Chipping

When chipping or pitching, as in long putting, distance is more important than accuracy. This seems to be a concept that most golfers do not readily understand. Standing next to the ball having practice swings while watching the ground may give you a feel of swing path and perhaps a feel of how you want to make contact but it won’t tell you too much about how far the ball will go.

If you are having trouble with your distance when chipping and pitching try this on a good practice green. Let us start with a simple 7 iron chip and run.

1. (assuming you are right handed) take a ball in your right hand and look at the hole.
2. Visualise the shot you want to make and pick out the spot you have chosen to land the ball on from where you then expect it will run to the hole.
3. With a simple underarm motion throw the ball, trying to land it on the spot you have picked out. Keep doing it until you have some repetitive success in getting the ball to roll to the hole. There should be no ‘thinking’ going on. Let your eyes tell your arm how hard to throw it. It is, or will develop into, an instinctive action.
4. Now take the club and, with both hands on the grip, have some practice swings while looking at the spot where you want to land the ball. Try to establish the same feeling you had when throwing the ball.
5. Now look at the ball and hit the shot using the ‘feeling’ rather than any thought process. The shot should be hit reasonably quickly and the only conscious thought should be ‘to see the club hit the ball.’ Don’t worry too much about how to stand etc. Aim the clubface at the target and let instinct dictate how you stand.

The same process is used for all basic chip and pitch shots. The key is to work with feelings rather than conscious thoughts. If you do not have a practice area with a proper putting surface to chip to simply work on landing the ball where you want to with all clubs. Place something on the ground to aim at, a bucket is good, and try to land the ball on the target from different distances with all clubs from 5 iron to lob wedge. If you don’t have a lob wedge give serious thought to purchasing one.