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Golf Tips on How to Chip a Golf Ball ( from Deep Rough )
Tom Wilson
Follow these simple steps to making your chip shots roll a more more reliable distance more consistently.
Do you suffer from a sick feeling in you stomach when your ball settles down in the deep rough either greenside or within 100 yards?
A chip shot is necessary when you are a few yards from the putting green or surface. This shot is usually played with a low-lofted club in order to get the ball rolling on the green as quickly as possible.
Proper Golf Setup and Posture for this Shot, Follow this Procedure:
1. Select a club with low loft (usually anything from a 6 iron to a pitching wedge. The idea is to allow the ball to just carry onto the putting surface and roll the proper distance to the hole.
2. Select a target on the green to aim for ( this is usually a slight discoloration of the grass or some mark on the green ) and estimate where you would like the ball to stop.
3. Grip the club down towards the shaft, close to the end of the grip or wherever you feel comfortable choking down to. Typically the more you choke down the more control you will have but the shorter the distance the ball will roll.
4. Step close to the golf ball so that it is no more than a few inches from your feet.
5. Place most of your weight to your left side or left hip socket (your right side if you are left-handed).
6. Use a putting stroke to swing the club back and forth placing a descending blow on the back of the ball.
7. Rock the shoulders up and down by swinging the arms, while keeping the lower body steady and the wrists quiet. Tempo is most important. Do not rush the stroke, same distance back as through, just like putting.
Other Chipping Golf Setup Tips:
You should try to keep your hands in front of the ball so that the hands lead the ball into impact. Keep your wrists firm, especially the left one for right handers.
If you are in deep rough make this adjustment.
The deep grass can make the golfball behave unpredictably because the grass gets caught between the clubface and the ball. This will call the ball to either jump out of the grass with no backspin or loft so expect the flight of the ball to be lower than normal. Grip the club firmly so that the rough doesn't twist the club on the swing. Tip the club angle up so the toe is the only part touching the ground. This will minimize contact with the grass as much as possible. The best way to handle this shot is to place the ball as far back in your stance as possible and make a steeper angle of attack with the ball by hinging your wrists slightly but very quickly. The timing of this shot requires some practice.
Select the club that will the ball rolling on the green as quickly as possible.
When it is windy or you are faced with a downhill shot, or on fast greens, you should chip the ball instead of pitching it to better controll the distance.
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