Chipping: the three shots that cover every lie
A low runner, a standard pitch and a high soft shot. On firm links turf the choice is in the ground, not in the loft.
On a links in a crosswind, the high floated wedge is the least reliable shot in the bag. Three chips cover almost everything you will face on a British course: the low runner, the standard pitch and the high soft shot for when there is genuinely no room. Choosing between them is a matter of reading the ground.
Two questions before you pick a club
How much green is there between you and the flag, and what is the ball sitting on? Plenty of green and a decent 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 firm seaside turf, add a third question: which way is the wind crossing? A ball that spends three seconds in the air on the coast is at the mercy of it.
The low runner, the default
An 8-iron or 9-iron, ball just back of centre, weight favouring the lead foot, and a stroke about the length of a putt with the hands slightly ahead. The ball comes out low, pitches a yard or two onto the green and runs to the hole. The clubhead never has to work under the ball, which is why it is the most forgiving shot available.
On winter greens and firm autumn surfaces it is also the only chip whose result stays predictable.
The standard pitch, around twenty yards
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: choose a landing spot, make a stroke long enough to reach it, and let the loft do its job instead of scooping.
The high soft shot, for when there is nothing to work with
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 ever having practised it.
The landing spot habit
Amateurs aim at the flag. Better players aim at a spot on the green the size of a dinner plate, look at it during the rehearsal, then hit it. Distance control improves with no technical change at all, because the brain finally has a target it can judge.
What to work on this week
- Three balls from the same spot on the chipping green, each with a different club. Watch the run change.
- Twenty low runners with an 8-iron before the lob wedge comes out of the bag.
- 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. Make it for a month and your up-and-down rate moves before your swing does.
