Chipping Question

**ChipShot** · July 25, 2010

I kill myself when I get with in 10 yards of the green. I freak out and am worried I'm going to scald the ball and shoot it across the green and I end up quitting on my swing and hit a shot 2-3 feet or shorter. I am adding up way to many strokes in these situations and was wondering if anyone had any tips or tricks to practice to make some improvements in this area? Thanks in advance!

**Shripe** · July 25, 2010

+1, I'm still learning so I'm trying to figure this out as well... either too hard or barely anywhere.

**VolunteerGolfer** · July 25, 2010

Others better that me will reply, however this is what I do when I'm struggling with chipping. When I struggle I use one club for chipping. Usually my PW. I don't try to hit any fancy shots, I just try to chip and run. I keep the club low on the way back and on the way through, almost like a putting stroke. This helps me get back in the grove and hit other types of short game shots better as well.

**ryebread442** · July 25, 2010

I can relate to the fear of scalding the ball, especially in the sand. Try focusing on hitting down on the ball. You won't really have to worry about shooting it across the green on a scald since focusing on hitting down reduces the risk of lifting up. The only problem is that you are more prone to chunk it, exchanging one problem for another. If you are playing chip and run, the putting stroke advise VolunteerGolfer gave you is perfect, especially when you have a good amount of green to work with and no sand traps or obsticles in your way.

**TourSpoon** · July 25, 2010

Here are some keys...

Weight favors left side...hands ahead...always accelerate

**FenderStrat62** · July 25, 2010

Others better that me will reply, however this is what I do when I'm struggling with chipping. When I struggle I use one club for chipping. Usually my PW. I don't try to hit any fancy shots, I just try to chip and run. I keep the club low on the way back and on the way through, almost like a putting stroke. This helps me get back in the grove and hit other types of short game shots better as well.

What you just described is basically the way I chip. Not that I'm good.

But, you do have the best screen name on this entire forum, so I'm inclined to listen to you. ;)

**ChipShot** · July 25, 2010

Here are some keys...

Thanks for all the replys so far but the point Tourspoon made about always accelerating is my biggest issue. I am pretty sure I catch myself not accelerating through the ball and most of the time and I am infact decelerating during my swing in fear of over hitting. I need to be concious of this next time I play.

**injury** · July 25, 2010

Thanks for all the replys so far but the point Tourspoon made about always accelerating is my biggest issue. I am pretty sure I catch myself not accelerating through the ball and most of the time and I am infact decelerating during my swing in fear of over hitting. I need to be concious of this next time I play.

Phil's shortgame dvd focuses a bit in different points on taking the club back only 25% of what you think you need so you feel free to come through fast to get there without decelerating. 25% back 75% through.

**chilly** · July 25, 2010

Thanks for all the replys so far but the point Tourspoon made about always accelerating is my biggest issue. I am pretty sure I catch myself not accelerating through the ball and most of the time and I am infact decelerating during my swing in fear of over hitting. I need to be concious of this next time I play.

As stated, keep hands ahead, weight on left side, accelerate the club. As far as decelerating goes, I work on not taking the club too far back. You take it too far back and your body realizes this in the middle of the backswing and tries to slow it down on the way through, resulting in the decel.

This is pretty elementary, but really work on keeping your head down. Seems simple, but when I start chunking shots, I realize that I'll start peeking up right at contact, practice staring at the ball and keep staring at the ball after you hit the ball. I will swear that I'm not lifting my head, but then do this and immediately start making much better contact...and I also find that it usually helps me hit the ball more on line.

jerrywilkin · July 25, 2010

Greg normans tip helped my chipping. but it took some practice. He says you should try to hit the front of the ball;not the back. this forces you to hit down on it,& to play it back in your stance.

**Dragonsrock** · July 25, 2010

Here are some keys...

