Bunker shots are difficult for every level of golfer, but they're an essential skill to master. Especially for 80s shooters, who tend to bleed shots around the greens whenever they get in the sand.
The main problems most golfers have from the sand, as the legendary Butch Harmon explains here, are...
- They don't open the clubface enough
- They don't put their weight forward enough
- They don't hit the sand before the ball
- They use too much body action, and not enough wrists.
The latter two points are particularly important, and we discussed both on our recent episode of the Golf IQ podcast, which you can listen to below.
Hinge and stick
If you're chunking and thinning bunker shots, it may be because you're trying to force the club through with your arms and body.
The feeling you should be exploring, as teacher Lindy LaBauve explains it well in this article, is a hinge and unhinge in your wrists.
"There are very few shots in golf where you want the clubhead coming through impact before the handle, but this is one of them. The feeling you want is that you're unhinging your wrists and throwing the clubhead underneath the ball. That is what provides the added zip and spin to these shots...There's no need to create more power with your body—the unhinging and rehinging of the wrists will create all the speed you need to blast the ball out with spin."
Luke Donald talks about something very similar here.
By chasing a feeling of aggressively hinging and unhinging your wrists, you're creating enough speed that will allow the clubhead to enter the sand behind the ball, then release past your hands. Your wrists are giving the club the speed it needs to get through the sand, and the loft it needs to lift the ball high before landing soft.
So that's the thought: Hinge the club back fast, then try to stick it into the sand behind the ball.
You can listen to that episode (and subscribe) to the Golf IQ podcast below.