Shots within 50 yards

[turkish]

Was going to say chipping but I’d probably say when it gets to 30 yards+ it’s probably a pitch?!?

Anyway I am pretty garbage from this range and it’s where I need to work on... have used 6-8-10 method for chipping with various degree of success but I’d really like the nail down exactly where my weakness is and wondering if there are any scoring programmes devised to evaluate which part(s) of this facet i suck at....

Is it landing spot? Is it trajectory? Is it judging roll out? Or both and so club selection?

Or actually is getting it to 10 feet from 20 yards good and my perception is wrong?

Also a 20 yard low running chip from fairway is different from a short sided 20 yard over a bunker in a scruffy lie so there’s millions of variables

My course is a good course but it doesn’t have a good actual green you can practice chipping on(with proper roll out) so can practice landing point no bother but how ball reacts is another thing. So was thinking if there was some sort of scoring programme could evaluate on course when these shots come up and then at the end say ok I’m pretty good at landing spot but I’m not judging trajectory and roll out any good.

Also are there any books dedicated to only this that would give me better insight/perception on this part of the game. I’m off 14 and feel it’s this part of the game that could get me to single figures.

 

[patricks148]

i think the key with this is practice practice practice, even if its just in the garden. Also to do this with diff clubs ie try diff shots with one club, high/low, run stop.

also used to chip into an old brolly then down to a bucket of water.

i don't tend to use the clock system, for me it was all about feel

 

[bobmac]

What ball do you use?

 

[Deleted member 16999]

Bit closer, but good little vid.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1270098939925200898

 

[turkish]

What ball do you use?

Pro v1x

 

[turkish]

i think the key with this is practice practice practice, even if its just in the garden. Also to do this with diff clubs ie try diff shots with one club, high/low, run stop.

also used to chip into an old brolly then down to a bucket of water.

i don't tend to use the clock system, for me it was all about feel

Thanks Patrick I probably don’t practice enough due to time constraints... lockdown has allowed me to buy a chipping net and have gotten respectable but garden only allows for 10 yard chips.

I use the clock method for pitching and feel I’m actually pretty good with it but lowest distance I have is 42 yard carry as it’s a pitching drill. It’s the closer feel based ones I struggle.

 

[patricks148]

Thanks Patrick I probably don’t practice enough due to time constraints... lockdown has allowed me to buy a chipping net and have gotten respectable but garden only allows for 10 yard chips.

I use the clock method for pitching and feel I’m actually pretty good with it but lowest distance I have is 42 yard carry as it’s a pitching drill. It’s the closer feel based ones I struggle.

is there anywhere you could go for half an hour ?

i'm lucky in that we have a big garden, but even before we moved here i went in a field behind the cottage we rented and chipped into the Brolly. but i would do this a hour a day at least, sometimes longer.

the more you practice the more benefit it will have in the long run, all those years when i did this are still paying off now, i don't really bother much now as Nairn you don't often have to from the edge of the green, but i can still get it close..most of the time anyway.

its good you are using the same ball all the time as i've found some run out way more than others.

 

[clubchamp98]

Do you practice with the ball you play with ,Pro v1x.
I find lots of golfers practice with any balls they find.
Me to for long game , but I keep a klicka tube of pro v1x to practice my short game.
You then get a consistent feel for what it will and won’t do spin wise..

For me it’s all in the strike you must strike a short shot well to do what you want it to do.
But no substitute for practice it’s the only way.

 

[Maninblack4612]

Was going to say chipping but I’d probably say when it gets to 30 yards+ it’s probably a pitch?!?

Length is not the definition. A chip travels mostly on the ground, a pitch goes in the air, a chip can be longer than a pitch. The technique is different. With a chip you break the wrists on the backswing & hold them on the downswing. With a pitch you release the club fully on the way down, with the clubhead passing the grip end of the club, using the bounce to achieve a good impact. All explained in "The Art of the Short Game by Stan Utley. It's a great little book & deals with the questions you ask.

 

[Maninblack4612]

Sorry, way too many generalisations in there, chips and pitches can both be played in a variety of ways.

