The Beach

[bobmac]

The trouble is, people convince themselves is a difficult shot when in actual fact it's actually easier than a normal wdge shot from the fairway.
To play the fairway wedge well, your contact with club and ball has to be perfect or else a duff or a thin results.
With the bunker shot, precision is not required to get the ball up and out.
As long as you hit the sand behind the ball with enough speed and there is enough sand between the club face and the ball to cushion the shot, the ball will come out.

 

[Region3]

its all you can do i'm afraid - hey i know the theory of it!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H2Q9GEd3MkU

Phil the lefties wee vid shows him getting a variety of balls out

i still need to practice it tho!

I'm guessing you mean the one near the end where it's buried on the upslope?

I thought about doing that but it was sitting up so I was worried about the club going straight under the ball. Difficult isn't it! :lol:

 

[Heidi]

I'm guessing you mean the one near the end where it's buried on the upslope?

I thought about doing that but it was sitting up so I was worried about the club going straight under the ball. Difficult isn't it! :lol:

its a good vid cos it shows the ball popping out in slo mo - but i find them terrifying shots!

Prob is I'm playing carnoustie in june and i need to be able to get out of pot hole bunkers that i cant see over - so i'm gonna practice til i get it! my shots only just creep over - but i've got phil and bob's vids now and i know i can master it!!

 

[In_The_Rough]

If you still struggle try Gary Smiths linear approach, I use it for Bunker shots and it is silly how easy it makes it

 

[Heidi]

I now officially hate the beach - threw a hunner balls in the compacted sand - could i get one of them to come out? could i hell....argggggggggggggghhhhhhhhhhhhh

 

[bobmac]

send me a vid

 

[Heidi]

send me a vid

ok doke
am playing in a medal on thurs so wont get a chance - will do a vid at the weekend.
tried everything so i did - was sweating with the effort of it all!
it must be something pretty basic that i'm just not getting

 

[Region3]

Bob is the man, but since you're playing again before you'll be able to do the video...

The thing that finally made it click for me was laying the clubface open enough. I thought I was opening it up but it wasn't anywhere near enough. Open it so much that the back edge of the bounce on the club is the first thing that will hit the sand and the face is almost pointing at the sky.

Opening the club so much you also have to aim left, but when you do that you need to move the ball position with your stance. I didn't do this to start with and shanked a lot of balls before I realised. The ball needs to be forward in your stance in relation to the line of your feet.

Weight level, focus on a point 2-3" behind the ball, and a nice smooth swing with a decent follow through. The key is to stop the club digging so don't lean the shaft forward like you would for a pitch or chip. It's as if the club flips past your hands just after impact, and it will feel like the club just slaps the sand.

I really hope you get it. It was like an epiphany the first time I felt I'd done it properly.

If all that ^^^ is stuff you already know then I apologise

 

[SocketRocket]

Another thing is to not allow the clubface to turn over through the shot. The clubface should stay pointing up at the sky as it comes through the shot.

 

[Heidi]

the ball was defo forward, weight even, follow thro was there, club face super open and pointing at the sky

think my hands were forward........not sure my stance was right - felt a bit back on my heels - i moved the weight to balls of feet and i did get a ball out - but still not a high flight

i did a pile of practice slaps at the sand/concrete and they felt fine, but as soon as i introduced the evil ball i just bladed them into the face of the bunker

if i go in a bunker during the medal then i will get out - i;ll just go back to my usual shot (not open face cos the bunkers are concrete!) which is low but works - thing is i'm usually accurate enough not to go in them in the first place

the problem is when i play links courses I tend to find that the bunkers are set up to collect a ball. it happened at Turnberry and at Arbroath last weekend. Perfectly good drives would end up in a bunker when they really shouldnt have done. and of course they tend to be pot holes with super high faces. I have 7 weeks to perfect this!! i know i can do it...with a little help

 

[louise_a]

I dont worry when I end up in the sand, unfortunately this doesnt always transmitted to the shots I play once I am there.

 

[Heidi]

I dont worry when I end up in the sand, unfortunately this doesnt always transmitted to the shots I play once I am there.

oh no - i never worry
except when you see this - this is carnoustie!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nyfqcCT8_8c

 

[Heidi]

arghhhhhhh
i didnt break my wrists...........! all those balls i tried to hit - and not one wrist break

sweet lordy....maybe i should take up knitting....

 

[Heidi]

True to form - played 18 holes and didnt go in a bunker happy days
my friend is going to take me out and put me in some sand on monday - so hopefully we'll have some video footage! wont be wearing a bikini tho - its still a tad cold out there

 

[patricks148]

True to form - played 18 holes and didnt go in a bunker happy days
my friend is going to take me out and put me in some sand on monday - so hopefully we'll have some video footage! wont be wearing a bikini tho - its still a tad cold out there

That's it last Monday i managed to go in 9 bunkers so only shot 33 points of which 20 were on the front 9 and guess what i didn't go in a bunker on the front.

The key to a dec round at my place is to stay out of Fairway bunkers, greenside are fine you still have a chance of getting up and down. A great big pot bunker that you are plugged in the face of a diff matter

 

[StrangelyBrown]

Thats the problem with some of the video instruction.....they use nice fluffy sand.

If you dig down 2 inches under the ball and follow through, it will come out of any wet/compat sand

Where should the ball be in your stance? Middle, so you're a bit steeper on it? I've been thinning a few lately and wondering if the ball has gotten a little far forward in my stance.

 

[bobmac]

Where should the ball be in your stance? Middle, so you're a bit steeper on it? I've been thinning a few lately and wondering if the ball has gotten a little far forward in my stance.

I would say midway between the middle and left heal....depends how high the lip of the bunker is

 

[StrangelyBrown]

Cheers Bob

 

[Heidi]

sigh - no beach practice for me tonight - its a tad wet out there!