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  1. #1
    Join Date
    Feb 2004
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    Red Tail
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    Unhappy Need some advise on short game practice & routine....

    This is an area I do not practice allot. I'M able to practice my full wedge shots but when it comes to pitch & chip shots I get next to no practice off the course! Most practice greens around here will not allow pitch or chip shots! Let alone that I live in the Northeast! I have tried looking for indoor practice facilities but there are none within a reasonable driving distance!

    My chip shot really needs some heavy-duty practice time. My style of the chip is the putting stroke with several different clubs for distance determination. This style for me only comes into play when I have a fairway lie. If IM in the rough its the old sand wedge. The lack of practice has kept this aspect of my game in the dumps.

    So does anyone have any advice on how to practice my chip shots given my situation? The chipping net is only good to a point! I need to see the carry and roll aspect of this stroke saving shot!

    Also on pitch shots would you say this requires a different type of swing? It seems to me that pitch shots require more wrist action? IM also lead to believe that the short game is mostly based on feel and there is a lot of room for creativity. The only issue I have with using a different type of swing is having certain aspects of a swing from a pitch shot creep into my regular swing. I always thought one swing was good for all clubs. It seems that is not true though...look at the driver! You need to somewhat force your left wrist back to square for a straight shot!

    This whole damn thing is a little confusing for me! I have worked hard on my iron & wood play! The short game has so many different roads to follow! I guess IM just concerned with this aspect of the game ruining the stuff I have already worked very hard on! Do any people here have any advice? This whole issue of the short game and which techniqes to use and let alone how and where to practice is frustrating!
    Last edited by Tee'd Off; 02-02-2004 at 11:16 AM.

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Jan 2003
    Location
    Pebble Beach Golf Links
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    66
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    22

    From reading your post...

    ...I have to agree that of all the parts of the game, the short game has the most variation as far as technique AND philosophy goes. For example, while you use different clubs for different chipping distances, I use my sand wedge 98% of the time. I have grown up concentrating of the feel of the club through the grass and how firmly the shot needs to be struck. I couldn't begin to try and use a nine or seven iron for pitching...I wouldn't know how far the chip would go or how hard to strike the ball. Looking at it, using different clubs to control trajectory and distance in chipping is much more reliable, since it minimizes the degree to which you must alter your chipping stroke.

    With the putter-type motion, it almost should feel that the ball "gets in the way" of the moving club face...all you need worry is making a smooth, fluid stroke, accelerate through the ball and let the "firmness" of your stroke dictate the distance of the chip. Your choice of club dictates how much "air time" your chip will have. As far as your observations of wristiness, you should try and minimalize it, or even eliminate it, from chipping. Being "wristy" on chips will tend to result in a "flipping" action, when all you really want to do is to "bump" the ball. This is especially true in the rough, where you must have crisper contact with the ball.

    In thinking about it, the chipping motion and position is very similar to the bottom of a full swing at the moment of contact: left wrist slightly bowed, hands ahead of the club head, head still overtop (or slightly behind) the ball and hips turned out of the way to allow the arms to move freely. The only difference is in a full swing, you eventually end in these positions...in the short game, you set-up and perform the complete motion in these positions. In fact, my swing pro has me warm up in the beginning of the season by hitting easy chips various distances. From this contact position, you can easily take the club back more and more on the backswing and go to full shots from there. Think about your chipping and pitching motions as 5%-20% versions of your complete swing...they're not at all that different.

    Just offering some thought and observations that have been taught and pointed out to me by some very good players and teachers. Hope it helps...

    Hit 'em well...

    Arvin C
    "You can talk to a fade, but a hook won't listen." - Lee Trevino
    "I'm in the woods so much, I can tell you which plants are edible." - Lee Trevino

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