Here's an option for golfers struggling with delicate wedge shots
The goal for any golfer is pretty simple: Put the ball into the hole in as few strokes as possible.
It shouldn't matter how the result is achieved, which is why I've always tried to think outside the box.
One of my biggest experiments came about 10 years ago when I lost all confidence with my wedge inside 60 yards.
Chunk. Skull. Blade. Airmail. Chunk.
Enough already.
After a brutal start to a round, I faced a 50-yard shot to the eighth hole on Cog Hill's No. 3 course. With no bunkers or water to deal with, I pulled out my hybrid and hit a bump-and-run shot to the green. Two putts later I walked off with a bogey and began using this shot from myriad distances.
My wedge game has drastically improved since, but I'll still pull out the hybrid from 10 to 20 yards off the green at times just to guarantee no more than 3 strokes.
For all you weekend warriors, I'd encourage you to try it as well. Just play the ball in the middle of your stance and take a putting stroke.
Now, remember: This advice is coming from a 12-handicapper whose chipping game has been all over the map. Cog Hill teaching pro Kevin Weeks and PGA Tour pro Kevin Streelman weren't overly enthusiastic when I asked them what they thought of this strategy.
Weeks wants us to think about why we end up 30 to 50 yards from the green in the first place. Oftentimes it's because we'll hit a 200-yard shot from 250 yards away. Maybe a 150-yard shot is better, leaving a full 100-yard wedge to the green instead of a delicate half-wedge.
"It doesn't make any sense to do something that puts you where you're not good," Weeks said. "It would be like Peyton Manning at quarterback and running a RPO offense. If you know you're not good from 20 to 50 out and you're 300 out on a par-5, don't pull out your 3-wood."
Streelman's advice is to develop a "generic, vanilla wedge shot."
Now, how do you do that? Well, pay attention because here comes some free advice from a two-time PGA Tour winner.
"Just get your 56-degree wedge, play it in the middle of your stance and line the shaft up dead vertical so it's pointing at your belly button," Streelman said. "You turn back and turn through the same distance. Take it back to 9 o'clock and bring through to 3 o'clock. Control the speed with your chest. ...
"The key is to keep the shaft vertical - 90 degrees at your belly button. Leaning the shaft forward means you'll chunk it; then you back out and you blade it. If the shaft is vertical, the bounce is exposed and you can control it with the body turn. ...
"You may feel your hands are too far back, but in reality they're not."
If you're still having difficulty, take a lesson or two. I finally did three years ago and it truly helped my wedge issues.
In the meantime, I see no reason why mid-handicappers can't incorporate the hybrid chip into their games.
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