the ball out of the bunker. Start this drill
with your STANCE relatively 'Narrow' and your ALIGNMENT a little 'Open'.
Swing on or down your 'Body Line'! You might FEEL like you are 'Cutting
the Ball' a little. That is OK but 'Splash' through the three inch zone
and finish you shot or swing as this 'Stroke Procedure' is not a hack at
the ball move! It is 'Through The Ball'. Relax your 'Lever Assemblies'
which are your Hands, Arms and Shoulders. Tension is the 'Number One
Killer Of A Good Golf Swing'!"
- Karl
Fischer, Teaching Professional |
New York
"Dear James: Don't get
discouraged. The greenside bunker has always been a nemesis of mine and
many golfers. What I have found with many of my students is that in most
of their cases when striking the ball first it is caused by an improper
address position. Many times their weight is too back on their right side.
When they swing their weight transfers even further back causing an upward
swing path and hitting the ball first. The other cause could be a face
that is too open and bouncing into the ball, however this is less common.
A great drill to try if you think your weight is too far back is too set
up in the bunker. Then lift up your right foot so that all your weight is
on your left foot. This will cause an immediate tilt in your body angle
and cause a much steeper angle for your swing. Then hit a few balls. When
comfortable then place your right foot down but only on your toe. Hit a
few balls this way while still maintaining your body position. Finally,
stand normal with your new body tilt, and weight about 60% on your left
foot and hit shots. I think this will help you truly start becoming a much
better bunker player." - James
Weiss, Teaching Professional |
New York
"Without seeing your set-up and swing this is tough to cure. Most
people dig in and hit fat. Make sure you set your weight forward and keep
it there through the swing. Use just upper body an arms to execute the
shot. As you swing imagine you are swinging instead of a club, a bucket of
water on the
end of a rope and don't spill the water. The downswing is made by
splashing the sand just behind the ball and follow through, follow
through, follow through. You want to lift the sand under the ball and the
ball and throw them onto the green. Control the height of the shot and the
distance by the openness of the clubface and the length of your
swing." - Ron
Venturini, Teaching Professional |
North Carolina
"For the question about the bunker play, I always find that it
helps me when I am teaching my students to let them envision opening the
club up and try to slide it right under the golf ball instead of trying to
hit behind it. Sometimes when you try to hit behind the ball, you will
begin to come into the ball too steeply and you will continually hit it
first. If you envision a spot abut an inch behind the ball, and envision
sliding the club under the ball without making contact with the ball at
all."
- Brian
Fritts, Teaching Professional |
North Carolina
"At address set your hands even with the ball. In playing a
bunker shot you want to keep your lower body quiet, excessive body
movement cause you to slide forward and flip the club coming through.
Pick your spot out behind the ball about 1-1/2 inches and aim for that
spot. Try to keep your hands passive as you are swinging through the ball.
The club accelerates through the ball and up to the finish positions. Try
this drill, draw a line in the sand and try erase the line while swinging
the club. If you can't erase the line then you are using your hands way to
much in the swing."
- Ben
Hynson, Teaching Professional |
Ohio
"Dear James: Two things may explain your problem. First, make
sure the ball is located two ball widths ahead of the bottom of your
swing. The bottom of your swing is exactly half way between your heels
not your toes. This is where the club reaches its lowest point. It
will contact the sand and move under the ball and the ball will pop out
onto the green. Second, make sure that you are not sliding your body
towards the target. This moves your contact point forward and you will
contact the ball instead of the sand." - Grayson
Fitzhugh, Teaching Professional |
Oregon
"James, are you taking the club too far inside?" - Penny
Larsen-Gebauer, Teaching Professional |
Pennsylvania
"James: Keep all of your weight on your left foot...throughout
the entire swing. If you have trouble with that, lift your right heel off
the ground and keep it up throughout the entire swing."
- Bob
Sheppard, Teaching Professional |
Pennsylvania
"James: This works great! As you swing the club away from the
ball on the back swing, you'll notice
that your wrists set and your right elbow bends (for rightys). On the
downswing, make sure you fully straighten your wrists and arms as you push
the club head into the sand about 3 inches behind the ball. If your arms
fail to straighten fully, you'll be likely to stop the club from getting
down all the way into the sand and skull the shot. So that the club
doesn't dig too deep, make sure that you open the club face to make use of
the sand wedge's specially designed sole. Hope that helps."
- John
Dunigan, Teaching Professional |
South Carolina
"James: Watch your set-up prior to making a swing. Make
sure that your weight favors the front side of your stance, and you are
slightly open to your target. This will promote a more vertical swing
plane, and help with a consistent place for the club to enter the sand.
Try drawing a line in the sand, and place a ball approximately 2"
ahead of the ball at one of the ends of the line. Try to practice
hitting the sand with the club, with the club entering the sand as close
to the line as possible. It is okay to watch this happen, because if you
are accelerating, the sand should move forward. Keep walking forward
towards the end of the line with the ball making sure that each time you
swing the club, it enters as near as possible to the line. Now when you
have arrived at the ball, make sure you are focusing on the line, not the
ball, and make the same swing you had been making. This should help you
consciously forget about the ball, and be more focused on the sand. Let me
know how I can help you further. Good Luck!" - John
Hughes, Teaching Professional |
Tennessee
"James: try taking a dollar
bill in the bunker and place the ball in the middle of the bill. Then try
to go under the dollar bill. This should help you hit behind the ball and
get out of the bunker. Hope it works for you, and good luck." - Doyal
Chadwick, Teaching Professional |
Texas
"Start with a square stance and clubface. Swing so that the club
strikes the sand 2 inches behind the golf ball. The sand you displace and
the ball should come out of the bunker. Practice your bunker shots in tall
grass doing the same thing. Take 2 inches of grass instead of sand. After
you get comfortable with this we can open the face and stance for shot
shapes. Good Luck."
-
Dave Baron,
Teaching Professional |
Wisconsin
"My initial thought when hearing your
question James - was that it is simply a lack of concentration. Try
narrowing your focus, aim small - miss small, focus in on one dimple of
the golf ball (preferably towards the back of the ball), rather than
focusing in on the ball as a whole. This is just my initial thought,
however there are a lot more factors involved, that are tough to cure
without seeing you actually swing the golf club. Thanks for the question."
- Matthew
Reel, Teaching Professional
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