It's inevitable... At some point during a round of golf you will be faced with a shot from a bunker around the green. For the casual golfer this is often one of the shots that you cringe at.
If you don't understand how to play these shots, anything can happen. The truth is though that playing a shot out of the sand around the green is one of the most forgiving in golf. This shot really isn't that difficult once you learn the basics.
Know the basics about playing a shot from the sand and your fears will disappear. There will be times when you are going to glad you ended up in the bunker rather than someplace else.
Here are the 4 free golf tips you need to know to be a successful bunker player.
1) You want to have stable footing in the sand. When you set up to take your shot wiggle you're a bit to get solid footing. Depending on the sand in the Bunker you can easily lose your balance or have your feet shift at that crucial moment. For the most part, your upper body is the only thing moving during your swing.
2) Because you have dug your feet into the sand a bit, you will need to choke down on your club. How far you will choke down on your club will be determined by how far your feet are burrowed into the sand.
3) You are going to open your stance so you want to aim left of your target. There is no exact science and the contour of the green will have some to do with how far left you will aim. The open stance and aiming left of your target will help promote a steep takeaway and downward impact that is necessary for most bunker shots.
4) This is the best part; you are not even trying to hit the golf ball. Instead you want to hit the about 2 inches or so behind the golf ball. It's a hard concept to grasp but when hitting bunker shots you don't actually hit the golf ball.
Take some time to practice these free golf tips and your bunker play is sure to improve.