Andrew Rice Golf

Posts Tagged ‘short game’

When it comes to the shortgame it is vital that the golfer strikes the ball and the ground on every shot – and preferably in that order! Golfers run into trouble when the club contacts the ground before the ball, particularly with a closing clubface as the leading edge will dig into the turf. There is no quicker way to deplete confidence than to start  alternating between bladed and heavy pitch shots.

A helpful drill is to practice hitting 40-60 yard pitch shots with an 8-iron. Try to get the ball up in the air, with a slight cut action and have it land softly. This will give you the sense of keeping the face open and using the bounce of the club correctly. It will also prevent the wrists from being overly active. A feeling to key in on is the sense of swinging to the inside after impact (as pictured below). Be sure to keep the face open or looking up while the club tracks to the inside as this will prevent the leading edge from digging.  This is rapidly becoming one of my favorite drills!

Think of the bounce on a wedge, or any iron, as an insurance policy against digging the leading edge of the golf club into the ground. 

It is very important for any golfer to not only understand what the bounce is, but how to use it to their advantage.  An excellent exercise to do every now and then is to hit a few pitch shots off of a lie board. This is a flat plexiglass board that most club fitters use in determining the correct lie angle a golfers irons should be set at.  If you do not have access to a lie board, use a piece of plywood painted black. Just be sure to not hit any shots where the ball is too close to the edge of the board.

What you should see...

If the markings on the sole of the club are as pictured above you are using the club correctly.  Should they be closer to the leading edge you might be in danger of sticking the club into the ground on your next chip of pitch.  The most important aspect of using the bounce correctly is addressing the ball correctly. Take a look:

The Set Up for a Chip or Pitch

In the above image you will see the ball positioned in the center (watch out for too far back as it reduces the bounce at impact and makes it easier to do some gardening); the feet are fairly close together; and the hands and weight are just slightly in front of the ball, with emphasis on slightly.

As you go through the motion of striking that chip or pitch try to feel that the handle and the clubhead get back to impact at the same time – in other words don’t allow the handle to get too far in front of the clubhead at impact as you are then exposing more of that sharp leading edge to the ground.  And we all know what that can lead to…..

The Bounce Angle

Golf club bounce is the angle between the ground and the sole of the club when the shaft is held in a vertical position.

 

 For example: A club with ten degrees bounce will have a ten degree angle between the sole and the ground (barring any rounding of the sole).  Notice how the back edge of the sole of the wedge rests on my finger, while the leading edge is slightly raised. Thanks to Gene Sarazen, who first invented bounce, irons have been built this way to deter the leading edge from shoveling or digging into the ground.

 The greater the bounce angle of a club, the higher the leading edge will be from the turf at address and vice versa. It is important to note that all modern irons have bounce built into them; it is not something that is strictly reserved for the wedges.

A stock set-up for chipping

There are two things that must be struck with every chip or pitch: the ball and the ground. And preferably in that order! This is where understanding and using club bounce comes in. Most golfers know that a chip or pitch must be struck with a descending blow. The dilemma that most golfers face is how to hit down without getting the sharp leading edge of the club stuck in the ground. For the majority of short game shots, the handle should beat the club head to the ball, similar to the full swing, but to a far lesser degree. If the handle gets too far forward, the bounce is removed and the club will dig too much. I find that golfers struggling with their short game are often alternating between sticking the club in the ground and blading shots over the green. This is where using the bounce correctly becomes vital: Think of it as an insurance policy that, when used correctly, allows for an acceptable result even with the ground being struck before the ball.

Bounce Drill:

Locate a lie board (a flat, sturdy plexiglass board) and pitch a few shots from the board. You will notice that the back edge of the sole of your wedge is marked up from where it made contact with the plexiglass. Should the markings be too close to the leading edge, your hands are too far forward at impact and you are preparing to do some gardening.

Using a lie board

If you do not have access to a lie board, (try plywood with paint on it) you can just make a few small practice swings during which you attempt to brush the ground with the back edge of the bottom of the club. There should be no divots – no matter what the turf conditions.

