Chipping in summer: three shots for firm greens
A low runner, a standard pitch and a high soft shot. On firm sandbelt greens the choice is in the ground, not in the loft.
On sandbelt greens running fast in February, the high floated wedge is the least reliable shot you own. Three chips cover almost everything an Australian course throws at you: the low runner, the standard pitch and the high soft shot for when there is genuinely no room.
Two questions before you choose a club
How much green is there between you and the flag, and what is the ball sitting on? Plenty of green and a clean lie means the ball should roll. Almost no green, or a bunker in the way, means it has to fly. The club follows from the answers rather than from habit.
On couch grass in summer the ball sits up and the club slides; on kikuyu it grabs. Same shot, different club, and the only way to know is to look.
The low runner, your default
An 8-iron or 9-iron, ball just back of centre, weight favouring the front foot, a stroke about the length of a putt with the hands slightly ahead. The ball comes out low, pitches a metre or two onto the green and runs to the hole. The clubhead never has to work under the ball, which is why it forgives the most.
The standard pitch, around twenty metres
Pitching wedge or 52 degrees, ball in the middle, arms and body turning together. The ball carries half the distance and runs the rest. The usual fault is deceleration: pick a landing spot, make a stroke long enough to reach it, and let the loft do the work.
The high soft shot, for no room at all
Short-sided, bunker to carry, green falling away: open the face of a 56 or 60 degree wedge, widen the stance slightly and swing along the body line with the face staying open. It is the least forgiving shot in the bag and the one most often attempted without rehearsal.
The landing-spot habit
Amateurs aim at the flag. Better players aim at a dinner-plate spot on the green, look at it during the practice swing, then hit it. Distance control improves with no technical change, because the brain finally has a target it can judge.
Firm greens change the maths
Through summer on the sandbelt, and on any well-drained course in a dry spell, the first bounce goes further than you expect. Move your landing spot closer to you rather than trying to spin the ball to a stop, which is a skill that needs a soft green and a fresh wedge to work at all.
What to work on this week
- Three balls from the same spot with three different clubs. Watch the run change.
- Twenty low runners with an 8-iron before the lob wedge comes out.
- Name your landing spot out loud before every chip for a full round.
Two of these three shots need no new technique, only the decision to take less loft than instinct suggests.
