Mis-hit chips can be one of the most frustrating flaws within the game and often come from our own over-eagerness to help the ball toward the target.
When this happens, it’s all too easy for the hands to become over-active within the action, forcing the club to flip past them through impact and deliver either the fateful thin or fat shot!
Ideally we’re looking for a more ‘big muscle’ led movement around the greens, with as passive a hand action as possible. This will allow for improved contact with the ball and greater distance control through more uniformed trajectory and spin rates, something almost impossible to judge when the hands control the shot and deliver flash speed through impact.
Try these four drills to help develop a more simple and repetitive chipping action that delivers consistent ball-turf contact, every time. With a little practice, you too will become a short game wizard and lower your scores in no time.
1. LEARN HOW TO ROCK IT
Using an alignment stick or club under the arms will help promote a bigger muscle, rocking style action that allows the hands to remain passive throughout and delivers improved ball-turf contact.
2. BE MORE UPRIGHT
Setting the shaft more upright at address, almost with the heel of the club up off the ground, will promote more of a putting-style, rocking action with less hand involvement.
3. LEFT ARM CHIP SHOTS
Hitting chip shots with just your left arm will encourage the left side to lead through impact and similarly allow the hands to lead the club as opposed to flipping at the ball.
4. GET PASSIVE HANDS
Rather than a natural release of the club working open-to-shut, exaggerate the opposite, hooding (closing) the clubface in the backswing and holding it open in the throughswing to promote more passive hands.
Andrew Jowett is the Head Golf Professional at The Gleneagles Hotel. For lessons, call Andrew on 01764 694343. Follow him on Twitter @andyj1504
Originally published on bunkered on March 18, 2013.
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