Imagine your ball has come to rest near the green but not close enough to use the “Texas” wedge. What shot are you going to play? The most obvious answer is: it depends on the situation. Chip, pitch, or flop – they all differ in trajectory and how they react on the green.
The chip shot generally has a lower trajectory. The best time to use this is when your ball is close to the green and has enough distance to the hole to be able to roll out. You can use any club from a lob wedge to 7 iron depending on the distance and desired roll. Remember to use minimal wrist action, align the ball towards the back foot, and make sure the clubhead stays lower to the ground. With this kind of shot, that spends time rolling towards the hole, you can take a little time to read the green like you would for a putt.
The pitch shot will be played when you are further away from the green. With a pitch shot the ball will fly higher in the air, with perhaps a bunker to clear or an elevated green to navigate. You can impart a decent amount of spin on a pitch shot so it’s a useful shot when you want the ball to carry in the air and then stop quickly with the spin. Generally, you will use a gap or lob wedge and the ball will be more central in the stance. Make sure you consider where you want the ball to land – then focus on hitting that mark.
The flop – made famous by Phil Mickelson… a master at the flop shot. This shot will fly the highest allowing the ball to land softer and stop quicker. Use this when you only have a small area of the green to work with. You will be close to the green using your most lofted club. The ball is forward in your stance and club face is manipulated allowing for maximum loft and a full swing. Don’t be afraid to try this shot. The more you play it the more confident you’ll become with this shot. Then you will have more confidence to aim towards pins knowing that if you miss the green close to the hole you can more consistently get the ball up and down.
Whether it is a chip, pitch or flop shot it is all about balance, consistency, and keeping it smooth. So here are three things I focus on with all of the shots in my short game repertoire:
Set up – I find the two easiest ways of making solid, consistent contact with my short game is by 1. adjusting my stance width and 2. where I place my hands on the grip. For a short chip shot I grip down the club a little bit and then narrow my stance. A flop shot I might keep the stance width the same but grip higher up on the club. A pitch shot I will adjust my stance width and grip placement depending on the length of the pitch.
Tempo – The length of your follow-through should match the length of your backswing. The short game cardinal sin – a backswing that is too long causing you to decelerate or a backswing that is too short causing you to accelerate excessively. Both lead to poor contact because they typically lead to too much wrist action. By having a good posture with your hands hanging below your shoulders you will be able to control the tempo with your body and shoulders creating a smooth, consistent swing. The obvious exception to this is the flop shot. For the flop shot you will use more wrist action but, as for all the other short game shots, you will still have a nice tempo.
Equipment – One of the more significant developments in wedges since I have been playing is the bounce on your wedges. Having the correct bounce on your wedge will help you develop your technique and will result in more confidence in your short game. The bounce is the rounding of the bottom of your wedge and is designed to stop the leading edge of your club digging into the ground. You might use clubs with different bounce when playing on different types of grass. For example, on kikuyu fairways I would use a wedge with more bounce, but on a course with hard fairways I would use less bounce. So finding the correct bounce for the conditions and for your technique should be one of the first things you do when choosing new equipment.
A good short game can compensate for all manner of skill shortcomings when playing golf. Improving your short game is one of the quickest ways to lower your scores.
If you would like to develop a consistent short game that saves you shots book a lesson at michaellonggolf.com.
