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For many golfers finding their ball in a greenside bunker can be a real cause for concern, because all too frequently what should be a straight forward and comparatively easy shot becomes a succession of failed attempts that turn a good round into a disaster.
With a clear understanding of the basic principles of modern bunker play; you can turn the dread into a source of inspiration.
The degree of error with all greenside bunker shots is far greater than many golfers realise, remember you are not trying to hit the ball at all but a spot in the sand which can be up to 5 or 6 inches away from the ball. The most important consideration is the angle that the club enters and exits the sand which is influenced by both the swing itself and how the bounce angle on your sandwedge reacts on contact with the sand.
Bounce Angle
Your sand iron has a number of distinct design features which set it apart from the rest of your irons, apart from the added head weight and wider sole it has a unique bounce angle which enables the club to skim through the sand rather than digging in.
The bounce is measured in degrees and is usually between 8 and 20 degrees and it is imperative to choose an angle and sole width that works best with the depth and type of sand in your home course bunkers.
Rule of Thumb- the softer and deeper the sand the wider the sole and the higher the bounce angle should be, loft angles between 56 and 60 work best, experiment to see which works best for you, Personally I prefer 60 degrees which encourages a more aggressive swing. If you are not sure seek advise from your local PGA professional.
Standard Bunker Shot
The following method will enable you to play impressive bunker shots and control the ball effectively from all mid to long range positions.
Stand Square to the line of play or very slightly open, address the ball with the face SQUARE with the ball positioned just target side of stance centre.
Imagine your ball is lying in the centre of your palm print. Use your normal pitching swing with a half swing action both back and through.
Aim to enter the sand at the start of the palm print with an aggressive swing hitting the ball out on the palm of sand, swing through with no thought of lifting the ball imagine the ball is just the largest grain of sand. Perfect this skill by practising without a ball.
You will soon realise that you do not need to hit the palm print as accurately as you think. If you take a little too much sand the ball will carry less but run more, contact a little too close to the ball and it will carry further with more backspin running less.The aim of this shot is to allow the ball to pop up and roll you are not attempting to stop the ball dead.
Stopping Bunker Shot
The following method is used for short shots when a high stopping shot is required.
Stand slightly open with the ball positioned just forward of stance centre open the blade so that it is almost parallel with the sand.
Increase knee flex and drop your hands flattening the lie of the club, this is the most crucial aspect of this shot because without this low set up position you will not be able to produce the necessary shallow skimming action.
The Black line represents the path of the sand iron.Imagine that the ball is sitting on a tee in the sand and that you are attempting to cut the tee in half below the ball with a shallow cutting action.
Use a little more wrist action on the backswing and zip the club through the tee peg fast and very aggressive keeping the blade open after impact.
Once you have perfected this action you will soon realise that speed is the key, because the open blade riding on the bounce angle skims under the sand the speed has very little influence on forward momentum.
Speed increases backspin, hit it has hard as you can and as long as the skimming action is correct cutting the tee peg in half 10 yards is your maximum range.
If you struggle with either shot practice your technique without a ball by hitting the sand at a mark on the sand, once your accuracy improves and you can hit within a couple of inches of your mark you will see a massive improvement in your bunker play.
Article kindly supplied by Steve Williamson - PGA Golf Professional
Canwick Park Golf Club, Lincoln & Lincoln Golf Range, Washingborough Road, Lincoln LN4 1EF
Tel: 01522 537 862 - Email:
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