Golf Bunker Play
Rather than see the golf ball actually land in the deep rough, the professional golfer would rather face the customary greenside bunker shot any day of the week. However, if you talk to most golfers who don’t play for a living, than you will hear one horror story after another regarding greenside bunker shots. The difference of opinion is actually quite simple. The golf professionals know how to use their sand wedge suitably, work the golf club through the sand and make a few minor adjustments to their stance. Not only is it not too difficult if you give greenside bunkers some practice, but once you are confident and comfortable with escaping from greenside bunkers, it offers the green light to attach more flags on the approach golf shots, which can lead to lower scores.The short bunker blast drives you insane, although it’s a fairly easy shot. However, the impulse to scoop the golf ball out rather than slide the club face under it can lead to a skulled shot that sours beautifully over the golf green. This can be eliminated by practicing explosive shots with a simple adjustment to the grip referred to as “the anti-skull grip”. First, you take your normal left-hand grip, and then wrap your right hand around the fingers of your left. You can’t flip the golf club upward with this hand-over-hand grip. Once you hit several golf shots this way, then you can return to your normal grip as you keep your left arm in check as done during practice. As you achieve this, watch your bunker shots really begin to take flight.
With short-sided sand shots, too many golf players make tentative swings that leave the golf ball in the sand, when the golf ball is in a bunker with the hole only a few tempting feet away. Actually, there are two effective methods to hit a short bunker shot. The first is to take twice as much sand and make a really aggressive golf swing. Instead of entering the sand two inches behind the golf ball, which is usually done on a normal sand shot, make it about four inches. The important factor to remember is to make an aggressive swing.
The more difficult, second method is to “pop shot”. With your hands and writs, lift the golf club abruptly. Imagine you’re throwing a blade with your right hand as you bury the clubhead into the sand directly behind the golf ball. As long as the golf club cuts into the sand several inches behind the golf ball, the golf ball will certainly pop out However, beware that the “pop shot” does take practice.
Finally, for more spin, you can rotate the golf clubface open about 45 degrees. This will gradually work your stance open usually until the club’s leading edge faces its target. You can use a long, sweeping golf swing from there to get that nip you need to place extra spin on the golf ball.
