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Tips for hitting from fairway bunker? |
I was totally messed up by fairway bunkers yesterday, hitting the ball only a few feet into the next fairway bunker. What clubs should I use with 200 yards left, and what should I focus on? My score yesterday was 109. Is using a wood or a long iron too risky at my level even if the ball is not burried in sand? 109, you are well on your way to breaking 100 in the next round or 3, if you haven't already. Point being you are a fair to good club swinger who is improving. Most of the above answers are good, but just getting it out in play will not teach you how to hit a long bunker shot which you are going to need as your game improves. If the smart play is to punch it out because of the situation like the lip, trees, lake etc. then do it, but you still need to hit a few long ones because this won't be the last time you are in one. Greg V had most of the components right, but he got confused on ball placement. In order to hit the ball first you have to put it a little BACK in your stance (and I mean a little) so you strike the ball first not the sand. The idea being to slightly hit it into the sand which repells the ball out or get it out clean. In a green side bunker you play the ball a little forward so you strike the sand first which explodes under the ball and forces it out. I don't know about the feet digging in part, but I always waggle my feet in so as not to loose my footing, which as you know if you ever played in sneakers on wet grass, can really ruin a shot. You don't necessarily have to go for the green either. If you think you can make it, or, if you don't you won't leave a hard chip (like another bunker shot) then go for it, that's the fun of the game.. My guess if you were 200 out it was your 2nd shot on a par 4 or 5. To make par, hit it to a distance you are confident from, say 100yds. So say you hit your wedge 100yds.usually, in this bunker trap you would hit a 9 or 8 to make it go 100 yds because you loose distance from the sand which is not as solid as the fairway. Chip up and hopefully make the putt for par. Source(s): Years of super sandies It all depends on the lie. It also depends on what the situation is. In general though, I would use a sand wedge, grip it and rip it. Just put the ball in play and lay up. That would be your best shot. Hit a 6 or 7 iron and hit it clean even if you come up short of the green. A bogey is better than a double bogey Determine which club will safely clear the bunker then drop two clubs, i.e. if you determine that a 5 iron will clear the bunker, use a 7 iron. Above all, keep your lower body still as you strike the ball. It is most important to a high handicapper to get the ball out and back in play. If you are 200+ yards away, try for good direction, don't worry about the distance. Hitting from a fairway bunker is different from hitting out of a greenside bunker. In a greenside bunker, you want to dig your feet into the sand a little bit because you want the bottom of your swing arc to be BELOW the sand surface (that's why you "splash" the ball out on a cushion of sand). However, in a fairway bunker, you should NOT dig your feet in -- keep them on the surface of the sand because you want the bottom of your swing arc to be the same as if hitting off the fairway. From a fairway bunker you want to "pick" the ball off the sand, not splash it out. You have to be sure you hit the ball first and not the sand, so play the ball a little more forward in your stance off the heel of your front foot. Stand a little taller as well -- don't flex your knees too much and don't try to "scoop" the ball out. As for the club you should use, the most important thing is to make sure you can clear the lip of the bunker. If you have 200 yards left and it's a bunker with no lip, you should be able to hit a long iron or a wood. If the bunker has a lip, use a club with enough loft to clear the lip and don't worry about the distance -- the goal is to get out of the bunker -- if you have to give up distance to clear the lip, that's your penalty for being in the bunker in the first place. If you want to get an idea of how high a club will hit the ball, drop the club on the ground with the clubface pointing up and with the shaft pointing toward your target. Step on the face of the club gently until it lifts the shaft off the ground as high as it will go. The angle of the shaft pointing upward is a good estimate of the angle that particular club will launch the ball...this trick works well for shots over trees as well! use a wood or a low iron or u can just pop it out with a sw |
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