To the OP, you can get some ideas off the Web, but just like how to run faster, how to be a better darts, snooker, football, cricket etc etc etc player, you won't achieve anything without practice.

Stans an expert, he holds the record for the lowest number of putts for 9 holes on the PGA Tour, 7, including two holed bunker shots. He only teaches one chipping & one pitching method, which he says are the most reliable way to get the ball near to the hole. Certainly worth a look, he has some vids on YouTube.

 

[bobmac]

I use the clock method for pitching and feel I’m actually pretty good with it but lowest distance I have is 42 yard carry as it’s a pitching drill. It’s the closer feel based ones I struggle.

Do you hold the grip at the top, middle or bottom or do you vary it?

 

[turkish]

Do you hold the grip at the top, middle or bottom or do you vary it?

Hi bob I pretty much always grip right at the bottom just before the metal as feel like I have better control. Especially for chipping

With my pitching and clock method I usually always try to grip at the bottom but if I get a distance that doesn’t suit what I have for the club I want to use I will move where I grip Up dependant on if I need a bit more distance but that’s really for 50 yard+ shots.

 

[bobmac]

Hi bob I pretty much always grip right at the bottom just before the metal as feel like I have better control. Especially for chipping

With my pitching and clock method I usually always try to grip at the bottom but if I get a distance that doesn’t suit what I have for the club I want to use I will move where I grip Up dependant on if I need a bit more distance but that’s really for 50 yard+ shots.

How long is your follow through and do you vary which club you use?

 

[bobmac]

Certainly not doubting his credentials but to say that there is one way to play a chip and one way to play a pitch is just too one-dimensional.
And anyway, without practice no "method" is really relevant.

I agree

 

[turkish]

How long is your follow through and do you vary which club you use?

Hi bob I usually try to match my follow through to the length of backswing but not sure I always stick to it and have tried 1 club method and various clubs and I’m not sure which is best for me. With 6-8-10 method it’s various but sometimes I’m poor with that and don’t judge landing spot or roll out quite so good. Other times it works well but the same could be said for using 1 club when it’s on it’s good. As a general rule I’ll try and get it on the ground as early as I can though and will generally leave a margin for error if there is something like a bunker between ball and flag.

What would you say would be a good distance to leave a putt from chips for 10, 15, 20, 25, 30 yards?

I know a lot will depend on lie, required trajectory, green speeds, undulations etc

 

[bobmac]

Last question I promise, do you take a divot when hitting these shots?

 

[turkish]

I try not to

 

[bobmac]

I try not to

Bingo.
It sounds like everything else is good except no divot.
If you take a divot (even a little one) with a lofted club (GW/SW/LW), the ball will spin more and stop quicker so less run out to worry about.

What would you say would be a good distance to leave a putt from chips for 10, 15, 20, 25, 30 yards?

If those distances are to the hole, Id be trying to hole 10,15 and 20 but would accept a tap in. 25-30 would be no further than 4-5 feet.

 

[jim8flog]

I have only two variations between a pitch and a chip and run

The first is the choice of club and the second is ball position.

For pitches the choice is either a 52 (low bounce) or a 54 (high bounce) depending on the lie.

For chip and runs I use anything from a 7 and to a 52 and the ball will normally be a bit further back in the stance compared to a pitch.

For distance control I use the clock method.

Like the OP our club does not have decent short game practice facilities for anything other greenside shots or long pitches in to very small greens with grass that is on the long side.

 

[jim8flog]

Hi bob I usually try to match my follow through to the length of backswing but not sure I always stick to it and have tried 1 club method and various clubs and I’m not sure which is best for me. With 6-8-10 method it’s various but sometimes I’m poor with that and don’t judge landing spot or roll out quite so good. Other times it works well but the same could be said for using 1 club when it’s on it’s good. As a general rule I’ll try and get it on the ground as early as I can though and will generally leave a margin for error if there is something like a bunker between ball and flag.

What would you say would be a good distance to leave a putt from chips for 10, 15, 20, 25, 30 yards?

I know a lot will depend on lie, required trajectory, green speeds, undulations etc

10 15 20 yards are the sort of distances that you should be looking to hole the ball and at worst leaving a single putt distance.