Generating backspin

[Urrrk]

So I think I blundered onto something the other day, so I thought I would share it and see if I know how I did this.

So I'm playing a 60 degree Vokey Lob wedge, and usually I bloop it up sky high before it lands. But the other day I opened my stance a little and tried to slide the open face under the ball more. I got a much lower ball flight, which I thought for sure was going to bounce of the green, but when it hit, it checked hard and didn't go any further than where it landed. Then I did it again two holes later. It's not like I rolled it back to the hole, but...

So my question is, does this sound like the right way to put a lot of backspin on the ball? I'm a bit freaked out by how low the trajectory was. They never show the ball flight in the magazines.

[Mizzy57]

You actually want to sharply strike down on the ball to generate spin. Think of chopping at a ping pong ball on the table. People call this pinching the ball (between the turf and the club). This pinching works on a solid surface, such as the fairway. Less or no spin out of the rough because 1. the ball usually isn't on solid ground and there's space below the ball, no pinching effect, 2. grass gets between the ball and grooves, filling them and not allowing them to bite the cover.

Of course you need 2 other things besides the proper pinching swing- soft high spin ball, and receptive greens.

Not sure how you got a low trajectory ball from your description (open clubface, open stance, sliding under the ball). Sounds like a flop shot which actually is the opposite, a very high, short soft landing shot.

[Zeph]

The ball never gets pinched, it is lifted immediately by the clubface. To create backspin you need clubhead speed, clean clubface and a solid, downward strike. The Pros can create a lot of backspin from the rough also, because they got these elements in their swing.

[cirem22]

perhaps this question is for another thread but what is the general idea on the different types of greens and back spin? For example does a softer green tend to check much easier than a hard green?

[k1993]

i get good backspin by placing the ball further back in my stance but focus on hitting down in front of the ball. it works great!