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GOLF RESOURCE GUIDE:
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Golfers get caught up in terminology. I see it frequently in the short game. Players can’t decide whether to hit a pitch shot, a chip shot, a flop shot or some other kind of shot around the green. This indecision often leads to an inability to execute properly. When we work with tour professionals, we narrow the list of these shot descriptions to “one” and “two.” The “one” is characterized by the shaft, grip and hands being ahead of the ball at impact. You can play the shot with any club in your bag, with the natural loft of the club dictating how high the shot is hit and the distance the ball will roll once it hits the putting surface. We have our tour players work on this shot with a 3-wood because if they can produce the shot consistently with a 3-wood, they should be able to do it with any club in the bag. The shot we refer to as a “two” is executed by the hands, grip and shaft arriving at the ball at the same time, or even slightly behind, the clubhead. Because the club and hands arrive at the ball at roughly the same time, the club slides under the ball, allowing it to run up the face and create spin. This is what the professionals do when they play a short pitch and the ball lands on the green, bounces once or twice and stops on a dime. Most amateurs can’t hit this shot because they flip their hands through impact in an attempt to influence loft. Flipping the club produces three results: hitting it fat, hitting it thin or getting lucky. Another thing that separates great players from good ones is the ability of the great player to commit to hitting the right shot at the right time. Practice the fundamentals, commit to playing the right shot at the right time and your short game will improve. SG Jamie Mulligan is the chief operations officer at Virginia Country Club. |
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