Written by Gary Buffington, Jr., 20 year Manager of Edwin Watts Golf Shop, Tampa,
former academic All-American Golfer at University of West Florida,
and former Professional Mini-Tour Golfer offers specific advice and
drills for game improvement directly related to what is learned from
the Statistical Outputs of the Golf Addiction Statistics Mobile App.
The
Basics of Sand Play
Bunkers are often
difficult for amateurs, who rarely can get up and down from sand.
Bunkers can be much easier than most amateurs make them. Important to
remember out of bunkers is that the sand is what actually propels the
ball—there should be no metal to ball contact. And the sand club
was designed (by Gene Sarazan) specifically for the job! All you
have to do is take the right amount of sand to get the ball out
properly. The sand club design allows the club to skid (we don't like
the word bounce) through the sand propelling sand and ball out of the
bunker and close to the hole. Too much sand will lead to a chunk,
while too little will lead to a skull. In order to find the proper
sand entry point, get in a bunker and take a few practice swings
hitting the sand. Once you see where in your stance you are making
contact with the sand, you should place the ball about an inch and a
half ahead of that spot (at the back of your divot). Take yur stance
with the ball well forward in the stance. So, with the ball a bit
ahead of the start of your divot, the sand will gently (perhaps
actually violently!) move the ball out of the sand. In order to hit a
soft bunker shot, the feet should be aligned left of the target and
the club-face opened and aimed to the right of the target. By
swinging toward the left or in the direction of your feet the ball
will come out easily (after some practice). This will lead to a soft
high bunker shot and more sand saves from these greenside bunkers!
Always,
Always, Always Swing Through
Often amateur golfers
will quit their swing at the ball on bunker shots. This is the worst
thing you can do in the sand. The consequences are dire as shots
either get skulled or never leave the bunker. To hit shots from the
bunker it is important to swing through to a point well after the
ball is hit. The sand is what hits the ball out and much momentum is
needed to accelerate through the sand. The swing doesn’t have to be
violent, but a nice flowing swing that accelerates through the shot
will lead to better bunker play more of the time.
What
to Do When There Is Not Enough Sand, Or the Sand is Wet and Hard
The club will bounce more
(dig less) giving a tendency to hit the shot way too far. When you
step into your bunker shot, you should always wiggle your feet to get
a firm stance in the sand, AND to feel the amount and hardness of the
sand. This will help you keep your balance and hit better shots. If
the sand is wet and firm or there is a deficiency of sand, an open
the face will cause more bounce and a skull shot will result.. So how
is this shot hit? It’s actually pretty simple. It becomes a
survival shot, or one in which you want to avoid a big mistake. So,
just how do you do with some amount of consistency?
This shot is played much
like the standard bunker shot, with only one
difference. The stance is the same; left of
the target, but the difference
is that the club-face is square (not opened). By leaving the face
square to the target, you avoid bouncing off the hard sand and
hitting a skull. To hit a soft shot, just swing left of the target
towards where your feet are aimed and you will be escaping this tough
shot with little problem!
The
Soft Lob from the Sand
This is an extremely fun
shot that can really impress your self and even a few friends. Many
times golfers find themselves in bunkers with little green to work
with. In these cases it is smart (and satisfying) to hit a higher
shot. It is considered a difficult shot to play, but with a few days
of practice anyone can pull it off. It is the same as the normal
bunker shot, the only difference is that you open the face even more
and it is aimed farther right. Then, feel as if you take the club
back outside and swing through towards the left, as if you are coming
across your body. The sand will pop the ball out extremely high and
soft and the your fans and competitors will be amazed that you got
up and down from a “dead” spot. Give it a try and have some fun
to see how high you can make it fly!
The
One Case When It Is Okay to Quit on the Shot
There is only one
scenario in which it is okay to not swing as far through the ball,
the key being “as far.” You still have to hit through the ball,
but you stop your swing much sooner than if you were hitting a
standard basic bunker shot. The scenario is when you have an
extremely short distance to cover and need to stop the ball very
quick. Play the shot like you would the lob bunker shot and take a
fairly large back swing. Hit through the ball and stop your swing
shorter than normal. The distance of the follow through varies for
everyone so I cannot say exactly how far to follow through. Try to
swing through to the knees, waist, or chest, or a distance in
between. See which one works best for you; it can be fun to play
around in the sand sometimes. By practicing this shot occasionally,
you will be able to avoid disaster when short-sided and sometimes
stun the gallery and your buddies as you get up and down from a tough
position.
