Delicate Pitch Shots

The worst part of my game at the moment is the delicate pitch shot.

My home course has mounds around the greens on most holes.

So if I miss the green I could have a 15 yard pitch shot, over a mound and the flag could only be three or four paces onto the green.

After having some lesson I was told the best thing to do it land the ball on the green or land it just short of the green.

I cannot use my pitching wedge and run it onto the green as there is probably about 10 yards to the green, over an mound, so the ball could bounce or hold up!

So I'm trying to get the ball into the air so it lands just short or just on the green and runs a yard or two to the flag.

At the moment I'm trying the same technique as I do when I'm using my lob wedge, just the backswing only ever gets hip high.  I keep the clubface square to the target line and make sure that my hands are ahead of the ball at impact.

Sometimes this works, but most of the time I thin the ball, with the odd fat shot thrown in.

I'm having real problems with these shots so can anybody tell me the correct way to play these shots.

Russ

Thanks for that Paul, that sounds like what I'm doing so I guess I'll have to practice it a bit more.

Kevin, I can do a flop shot when needed, what I'm talking about is half way between the flop shot and a 40 yard lob wedge shot.

What Paul is saying sounds about right to me.

Thanks for your help guys.

Russ

Russell, by keeping the clubface square and the hands in front of the club at impact is never going to produce the kind of shot you need for that situation.

These little fifteen yarders over mounds to tight pins are not the easiest in the book, even for the pros.

This shot calls for the lob wedge and I generally play these shots off the front foot with an open stance and opening the lob wedge face open  even further.

The secret is to accelerate through the ball but at a slower speed speed than you would normally use and make a conscious effort to follow through, after all, it is the follow through off the front foot that will give the height required and the slower speed will take the sting out of the ball when it lands.

This shot is a total confidence shot and one that should be practiced regularly.

 Russ, this one of the shots that demands a positive attitude as your only option is to go with maximum loft. Before lob wedges I used to open the face on my pitching wedge (the sand wedge flange really put me off). First things first though I'd only attemp it if the lie was reasonable.

 I don't know the technical term for this shot but Kevin's description of a flop shot seems a fair description. The way I play them is with my with a 60% copper wedge. No real adjustments to my stance, no hands forward. I just take a normal fullish backswing and sort of let gravity do the rest. It does feel a bit wierd because on the downswing it feels like you're in limbo, like you should be doing something more, possibly because your input to this shot is different from a normal shot. I find concentrating on keeping your head still does the trick. You'll need to practice though to see what distance you get.

Thanks guys,

I'm playing tomorrow so I'll try out some of the suggestions that you have given me.

Russ

It was a slow round on Wednesday so my playing partner and I had a few practice shots.

I was pleased with most of my attempts, but every now and again I'd thin one through the green!

I tried two different types of shot.

The first was what John had said, open the stance and clubface and swing through the ball.  At first I wasn't swinging fast enough to reach the green, but the ball certainly got up in the air early, so with a bit more umph it would certainly get there and land softly.

The other was a more conventional chipping stance, the only difference was the hands.  I would do a small, minature swing.  The club shaft getting to parallel with the ground, and then swinging through to a similar position on the follow though.

Both seemed to work well, but I'm still not getting the percentages I need to play this shot during a competitive round. 

I'm hoping to get out tomorrow for a round of golf, so if I can get some practice in before the round, then I'll try a few of these shots during the round.

Russ

 We will be playing together soon, Russ, I will explain all these shots to you in detail so that you will become an expert.

I'm looking forward to our game John, and the benefit of your golfing wisdom.

If I could play these shots well I'd probably save three or four shots a round on my home courses, so they are worth playing.

Russ

Scores are made around the green.