Hitting a sand shot seems to be every amateur golfers nemisis. Its really not very hard once you learn how. The problem most golfers run into when it comes to a bunker shot is their mental frame of mind.

When you setup to a greenside bunker shot, whats going through your head? Do some of these come to mind

- Oh geez, please don’t chunk it!
- Oh geez, please don’t blade it!
- Oh man, how can I get it out with that lie.

Find out how to begin improving your bunker game

First, a couple mistakes I see most golfers make in the bunkers are 3 areas.

1. Shoulders.
2. Lower body
3. Follow Through.

All 3 of these are key to a successful bunker game.

The idea is to keep your shoulders in place and not move them. A bunker shot is NOT like a normal golf swing. The bunker shot is more wrists and arms, not shoulders and lower body movements.

When your shoulders get involved, that is when problems happen. Typically you sway them, bounce them, dip them, etc… but the ultimate result is either the club face enters the sand TOO steep and too far behind the ball, or you lift your shoulders and catch the ball clean resulting in a blade.

Keeping your lower body still is important. When the lower body is active, this works hand in hand with the upper body (shoulders) and causes the chunks and blade you might typically experience.

You have to follow through with your shot. FINISH the swing. Alot of players make impact with the sand, and then decelerate their followthrough. WRONG! This almost always results in a poor sand shot. Either the ball doesn’t get out of the bunker, or you blade it. You have to enter that sand with good authority and follow through keep that power throughout the entire shot. The idea is to “blast” the ball out.

Here is my routine

  1. I step back and take a view of the ball and the whole. The goal is to get the clubface open, yet square with the hole. I typically
    get my line and then step up to the ball. I keep the club face open and square to the hole the hole time.
  2. I then set my body, arms, shoulders, and legs left of the line so that the clubface stays open yet square to the hole.
  3. The idea is that when I am ready to swing, I will essentially be having an outside to inside swing path creating the effect of “cutting” across it.
  4. An important note: When hitting a greenside bunker shot, make sure your upper body and lower body are quiet. When I say quiet, I mean I don’t want them moving much at all.
  5. The key to this shot is “blasting” the ball out. You have to be steep with your swing in order to blast it out.
  6. To be steep, you need to incorporate more ‘wrists’ from the takeaway and on the downswing. Again, keeping the upper body and lower body still is important. Do you chunk shots or thin them over the green? You are probably swaying or getting to much shoulder action.
  7. Once my stance is setup left of my target (the hole), the clubface is open, I am going to essentially lift my wrists / cock my wrists. NOT my arms, but only my wrists. Once I reach the top of my swing, I want you to hold the cocked angle while doing your downswing
    Stay smooth and in tempo, but I want you to enter the sand about 1 inch behind the ball but at a steep angle. In a bunker shot, the sand lifts the ball out, not the club.
  8. I can’t stress how important the follow through is. FINISH your swing. Enter the sand with power and finish with power. Too many golfers decelerate or stop their follow through once they enter the sand. This
    usually results in a chunk or a blade. Those suck, don’t they.

I hope this helps your bunker game.

In a nutshell its this

  • Keep your upper body quiet
  • Keep your lower body quiet
  • Use your wrists in the shot
  • Finish your follow through

Posted in: Golf Tips

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