Many amateurs spend hours hitting 4-irons and 5-irons on the range, but don’t practice their chipping and putting. As you’ll soon discover, that’s like getting ready for a test but only reading half the textbook. Follow some of the lessons and drills in this guide for chipping and putting, and you’ll see a big improvement in your scores.
Chipping
Chip shots come in different varieties and happen close to the green, usually within 30 yards. You can play a chip shot with any club from a 5-iron to a sand wedge, depending on conditions.
Bump and Run
For a bump and run chip shot, you’ll be using a lower-lofted club like an 8-, 7-, or 6-iron. For a chip shot around the green, you need to have an open stance with your feet very close together. Most of your weight should be on your front (left) foot, and your hands should be about 3 inches ahead of the ball at setup. Keeping your hands ahead helps you make the crisp, downward blow you need to hit this shot.
Here’s the stance for the bump and run chip shot. The ball is back in my stance. My knees are flexed, and my hands are forward.
I’m playing the ball back in my stance, with most of my weight on my front foot.
I take just long enough of a backswing to give my shot power. Anything bigger might make me have to decelerate through the hitting zone, which would cause a fat shot.
I strike a crisp, downward blow, hitting the ground and ball at the same time. I’m keeping my wrists firm throughout the shot, like a putt. I finish the shot, sweeping through the hitting area and following through. Notice how firm my wrists have stayed.
Flop Shot
On a flop shot, my stance is almost identical to the one I use for a bump-and-run shot. My feet are close together, and my stance is a little more open than for the bump and run. But I play the ball more forward (toward the target) in my stance—even more forward than I would on a regular iron shot. Opening my stance and clubface makes the sand wedge I have in my hands play with more loft than it usually would, which means I’ll be able to hit it higher and make it land without rolling very much. The swing is similar, with a little cock of the wrists. It’s okay to take a little more of a divot, because you need to swing a little bit harder on this kind of shot.
To hit the flop shot, the ball must be resting on a cushion of grass. This shot is much easier to hit from the rough than from a very closely cut fairway. You need to be able to get the club under the ball to pop it up.
Putting
Getting comfortable over the ball is the most important part of putting. I’ll give you some tips about the standard stance and grip to use, but feel free to make some adjustments. The only hard and fast rule for setting up over a putt is to make sure that you are looking down directly over the ball. If your eyes are in front or behind the ball, your depth perception will be warped, and you’ll struggle with both your aim and distance control.
Your Putting Grip
Most players grip the putter in one of two ways—a modified overlapping grip, or a left-hand low grip (cross-handed). Your hands should feel like one unit.
Some players have trouble keeping their left wrist steady through the putting stroke. If your left, or lead, hand isn’t still at impact, the putterhead will strike the ball at an angle, sending it off target. If your lead wrist bends as you hit the ball, you should consider trying to putt cross-handed.
Many players putt with a version of the grip they use on full shots—and they either link the index finger of their left hand to the pinkie of their right hand, or overlap the left index finger over the right pinkie.
I use a left-hand low grip (cross-handed) for my putts. It’s the opposite of a regular grip you would use for a shot with an iron. My left hand is low on the grip, and my right hand is high. The pinkie finger on my left hand is interlocked with the index finger on my right.
Your Putting Stance
After you’ve decided on a grip, just keep in mind what I said about keeping your eyes directly over the ball. You should set up with the ball in line with your belt buckle and nose, as I have in the following photo. Some people like to get into a little bit of a crouch, and others putt from a more upright stance. Decide what’s comfortable for you, but remember that you need to be able to move your arms freely.
In the putting stance, make sure that you’re looking directly down at the ball. Feet are shoulder-width apart.
When you’re getting ready to stroke your putt, think about a pendulum on a grandfather clock. The closer you can come to taking your putter straight back from the ball and swinging it straight through on a line, the better chance your putt will go where you direct it.
Your shoulders should rock slightly to bring the putter back. Don’t just use your arms. It’s a more consistent way to make a stroke.
Rock your shoulders through the stroke, and let the putter follow on a line toward the target. Notice how the hands haven’t twisted or flipped.
A shot of a nice and firm left wrist. Your head should stay in the same position throughout the stroke.
Practice these chipping and putting techniques and your golf game will become that much more awesome! Have fun, and happy golfing!
From The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Golf, Second Edition, by Michelle McGann, LPGA tour member, and Matthew Rudy, Golf Digest
