Welcome to Play Smarta regular GOLF.com game improvement column that will help you become a smarter and better golfer.
I have played muni golf all my life. I was never a country club kid and even the courses I practiced on in high school were rough. Range of worn dimpled balls. Laying greens that looked like shag carpet. That was the norm.
These less than ideal conditions forced me to learn how to hit some shots that I otherwise wouldn’t have. Lobs off tight pants. Chips from divots. It runs through craters on the greens. You get the picture.
By the time I started working in golf and had access to better practice facilities, I had taught myself some useful shots. After all those years, though, one shot still eludes me: the short-sided bunker shot from hard sand.
Luckily for me, one of us 100 best teachersJoe Plecker, grew up a muni child himself. And when I approached him wanting to know more about how to properly execute this shot, he was quick to teach me his secrets.
An easy technique for an impossible shot
When I faced a short bunker shot from hard sand, I always felt sick to my stomach. I knew I was either going to slide the club to the back of the ball or I was going to overcorrect and catch a lot of sand and leave it in the bunker.
With hard sand, it’s important to get a steep angle of attack to get the clubhead into the sand and blast the ball out. But when you do, it can be easy to snag the leading edge and catch a lot of sand.
To properly execute the kick, Plecker suggests setting up in two parts. First, you want a setup that promotes a steep angle of attack. Second, you want to grip the club in a way that provides an open view of the club.
For the first element, Plecker says to position yourself with your upper body tilted TO the objective.
“That forward upper body position will help us maintain a very steep angle (of attack),” says Plecker.
After that, it’s time to put your hands in the grip. Plecker likes to see a very neutral lead hand grip for this one.
“I want to see your leading hand in a neutral position,” says Plecker. “Imagine that your left hand is pointing right down the upper grip line. That’s your thin position, which means it’s much easier to swing the club from there.”
From here, all you have to do is focus on twisting and getting the club on top. Don’t feel like you’re doing a full body twist.
“That’s the secret to hitting an elegant bunker shot,” says Plecker. “The first move is to transfer that club.”
If you do it right, the club will carve into the sand and lift the ball up and out of the bunker.
