BUNKER INSTRUCTION /Bunker play

[iacas]

Aim to hit a spot only 1-2" behind the ball. Too many people hit too far behind the ball in the sand.

[boogielicious]

 

1 hour ago, iceman777 said:

That Keegan video is gold

I posted the video below in my My Swing thread.

I got the following comments from Erik

Quote

I'd concentrate on two things:

• Spread your feet more, bend your knees more, and get a bit lower. This will expose more bounce. You don't need to or want to be so tall in the bunker.
• I like the soft arms in the follow through, but I don't love them rolling over each other. The arms should stay soft and even collapse slightly while the face stays pointed toward the sky. So… not the picture below.

They really helped. My next few shot on the course I focused on the pieces Erik suggested and got better results.

Post a video of your sand shots and you will improve much faster.

[vangator]

If I have a good lie in the bunker, I take a shallower AoA which will put more spin on the ball.  To put more spin on the ball, the face of the club must be making at least a little contact with the ball. Right?  Wrong? 

I think we've all occasionally heard a little click when the face does make contact with the ball (usually as it screams across the green).  When I do get spin, I typically don't hear the click, so can the spin be imparted with sand in between the face and the ball?

[dchoye]

3 minutes ago, vangator said:

If I have a good lie in the bunker, I take a shallower AoA which will put more spin on the ball.  To put more spin on the ball, the face of the club must be making at least a little contact with the ball. Right?  Wrong? 

I think we've all occasionally heard a little click when the face does make contact with the ball (usually as it screams across the green).  When I do get spin, I typically don't hear the click, so can the spin be imparted with sand in between the face and the ball?

if I get spin and ball stops dead usually by accident when my wedge gets to close to the ball . I notice little sand coming out.

I would think it would be easier putting spin  when condition is right. on a good lie where ball is not buried and on a upslope of the bunker wall will make easier to try.

If the ball is at the bottom of the bunker I would think its easier just to splash it out and take safe amount  of sand with the ball and let the ball roll out once it hits the green.

Edited November 20, 2015 by dchoye

[iacas]

35 minutes ago, vangator said:

I think we've all occasionally heard a little click when the face does make contact with the ball (usually as it screams across the green).  When I do get spin, I typically don't hear the click, so can the spin be imparted with sand in between the face and the ball?

Spin can and still is generated when you get sand between the clubface and the ball.

And again, 1-2" behind the ball is pretty standard for almost all bunker shots. Unless you're playing a chunk and run (2-3"), most players hit too far behind the ball. Dollar bill divots out of the bunker, not… Andre the Giant's footwear-sized divots, please.

[saevel25]

I think one thing I've gotten more use to is taking less sand on bunker shots. I used to be very steep and muscle the ball out. Now I am more finesse with bunker shots and it's given me more options. 

Of course this all depends on the bunkers you play out of. Some of the ones I've been in have about 6 inches of cheap sand. That stuff just eats momentum. 

[natureboy]

9 hours ago, Club Rat said:

Leading edge cuts through the sand, then the bounce lifts the club. A good swing in greenside bunkers is often related to a "thump" the sound of the bounce making contact to the firm surface below the sand.

Sand conditions vary at many courses, different technic's are required. This where the skill level of a player will adjust to conditions. A basic bunker player can use varying methods to achieve various results. 

 

10 hours ago, pganapathy said:

Hit the sand behind the ball and ensure you go underneath and the ball will come out on a cushion of sand.  Never hit the ball.  Don't get too steep though.  Shallow swing which will go a few inches below the ball.  Basically it should be the bottom of the arc in your swing

 

On 11/19/2015, 3:33:05, Mr. Desmond said:

I think they're all good ... I've used all of the vids posted here in the present or past.

It's just what feel or thought works for you.

 

I've been trying out the Cowen / 'linear' method a bit to improve my U/D chances. One thing I notice is that the bunker conditions I regulary see (especially the practice bunker) differ quite a bit from some of the nice loose sand in some of the videos. I often face a very compact / dense / moist / hard surface. I can do the Cowen / linear method effectively, but find that being so shallow in hard sand I am prone to blading the ball relative to my original method of cutting across the ball with a steeper AoA. The original method dependably gets the ball up, but takes more effort to carry a certain distance.