TourSpoon is spot on I have been getting lessons and this is exactly what the pro told me, my chipping is improving, but it still takes practice. TourSpoon's advice is good and its free :)

**Sherpat** · July 25, 2010

As luck would have it, I was looking at Srixon's pretty yellow balls yesterday ( take that however you want ) and just happened to watch a vid they posted of Jim Furyk giving a chipping lesson. It's in their "Blog" section at: http://blog.srixon.com/ (as of yesterday it was the top post, but if you read this in a few days it may have migrated down. If so, scroll down to the July 22 entry should you want to watch it.)

In a nutshell, this is what I took away from it:

1. Drop a ball 10 feet or so off the side of the green.

2. Take a club, any club.

3. Hold that club like it was your putter.

4. Take a putting stance. Grip down on the club as low as you need to achieve this, even onto the shaft if need be in longer irons. (This will stand the club up more than if you addressed it for a normal full swing, and allow for contact more on the toe so there is less chance of a fat strike.)

5. Put your weight on your left side.

6. Make a putting stroke.

7. See how far the ball goes.

Now do that again with all your other clubs. If you make the same stroke each club should go a different distance. Once you get that distance memorized, you'll know which club to grab on the course when you find yourself off the side of the green. If the pin is 25 feet away, grab the iron you know went 25 feet when you used a putting stroke with it. If the pin is tighter, take the appropriately shorter club.

So distilled down, it's:

Don't vary your stroke, vary the club. Make a slightly modified putting stroke, make the SAME stroke each time, and practice til you memorize how far each club goes when struck that way.

I understand Mr. Furyk's had a certain amount of success using this technique himself. I may just give it a shot.....

Either way, good luck and I hope you find a technique that works for you!

:)

**Shripe** · July 25, 2010

Thinking back to Tourspoon's advice as well as keeping my head down, that matches exactly what I just discovered last weekend at the Play Golf America event. After it was too busy to get someone to look at me in the full swing/range area, I moved down to chipping and the pro down there told me exactly those things. I just haven't had much time to work on those beyond that morning. :)

**CWHolland** · July 25, 2010

Chipping and putting have been the better part of my game here lately. I will go outside when I am bored with a 5 gallon bucket and my wedges. I will set the bucket at different distances and attempt hitting the bucket or putting the ball inside the bucket. This, I think will help in gauging your strokes. Repetition practice will improve just about anything. It also sounds like some of your problem may be the mental part of the game. Try not to think so much about blading the ball or hitting it fat. Just find a spot on the green where you want to land the ball on the green and hit it. I never chip at the flag stick, I usually find a spot on the green and run it at the stick.

**TourSpoon** · July 25, 2010

Thanks for all the replys so far but the point Tourspoon made about always accelerating is my biggest issue. I am pretty sure I catch myself not accelerating through the ball and most of the time and I am infact decelerating during my swing in fear of over hitting. I need to be concious of this next time I play.

If you don't have time to practice then make sure the next time you play that accelerating is your goal. Put less importance on everything else and accelerate. You will soon get the feel for it and start knocking down the pins. One more thing, if you hit past the pin and have a long putt for par, that is better than having to chip again because of a flub. You have to give yourself a chance.

**GaijinGolfer** · July 25, 2010

Play the ball back in your stance (just inside of your back foot) and open up your stance a bit. That will make you hit down on the ball, which makes it almost impossible to scald it.
I also use a putting stroke and try to use almost no wrist hinge.

**Zeph** · July 25, 2010

Same topic: http://thesandtrap.com/forum/threads...-hit-this-shot

My suggestions:
http://thesandtrap.com/forum/threads...l=1#post496102
http://thesandtrap.com/forum/threads...l=1#post496504

**danieldrieberg** · July 26, 2010

During the winter of time--(it gets cold and snowy in Wisconsin) I taught myself how to chip using a carpeted staircase. With 56* wedge and the ball about 3 feet from the first stair I would practice chipping to different risers. I learned trajectory control. Also directional control. What was interesting was the reaction of different balls on the amount of trajectory and spin. The harder (distance balls) they were the higher they would come off the club face.

Another great time to practice is on the tee while waiting. Chip from marker to marker using different techniques generating different spins and trajectories.

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