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How To Become A Great Shotmaker (Part II)

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Published: 08Nov2009
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This is the second of two articles on shotmaking—the key to dramatically cutting strokes from your golf handicap. The first article explained how to hit four key shots—a high draw, 100-yard knockdown, semi-buried bunker blast, and a chip with a hybrid. This article explains four more key shots—the thick rough pitch, 3-wood punch, mid-iron fade, and bump-and-run. These shots help trim strokes from your golf handicap.

All golfers want to become great shotmakers. That's because it takes your game to the next level. Good shotmakers magically turn three shots (or more) into two. But becoming a great shotmaker isn't easy. The secret is learning to hit certain key shots and practicing them until you've mastered them. These common but critical shots save you when in trouble. They're the kind that golfers often ask me for golf tips on. Master them and you can play with anybody.

Thick Rough Pitch

This shot helps you get up and down. The key to this pitch is cocking your wrists early in the swing and releasing them fully through impact, just like you're taught in golf lessons. The goal is to get out of the rough going in the right direction. Trying to do too much here hinders the shot. Think of it as if it were a semi-buried bunker blast. You want to get out in one.

To hit this shot, use a low-bounce iron or wedge. Play the ball back in your stance, open your feet slightly, and place your hands above the ball. Also, increase grip pressure slightly, which helps drive the clubface through the thick grass, and aim the clubface square to the target. Now, accelerate and hit down. Plan for an abbreviated finish and expect a lower ball flight with extra roll.

3-Wood Punch

Use this shot when the driver gets you in trouble. It gets you back on the fairway in good shape for the next shot. Align yourself parallel to the target. Position the ball slightly back from normal. And strengthen your left hand grip (right hand grip for left-handers), lessening your wrist cock and shortening your overall swing. Set the club head first, then the forward lean in the shaft toward the target. But be careful. The forward lean makes it look like the clubface is open.

Two key golf tips here are (1) take the club back inside the target line and (2) start hinging your wrists when the club gets about knee high. These moves steepen your swing significantly, helping you hit a low, punch shot.

Mid-iron Fade

Use the mid-iron fade when needing a high, soft-landing shot. Aim your body slightly left (right for left-handers) of target at address. Position the ball in its normal spot. And squeeze the grip of your left hand slightly (right for left-handers), delaying the release of your hands through impact. Also, open the clubface slightly to help you put cut spin on the shot.

The key to this shot is making sure the left arm (right for lefties) leads the right side of the body through impact, as I tell students in my golf lessons. So take the club back slightly on an outside-to-in path and hinge your wrists earlier than normal. This primes your swing to hit the fade.

Bump-And-Run

This shot is a great stroke saver when you're within a 100 yards of the green. The goal is to get the ball to bounce a couple of times short of the green, and then roll close to the hole. Use a hybrid, an 8-iron, a 9-iron, or a pitching wedge, but not a sand wedge. It puts too much spin on the ball. Expect the ball to pop up, hit the ground, and then run to the hole.

To hit this shot, take a slightly closed stance, play the ball back, lean the shaft forward slightly, and hinge your wrists. Maintain the wrist set to the finish. Pivot your chest toward the target as your arms swing through. Make a descending blow and swing in a shallow U-shaped arc, taking a small divot in front of the hole. At the finish, the club's toe points skyward

The eight shots described in these two articles are lifesavers. If you're serious about shaving strokes of your golf handicap, you'll learn them. Study golf tips on them. Take golf lessons on them. And practice them. Do whatever it takes to master them. Once mastered, they'll help take your game to the next level.

Jack Moorehouse is the author of the best-selling book "How To Break 80 And Shoot Like The Pros." He is NOT a golf pro, rather a working man that has helped thousands of golfers from all seven continents lower their handicap immediately. He has a free weekly newsletter with the latest golf tips, golf lessons and golf instruction.

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