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Tips For Sand Trap Play

By Lee MacRae

Are you afraid of sand bunkers on the golf course? Do you panic when you see one near where you need your ball to land? Follow along as we detail some tips and tricks to make sand play much easier for you.

There are occasions when it's a good idea to putt out of a bunker, or use the "Texas wedge". The bunker should have firm sand and little or no lip, and there should be a smooth surface between the ball and the edge of the bunker. Address the ball as you would a putt, with the ball in the center of your stance. Swing with the arms and shoulders, but keep the wrists firm and the rest of your body, especially your head, absolutely still. The key is to make solid contact. Be careful not to ground the putter. If you do, you will be penalized.

In general, a sand shot should be hit with a sand wedge, with both the stance and the clubface opened wide. The idea is to hit the sand and let it carry the ball out of the bunker. You should aim to make contact with the sand about two inches behind the ball and hit under and through. An important point here; with few exceptions, you should make a full fall through.

Ask any professional golfer the toughest shot in golf and he'll say the 60 yard sand shot. Even the top players have trouble deciding whether this calls for an explosion shot or a normal wedge shot. Fortunately, we average players don't have to make that decision. The 60 yard explosion just isn't in our bags. So we'll make do with the normal wedge shot. Stand squarely, with the ball in the middle of your stance. As with the long bunker shot, you should make contact with the ball first, to remain as steady as possible for as long as possible. As this requires you to swing with only your hands and arms, you'll want to take a club or two more than usual [but bear in mind that playing the ball farther back than normal will deloft the clubface slightly]. For anything up to 75 yards, the average players to use a pitching wedge hit with a three quarters swing.

Knowing the basic techniques of bunker sand play and understanding the subtleties of the various problems you can encounter will actually lead you to even enjoy the play from a sand bunker. I'm sure these tips will help you to enjoy your next round of golf.

About the author

Lee MacRae runs several online stores where you can find a great beginners golf training aid or a great golf iron today!

Quick Golf Ideas

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