Chip and Run

Hi

At the moment my chipping is causing me huge problems as i cant get the ball to react on the green the same way twice in a row. It seems that i come into the ball too steep on chip shots even with a lower lofted club such as an eight iron because the ball sets off on a low trajectory and then sometimes checks and sometimes doesnt or it can spin a little bit left or right but enough to make my next putt a bit tricky.

All i want is a technique that allows my to play a simple chip that will run after landing without check but gets a bit of height so i dont have to run the ball through the very wet fringes where the ball may stop or skid on. I already know how to check the ball up on the greens but i want to be able to play a reliable chip shot.

Im a 5 handicapper so my short game needs to be reasonably good.

Cheers

5 hdcp, ok. You must hit a ton of greens.

I would start with changing your focus from the hole to the landing spot of your chip.

Read my chipping drill first.
http://mysite.verizon.net/gregjwillis/LESSON5.htm

Here it talks about what club to hit the right length in the air. The roll will take care of it's self.

But you said you have inconsistant restults on the roll. So I suspect you are using a lot of wrist-flip in this shot. You have to remove the wrists from this type of chip. Only introduce the hands/wrists when you have to use a sw/lw to get the ball up quickly and stop it short. Otherwise, the putting style of stroke with the ball in the back portion of the stance will increase your reliability to what the ball does when it lands.

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My putting is very good so i get anyway with bad chips sometimes but not under pressure.

I tried the putting stroke style chip and was catching it a bit thin but im going to carry on trying it and see want happens. Thanks anyway

hi
do you use one club mostly for chipping or do you use a number off clubs.
cheers
bill

I use different clubs depending how much green i have to work with. I try to land the ball a couple of feet on the green and let it roll to the hole.

hi
try chipping like you putt, that the way i do it and Dave Pelz talks about chipping using your putting swing and having the right club. the way Pelz says to do it is use the club that will put the ball a few feet onto the green like your doing and then judge by how much roll is left and what club you need to use to give you that roll.
i find using the putting swing i don't quit on the ball like i do with my normal swing.
hope this helps
bill

I make most of my chips these days with my gap wedge. If I want it to roll more I play it further back and deloft it, for more spin I play it forward. This way I can get a great feel for the club, It's as if I am making an underhand throw to the hole with my right hand. The main skill is to stop the wrists from collapsing through the shot.

hi Brian
i think there is two trains of thought, one like you and using one club and working the face to give you the shot you want and there is using diffrent clubs and keeping the same swing the way i like to do it. think its about 50/50 as to whats best but one thing you do need with both is to work on that part of your game over and over. i know you put in a lot of work on your short game last year and it showed.
do you ever use the putting swing to chip with using your gap wedge.
cheers
bill

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Hi Bill,

I used to used to use a putting style chip but now use a bit of body rotation almost like a mini pitch. It is important with this style to keep good connection between the arms and shoulders. It's hard to put into words but I feel as if I am tossing the ball towards the hole.

hi Brian
I'm forgetting you use a open to square and to closed swing and thats why you will have a bit of body rotation. i do understand the sort of feeling you feel in your hand and fingers with that kind of shot. its all about felling the shot and i would imaging you have soft hand when playing that sort of shot.
cheers
bill

Bill,
Yes that's right. When I used a putting chip the swing thought that I liked was to keep the back of my left hand pointing at the target for as long as possible.

I couldn't agree with you more Greg, it never fails to amaze me why so many players ( mostly higher handicap players ) grab a sand wedge for chip shots when the shot warrants a pitch and run.
A prime example of this occured during my round on Sunday, our fourth hole was playing short ( 493 yards, par 5 ) downwind. After a solid drive and a #3 hybrid I was four paces off the green, a fairly simple chip to a back flag. My club of choice was a 6 iron, I played it in the centre of my stance, picked my spot and line and stroked it like a putt, no wrist break.
The result was a three foot putt for birdie, a playing partner has a similar shot and used a 56 wedge, played the ball up in the stance, flipped his wrists at the ball and nailed a skulled shot well over the green.
The chip and run shot is a simple shot and without a doubt could be one of the best stroke savers in your game. There is nothing complicated about it, a few sessions around the practice green on a regular basis and players ( who don't use this shot ) would benefit from it a great deal.

Great discussion! I like to use more of a putting style from around the green, usually with a 9i or 8i. I set up with 80% of my weight on the front foot and a little lean left, almost a straight right leg. Find it easy to chip that way although its probably a little odd!

I find if I need a higher or longer shot I can make a short pitch type shot with the body rotation as Brian says - also use this for low bump and runs into greens without any traps at the front - from say 140 yards out a bump and run with a 6i under the wind

A good tip for chipping is to pick out a suitable landing spot for the ball, select the best club to give you the correct amount of roll from there to the hole taking account of slope, then pitch the ball to that spot and not the hole! I see many people who chip the ball at the hole and wonder why they leave the ball way past.

I would guess that is the way 99.99% of coaches teach and the majority of people play, it's certainly the prevailing view in this post; so to rekindle the discussion I'd like to make an alternative suggestion

How many people on here have a "go to" club? judging by the posts I've read since I've been a member quite a large number.

So if you have "go to" club for your long game why not have one around the green? One you have confidence in, one that you can work a little, achieving different results.

I see as many "chip & rollers" agonise over which club will achieve the "correct" proportion of air to roll and then duff the chip as I have seen people thin their sand iron.

As most of you know I'm a high handicapper but the days when I have 27,28, 29 ppr or have a streak of single putts ( 7 in a row is my record) are the days when I exclusively use the sand iron around the green - with 2 GIR per round I use it a lot

I've lost track of the number of times that I've been told "You shouldn't do that, I've always played with different clubs around the green because that's what my pro has said to do" by people whose short game is far inferior to mine.

To be fair I've also had my arse whipped by people who use virtually every club in the bag around the green. The point is imo that there is no single correct way to play this game.

Remembering Einstein's definition of insanity, then perhaps anyone who has always played the way their pro has taught but whose short game still lets them down should try and find themself a "go to" club.

As it happens I'm now reintroducing a putting chip into my short game for the odd occasion that I "just don't fancy" the sand iron but even with this I'm going to stick to a single (8I) club for the shot - for a bear of very brain its just simpler that way.

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