Avoid this club when hitting 50-yard bunker shots, says Top 100 Teacher

Most newbie gamers seek for greenside bunker assist, however what about suggestions for hitting a 50-yard bunker shot that oftentimes leaves a golfer between golf equipment?

These kinds of bunker photographs aren’t usually practiced, so how on earth are you going to see optimistic outcomes in case you’re ever compelled to hit one throughout a spherical? Hitting and praying definitely isn’t one of the best gameplan.

So GOLF Top 100 Teacher Cameron McCormick has a tip for gamers who routinely seize a high-lofted wedge on 50-yard bunker photographs: (*100*) it!

According to McCormick, utilizing this club within the sand from this distance is a “round wrecker,” and can solely result in extra strokes and a better degree of frustration.

McCormick, who works with gamers like Jordan Spieth, presents his recommendation within the video beneath. Considering Spieth (a one-time Open Championship winner) is performing effectively at this 12 months’s match at Royal Liverpool — which has a number of the most deadly bunkers on the planet — solely goes to point out why the world-renowned instructor is aware of what he’s speaking about.

Want extra success on 50-yard bunker photographs? Do this.

When most newbie gamers have a 50-yard bunker shot, a typical result’s chunking it out after which hoping to pitch it as much as the inexperienced.

But why would you wish to take an additional stroke since you merely used the fallacious club?

McCormick says a participant should keep away from “riding the struggle bus” by selecting to hit their “most lofted club, your lob wedge.” He says the selection needs to be the pitching wedge as an alternative.

“We’re going to drop the lob wedge and we’re going to defer down to a pitching wedge,” he provides. “The motive we’re going to make use of a pitching wedge is [because] it creates a higher degree of certainty that we’ll have sufficient ball pace.

“Ball speed is the one factor that determines the carry distance the golf ball will have.”

Now that you just’ve clubbed as much as a pitching wedge for this 50-yard bunker shot, McCormick says to go about your routine as you usually would — digging in, making a steady base, and hitting about one-and-a-half inches behind the ball.

“What we need here is, we need enough ball speed to carry that bunker. And we’re going to accomplish this by hitting a regular bunker shot,” he says.

“We nonetheless construct a fort for our toes, we dig in for a pleasant steady base, after which we aren’t timid in any respect, [because] you’ll be able to’t be timid on this shot. You’ve bought to create quite a lot of clubhead pace.

McCormick reminds gamers to keep away from being timid on these photographs by demonstrating how an aggressive swing with the pitching wedge from a 50-yard bunker shot will outcome within the ideally suited distance.

“My 130-yard pitching wedge, in this case, exploding out of the bunker, is going to go about 50 yards.”

So as an alternative of hoping you hit the right shot together with your lob wedge from this distance, give your self a little bit extra club and keep aggressive. As the video above exhibits, the outcome will usually be precisely what you need.

Nick Dimengo

Golf.com Editor