• The leading edge digs into the ground; the bounce glides along the ground. Use the bounce!
• If your club has ten degrees of bounce and the shaft leans forward more than ten degrees at impact, you effectively have zero — or even a negative — bounce.

Negative Bounce

• There should be no divot when you hit a chip shot. If the leading edge is cutting turf, you are not employing the bounce correctly. Divots with pitching will depend on turf conditions, but there should not be any digging there either.
• Lagging the clubhead into impact will lead to a loss of bounce and inconsistent results. Feel as if the hands and clubhead arrive at the ball at the same time. 
• The ground must be contacted for there to be an acceptable result. Preferably after impact.

Thanks for reading and please feel free to let me know your thoughts!

The Future of Golf

 

I have so much to say to junior golfers – they are the future of the game!  Here is a summary of what I believe to be the most important points for them to observe:

• Always walk versus ride! Golf carts have been forced into the game primarily for financial reasons.  They do not speed up the game; they do not provide the golfer with a better experience; and they do not improve the design of golf courses!  Do yourself a favor and commit to never riding again unless it is absolutely called for.
• Compete, casually and seriously, as often as possible. One of the primary reasons why boys are much better chippers than girls is because they love to compete and try unique shots around the practice green.  It is this competitive environment that stretches them to create new and better shots.  Apply this philosophy to every element of the game.
• Study and learn to appreciate the history of the game.  Do you know who Bobby Jones is?  Why is St. Andrews such a special place?  Who is Dr. Alister MacKenzie? I wholeheartedly believe that this is an element of the game that is being lost on our young golfers – an appreciation of all who have walked the fairways before them.  Read books and ask questions!  You will be better off for it.
• Take full advantage of every opportunity you are presented with.  Do not give yourself the chance to look back on your career and regret that you did not give everything 100% effort.  Do everything to the best of your ability!
• Heart always beats out a pretty swing!  When it comes to the game of golf, this statement will forever be true.  All of the great champions played with a tremendous amount of heart; not all of them had pretty swings!
• Have fun with the short game!  Try to hit the craziest shots you can imagine.  It will teach you how to control your club face and ultimately the ball.  I actually remember having SW long drive contests.  Try to hit the highest, lowest, shortest shots you can think of; it all adds up to creativity around the greens.
• Work hard at the game.  It’ll teach you about life and its challenges.  Golf, like life, is not always fair, but patience, belief and persistence will pay off in the end.
• You do not have to be the next Tiger Woods or Jack Nicklaus!  This is a huge problem I see amongst junior golfers in society today.  When did it stop being okay for junior golfers to just simply play the game for enjoyment?  It seems that every junior golfer and their parents have their sights set on grandeur and no expense or sacrifice is too great for a slim shot at stardom. If you want to be as good as you can, by all means go for it, but if you just like the game for what it is, take it easy and just have fun!
• Play with the best golfers you can find!  Nothing will improve your game as quickly as playing with players that are a lot better than you. 
• If you are over 15 and serious about being good you need to look into getting stronger and fitter. Find a trainer who knows the golf swing and how to train for golf.
• Respect the etiquette, honesty and integrity of the game! Play the game at a different level than your peers.  The vast majority of champions in the game were very clear in this regard – play golf the way it was meant to be played!  Behave in a first class fashion on the course and it will start to carry over into all areas of your life.

Aree Song

 A Note to Parents:

Give your young golfers a chance to have a great time playing and practicing the game.  This way they will learn to love the game and when they love the game they will come back to it over and over.  This is the only way they will ever reach their full potential – if you will allow them to have fun while playing golf!  I have seen the game become work and a career for too many 12 and 13 year olds.  I taught perhaps the best female junior golfer of all time in Aree Song.  At 13 she had won the US Junior, the very first AJGA event she played in, finished in the top 10 in an LPGA major and was a first team AJGA All-American.  Aree, now in her mid-twenties, plays sparingly on the tour.  She should be a dominant force in the prime of her career!  We can all guess why she no longer has a passion for the game.  Trust me; I have seen the right way and the wrong way; tread lightly and let them have fun!