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Sand Trap Tips And Tecniques

By Lee MacRae

Many golfers have a tremendous fear of sand traps and bunkers on the golf course. Let's take a look at some handy tips to improve your play from the bunkers.

Here's another piece of visual imagery to help you cut your ball out of sand: imagine that a thick piece of cord is dangling vertically, just behind your ball.Nnow, open your stance to help you swing from the outside in, then use the leading edge of your club to slice the cord were it touches the sand. Soon you'll find yourself opening the blade properly, cutting through the ball the way the pros do.

The longer bunker shot is one of the easiest shots to play and one of the most satisfying in the is entire game. Here are the six fundamentals of the bunker shot:

1. Choke down on the grip of the club to compensate for having to dig your feet into the sand to anchor your body.

2. Do not move the legs during a swing.

3. Take two or sometimes three extra clubs to make up for distance loss by the arms-and-hands-only swing. If you're within reach of the green, take as much club as you'll need for the ball to land near the hole. Because you're hitting down in to the back of the ball, the ball should have enough spin on it to stop quickly.

4. Play the ball in the middle of your stance so you can make contact before the bottom of your swing arc.

5. Always hit the ball first.

6. Don't ground your club. That's a two-stroke penalty.

Don't take digging and planting your feet for granted. Digging your feet into sand will give you a firm base with which to hit the shot. Have Also it will tell you what you're dealing with: how softer or course the sand is, how deep it is, whether there is a layer of hardpan just under the surface. But be careful when digging in, however. If you dig in it too deeply, and then fill in your footprints, you will be guilty of "building a stance&&, which is a breach of rule 13-3. The penalty is two strokes in stroke play or loss or hole in match play.

Once you have a feel for the basics of playing from sand, you can easily understand some of the finer points of bunker play, and you will find it easy to adapt your technique to different types of sand challenges and lies. Make your golf game more enjoyable with good sand play.

Improve your swing with a great golf swing trainer today!

Some Golf Ideas

Be sure to check the location of the ball with clubs aligned on the ground. Step away to check that you are positioning the ball properly. Ask someone to double-check your positioning. It is hard, without alignment tape or clubs, to visually gauge the proper placement of the ball.
...PGA of America

I can�t tell you how many people come to my lesson tee and say, �If I could just get rid of my baseball swing, then all my problems would be solved!� My initial thought is always: I wish you had a baseball swing, because it would help you play better golf.
...The Golf Channel

Mental Game Tip
Since I'm not a psychologist I will not try to get deeply into how the mind works during a game of golf -- who knows anyway? -- everybody's different smile But whether you call it Golf Psychology, or Sport Psychology, or The Mental Game, The Mental Side of Golf, Trying to Get into the Zone, whatever you call it, from my experience the mental side of the game of golf really boils down to something simple: The most important thing you can do mentally to give yourself the best possible chance of success is to focus your attention on what you want to have happen.
...PGA professional golf

Short Game Tip
The chip and run should be the workhorse of your short game. It is the most reliable shot around the green when you can't putt. I would estimate that at least 95% of my short game shots (from within 20 yards of the edge of the green) are played with a chip and run technique, and the other 5% is made up of putts from off the green, pitches, and bunker shots. Getting the ball on the ground and rolling as soon as possible greatly increases the chances of the ball's behavior being predictable. That is not to say that a chip and run is always very low to the ground; just as low as possible. A chip and run style shot can be played with the most lofted wedge in your bag, in which case some people might refer to the shot as a "pitch and run." In many cases where the average golfer tries to pitch the ball up in the air, the "risk vs. reward" and the uncontrollable nature of a pitch (especially from a marginal lie) make it a poor choice.
Short Game General Rules
--Putt whenever feasible (i.e., IF the ball will roll rather than bounce)
--Chip and run when you can't putt
--Pitch only when you have no choice
...PGA professional golf

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