Wedge -- thin lies -- blading them -- help

[drglew]

To the OP: high pitch/flop from a really tight lie is a difficult shot, even for pro's, as there's almost no margin for error when you contact the ball. I too bladed way too many pitches with my low-bounce 60*. For me, i think blading was a subconscious reaction to all the fat/short pitches i also hit too often with that club due to digging. My solution was ditching the 60* for a mid-bounce 58*!
And i'd definitely agree with other posts that one way to avoid it is to take one's medicine and hit a different shot with a lower-lofted club--even if it means you can't go right at a flag (i.e. aiming around a bunker to a different part of the green). Even if it leaves you a 25-foot putt, that's better than chunking a pitch into a hazard, or blading it across the green--either way, you're still pitching/chipping and not putting.

[chef35ca]

Use a club like pw or 9i off a thin lie.

If your stuck & you need to carry something(greenside bunker is one i get stuck behind frequently) off a thin lie or divot i gouge my lw into the ground right at the back of the ball. It pops it up nice & soft. As long as you practice it,it's not a very tough shot. Distance control is not pristine, but on the green & putting is still alright.
I play it back in my stance a bit & favor my left for weight.

[McGolf-Doggie]

Thanks for all the great tips and suggestions. Looks like plenty of practice and some tweaking to be done.

I do make some of these but as we know, they can be catastrophic when you don't and I wanted to get the percentage of flubs down, as it was too high.

Two weeks ago I was faced with two in a row.
Longest drive of my few short years of golf, into greenside rough. Ball on a thin lie. Bladed over a tall green that's overhead and steep back to front sloping green.

Found the ball in some kind of in a sink hole resting on some leaves on the other side, which was also in a depression, all beneath feet level. That one I chopped at the back of the ball and it flew high enough to land and roll on the green. Putting rescued a bogey.

Being somewhat inexperienced I wasn't quite sure whether thin lies were regarded as easy or not. I almost thought they should be, since I've been a bit of a picker slider, with a tendency/temptation toward being a little handsy, but it sounds like that's kryptonite with a thin lie.

Now, I'm working on the thin lies in the back garden -- have plenty of bald spots in amongst grassy patches, weeds, roots and whatnot, under and near the bird feeder. Just like a real muni course!

I'll be working on using the body turn more, and hitting down more, and being less handsy, for starters. And some irons/PW where it makes sense.

Thanks again.

[WUTiger]

You have a LW with 4* bounce, and that's about as low as they go.

Sometimes, you just need to hit a cut-punch chip shot. Open the face a little, and make sure you hit the ball first. Take a shallow chipping stroke to minimize the chance the clubhead ricochets off the ground. It should hit, check up a little, and then release with smooth, rather short roll.

Played on one course last summer, and the low-point greens had lots of tight or ball-on-the-dirt lies around the edge. It was wet, and fungus from poor fairway drainage was hurting the turf. The pro suggested this shot. Not one you'll likely sink, but it'll give you an up-and-down.

[Zeph]

Find a wooden board, put your ball on it and practice chipping from that. If you can hit a high chip from a wooden board, you can hit it from any lie you'll face on the golf course.

[sean_miller]

Find a wooden board, put your ball on it and practice chipping from that. If you can hit a high chip from a wooden board, you can hit it from any lie you'll face on the golf course.

Best tip ever.

[iacas]

I skimmed these posts.

Bounce - even on hardpan - is still your friend. The club will still glide more than ricochet like it will when you expose the leading edge.

I can hit a flop shot off hardpan by hitting the ground behind the ball.

Nearly everyone I see try to "pinch" the ball off hardpan with the leading edge first either bounces it off, sticks it in the ground (they don't realize how soft the "hard" ground is), or they catch the ball on the downstroke and really hit a hot, thin one.

[Zeph]

Important not to stop the swing after the ball, but make sure you keep the speed of the clubhead going through it. If you glide the club under the ball, but don't follow through, or got the weight too far back, so the club almost starts ascending at impact, you'll be in trouble. Weight forward and hitting down is important no matter how you try to do this.

[McGolf-Doggie]

Thanks again. Lots to work on here.

Now I'm annoyed at the rain for softening my garden's hardpan spots.
But you know what, they're still hardpan no reason not to practice.

If I can find a wooden board, I'll try that too.

[saevel25]

Take it back low and keep it low. This was the tip of a lady pro, i think on the golf channel or for golf digets. Keep the clubhead low thruoghout. This works for me because it keeps me from trying to help the ball in the air.

[CalBoomer]

There is a great Phil Mickelson clip on this topic on YouTube. And he is indeed a master of these shots. His pointers for hitting a wedge pitch from a very thin lie: 1. A very slightly open club face. 2. Ball slightly forward in stance. 3. Slight forward press. 4. Be sure to hit down on ball with hands always ahead of the club face. Some of this is a bit counter-intuitive, but it really works. From my personal experience, the most important of the points is to keep the hands ahead of the clubface. I think that is the key to avoid blading the ball. I also try to take the club back low as someone previously pointed out. I used to dread these shots. Now they are no big deal. Thank you, Phil.

[HackerD]

I had that problem for a while. What works for me is trying to focus on "bouncing" the clubhead on the ground.

In Stan Utley's Art of the Short Game he describes this general technique for high pitch shots: Weight left, narrow stance, clubface and stance aimed at target (not open), hit just behind the ball, early release of the hinge. A lob wedge with 10-12* bounce will work fine. Club won't dig because of the bounce. This technique and others in Utley's book have helped my short game quite a bit.

For vary hard lies, you can open the clubface (it helps to have a wedge grind that gets the club closer to the ground when you open it up). Utley claims it will even work off pavement.