Tip of the week
This weeks coaching tip is on bunker play and specifcally how to get out of bunkers and have some control when the sand has compacted down after heavy rain. This can be a daunting shot especially in a bunker with a steep face, however with some small set up changes is possible.
First of all the hard surface means that the club is more likely to bounce of the sand and into the ball, causing a thin shot. Therefore we want to reduce the chance of this happening, the way to do this is not to open the clubface up on your sand wedge like you would do for a normal bunker shot. Play the clubface square to your target, this will allow the leading edge to go into the sand and under the ball.
The second thing to do is to ensure that you have 70% of weight on your front foot in the set up and keep the weight there during the swing. A big fault in bunkers and especially when the sand is hard is to try to lift the ball out of the bunker, resulting in a poor contact and poor result. Keeping the weight forward will allow the leading edge to go into the sand and under the golf ball. You are still trying to make contact with the sand before the golf ball, however, slightly closer to the ball than normal, taking roughly 1 inch of sand.
When the golf ball is in a hard and compact bunker, the ball will come out lower and travel a bit further than normal. This is due to you playing the shot with a square clubface and hitting the sand closer to the ball. Therefore a smaller swing is required to make the golf ball travel the desired distance. However, it is very important to still accelerate through the shot and not allow the club to get stuck in the sand.
If you follow these three simple things then you will be able to get out of any bunker after heavy rain fall.
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I would like to take this opportunity to wish all of you and your families a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
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