Just off the green for high cappers

[kilbyman]

What do you think as far as chips pitches, etc. do you think high cappers should use at about 20 yds in? I think I just get overwhelmed in these situations and need an easy to execute go to shot in these situations.

[rudygu]

Find a shot that's comfortable for you and use it as your stock shot around the green. Conventional wisdom is to keep the ball on the ground as long as possible, ie. putt whenever it's feasible and chip to a point about 1/3 of the way to the pin, letting the ball roll to the hole. Personally, I like to line up a little open to the target and open the club face up a little. I just hit a normal chip from this setup and the ball flies a little bit higher and rolls just a little less - just my preference. I'm comfortable with that shot and I use it unless I can't for some reason.

[Dad-2-3]

What do you think as far as chips pitches, etc. do you think high cappers should use at about 20 yds in? I think I just get overwhelmed in these situations and need an easy to execute go to shot in these situations.

I fall in the high index category, so I guess I qualify to answer this question.

As far as being overwhelmed this is exactly the reason for taking out the 60* going to only the 56* SW. At this point in my game the less decision making I have to do the better. My go to shot is the weight on front foot, ball in back of stance bump and run. I've chipped two of these in the last two rounds, one to save par and one to save bogey. No weight on front foot = automatic chunk. I can open my SW up since it only has 10 degrees of bounce for the short sided shot. The mistake I used to make is trying to get to cute and put it super close. In that instance I would duff it and be laying only 5-10 yards closer to the hole. I make sure to put it on the putting surface to at least give me a chance for par or bogey with the flat stick. I would much rather be putting from 20-30 feet than chipping agin. Short game takes mucho practice.

[senorchipotle]

take out that 56*, open the face with the ball just forward of the middle of your stance. bring the club straight back and straight through on the invisible line going from the ball to your target and don't let your forearms rotate, hit it like a sand shot. play it in the air 1/3 of the way and it'll roll on in.

[James_Black]

Chipping is something you have to get a "feel" for. Practice Practice Practice, and then find out what club you want to use.
I like hitting a 60* that flys most of the way to the hole and checks, others prefer bumping a PW. Whatever floats your boat really......

[saevel25]

20 yards an in, depends. If I have a bit of green to work with and if the fringe is cut nice i might putt it most of the time. If the fringe is bad or i am in the rough, and still a bit of green to work with i will use my 8 or 9 iron and just do a small chip and run. If there is something i need to carry, i will go with a higher lofted club. Thats basically the hierarchy of shots i go with. Keep the ball low as possible as much as possible. Its just a matter of knowing which club, its trajectory, its roll-out distance.

[burnabao]

Unless you need to go over something (hazard, thick grass etc.) then more often that not the percentage shot to play is to grip down a short/middle iron and just "putt". The loft will launch the ball and get it rolling, and then you can simply play the same shot with different clubs depending on how much air time vs. roll you need.

Not pretty, but gets the job done more often than chip/pitch/flop with a 60*/56* wedge (for people like me, anyway!).

[Jtjohns]

This is exactly what hurt me in my round yesterday. There were a couple of times when I was about 20yds from the green and tried to pitch it up with my 56, lets just say that I ended up behind the green chipping downhill..... There goes the par. I'm gonna work on chipping from this distance using putting stroke for the time being.

[Goowa]

From 20 or 30 yards out I have always had a good flop shot with my 60 ever since I started playing. Terrible form, flip my wrists, all wrong by text book standards, but I can hit it every time. I've working very hard on using my 56 or 52 to do a more traditional chip with more roll. I can do it all day long on our pitching range, but I end up not committing on the course and either blade the ball or chunk it due to indecision and deceleration.

I can easily tell that the low chip is going to be a better and more consistent shot in the long run, I just need to gain the confidence to trust it on the course.

From just off the green, my 8 iron is my go to club. Just pick a landing spot about 1/4 of the way to the hole, and putt the ball. I'll drop down to a wedge if the pin is close, but same putting motion.

[saevel25]

With chip and runs, i have the ball back in my stance, usually aball length off the inside of my back foot. I keep my hands near the inside of my right thigh. My stance is pretty short. What i try to do is just maintain that same shaft angle through the swing hitting down on the ball.

[Zeph]

Practice with everything from your most lofted wedge to your 6 iron or something like that. Being able to use different clubs can be useful for getting the right distance. This is something you have to practice to get the right feeling, you can't pull out an 8i first time on the course and expect it to work. If you practice with those clubs, you will notice how easy distance control can be.

[nuck81]

Unless I have rough to work with I always just use a choked 6I and use an all shoulders swing for a bump and run. With this type of shot all you have to worry about is distance and how hard to hit, it elimnates skulls, flyers, and bad contact. If I have rough or a hazard I use a higher lofted club and do the same thing, just swing harder, it bumps more and runs less. I used to use a SW exclusively but got tired of skulling it three hundred yards back to the tee box...

[pxc]

Some good advice in this thread, looking forward to putting some ideas into practice soon.

[sean_miller]

Practice with everything from your most lofted wedge to your 6 iron or something like that. Being able to use different clubs can be useful for getting the right distance. This is something you have to practice to get the right feeling, you can't pull out an 8i first time on the course and expect it to work. If you practice with those clubs, you will notice how easy distance control can be.

Bingo!!!!!

[Gordon McTavish]

I guess I'm qualified to respond here as a high Handicapper.

Personally, I'd rather use a 64* wedge from the fringe to a hole that is 20 yards away. I know the conventional wisdom is to get the ball rolling soon, I find that hitting high lobs close to a pin is great for one's confidence!

[chef35ca]

"Find a shot that's comfortable for you and use it as your stock shot around the green. Conventional wisdom is to keep the ball on the ground as long as possible, ie. putt whenever it's feasible and chip to a point about 1/3 of the way to the pin, letting the ball roll to the hole."

Rudygu has got it right.

It comes down to practice. I used to fly everything in but it was inconsistant. When it worked it was pretty cool, otherwise it left me with unrealistic chances. Recently i've started to embrace the running of every shot i can with my pw. It's so much easier to control.

It is good to have a selection of shots to fall back on. There are situations where a runner is going to really mess things up, but it's the easiest shot to execute.

[saevel25]

True, hitting a higher shot and having it hit soft and roll up close is satisfying, but i when i see a high handicapper try to pull this off i see them skull the ball across the green majority of the time. Number of times i use my lob wedge is about once ever round at most. Usually on a downhill lie if i need to try to hit a soft shot there, or if i am in a tight lie. Other than that sandwedge is my utility club around the green, unless i am on the fringe or just in the rough, then its my PW or 9 iron.

[Sanzabar]

The best advice I have always heard... "You can control the ball better on the ground." From then on, I have tried to get it on the ground as quick as possible. I tend to take my 8 iron and bump and run.

I often get full of myself and try and shoot for the flag and end up rolling way past. Bump and run is the easiest shot for me to control.