Help with bunker shots.

[prutkows]

How do you play from a bunker with compacted sand?

[microcrayfish]

A good player told me to just take less sand when it's compacted, seems to work pretty well, you just have to be accurate enough not to thin the ball.

[alf174]

Compacted doesn't even describe the bunkers at the less expensive courses near me; basically they have dead pan for bunkers so you learn to just pick it as clean as possible but its very easy to skull it.

[prutkows]

A good player told me to just take less sand when it's compacted, seems to work pretty well, you just have to be accurate enough not to thin the ball.

Compacted doesn't even describe the bunkers at the less expensive courses near me; basically they have dead pan for bunkers so you learn to just pick it as clean as possible but its very easy to skull it.

So is it safe to play it something like a fairway chip shot but open up the face a bit (leave a divot in front of the ball)? Or should I be trying to pick it clean like a fairway bunker shot?

Everytime I'm on a course with compacted bunkers i either forget that i need to take some time to practice out of them or i'm playing a round that doesnt allow me to take practice shots.

[alf174]

For me, there is nothing safe about it . Its hard not to at least scuff the deadpan to get under it.

Green side, I don't open the face more than just a smidge and
Fairway I try to sweep/pick it clean (say with a hybrid) because the "reward" for hitting thin/skulling the shot it not as bad as the green side.

[mdvaldosta]

On fairway bunkers play it the same. If anything, it's easier to hit out of them. For greenside, that's another story. You can't open face up like normal or you'll bounce off the hard sand and skull it. Gotta open the face up only a little and come in steeper so that you can dig a bit more. Divot will still be shallower but you'll get under the ball this way.

[lumpuckeroo]

For me, there is nothing safe about it

I'm with alf on this one, one other thing, I will not use my SW and use my GW instead, it has less bounce and less chance of "bouncing" off the sand and blading the ball. If you don't carry a GW a PW or 9 iron will also work.