It may be useful to work with both methods or have an approach to blend some of the elements. Say you face hard sand conditions like I descibed maybe I could get a little steeper on the ball like Mike does in the other thread video for the plugged lie so the heel leading edge can get in the sand before the bounce has a chance to skip off / out of the sand. Or maybe I could cut across the target line just a bit with a still shallow setup to get the heel to dig first? So I agree with @Mr. Desmond that they're all good, but wanted to offer this perspective on a situation where one approach may be preferable to the other. If I ever find myself in fluffy sand, I'm definitely going with the shallow AoA Cowen / 'linear' style.

Edited November 21, 2015 by natureboy

[mvmac]

6 hours ago, saevel25 said:

I think one thing I've gotten more use to is taking less sand on bunker shots. I used to be very steep and muscle the ball out. Now I am more finesse with bunker shots and it's given me more options. 

Yeah the technique and feel is similar to hitting a pitch shot. Stance is wider and you have more knee flex but you're trying to do the same kind of stuff with the swing.

[collapse]

One method I sometimes use for green side bunkers is an axe chopping method.Take your club and treat it as an axe ,pretend you're going to chop a tree down at chest height hitting the tree with the leading edge of the club.Watch what you do with your wrists,they don't cock or flop around,they are firm with the hands leading the club edge through the strike of the "tree".Now just lower the club to sand level and really give it a smash.Keep your weight on the lead side and don't be afraid to let your body turn right through the blast so the belt buckle is facing the target.

[mvmac]

2 hours ago, collapse said:

One method I sometimes use for green side bunkers is an axe chopping method.Take your club and treat it as an axe ,pretend you're going to chop a tree down at chest height hitting the tree with the leading edge of the club.

I would generally avoid doing this. You want to be relatively shallow in the bunker, like a pitching swing. You don't see any good sand player using a chopping method. "Chopping" down is going to lead to a lot of inconsistency, with contact and distance control.

[collapse]

9 hours ago, mvmac said:

I would generally avoid doing this. You want to be relatively shallow in the bunker, like a pitching swing. You don't see any good sand player using a chopping method. "Chopping" down is going to lead to a lot of inconsistency, with contact and distance control.

I probably should have been clearer by saying the tree chopping motion is a horizontal  action and not vertical which would adapt itself to the golfing-like plane as one bends over to make a golf swing.But the core is the firm wrists with hands leading the club head.

[iacas]

3 hours ago, collapse said:

I probably should have been clearer by saying the tree chopping motion is a horizontal  action and not vertical which would adapt itself to the golfing-like plane as one bends over to make a golf swing.But the core is the firm wrists with hands leading the club head.

I disagree that you want firm wrists leading the clubhead.

For most bunker shots you want soft wrists, you want the hands even with, slightly ahead, or even slightly behind the clubhead at impact, and the clubhead passing very quickly. This exposes bounce/glide and lets you use speed to generate height and spin.

[collapse]

3 minutes ago, iacas said:

I disagree that you want firm wrists leading the clubhead.

For most bunker shots you want soft wrists, you want the hands even with, slightly ahead, or even slightly behind the clubhead at impact, and the clubhead passing very quickly. This exposes bounce/glide and lets you use speed to generate height and spin.

Ok...my suggestion was a go to fix if all else fails....I know it works because I do it.

[bm85]

On 11/19/2015, 12:44:09, dkolo said:

At the recommendation of people on this site, I tried the method taught be Pete Cowen that is much more reliant on engaging the bounce and I've found it easier and more reliable.

 

 

+1. All I can say is thanks. Had two bunker shots today, both got out, and one was actually good.

[collapse]

This guy is obviously a successful instructor with a technique that works,but using a special  "butterfly" grip with a right hand which doesn't look the same between the actual and demonstration shot makes things doubly confusing.

[dchoye]

I pay more attention to whether the ball is on an graded upslope or downslope in the sand than how buried the ball is.  I think that determines my technique a bit more 

Edited November 26, 2015 by dchoye

[DrvFrShow]

And you need to spend time in the practice bunker hitting shots. If your range has one, use it. It takes about 4 hours of practice time to become decent at being a good bunker player. 

 

I was in one of these next ones and said **** it and bailed out to the side, but if you really want to learn how to hit out of it, this is the way to do it.

 

 

Edited November 26, 2015 by DrvFrShow