The Villages - February 2022 - 39

MARIA
BROOKS
DON'T LIFT
BALL WITH
WEDGES
Do you find yourself trying to help the ball up with your
1
2
wedges when you are close to the green? Are you trying to
" scoop " the ball up with your club or hands to lift it? One of two
consequences result from this. Either you have to scull the ball
across the green or get in worse trouble than you were before
the shot. Sound familiar? Whether you are chipping (the low and
rolling on the green shot) or pitching (the high, up and overshot
with little roll on the green), the idea is to get the ball onto the
green so you can putt. Secondly, you want to get the ball close
enough to the hole to be able to putt. The closer you are to the
green or the hole, the easier it is to get the ball closer to the hole.
Let me first start out by saying that there is no scooping in golf.
Remember that the club is lifting the ball and you are swinging
the club. The club face needs to contact the bottom half of the
ball and the angle of the face, or loft, lifts it; it doesn't need your
help. What we need is a descending blow to the ball.
When you are close to the green, you have a much shorter
swing at the ball. To help you get that descending blow
and contact the ball earlier, you should preset your impact
1
position by leaning on your forward leg and staying there during
your swing (left leg if you are right-handed).
To make solid contact on your chip shots, the club shaft
should be leaning forward at impact. Sweep the grass
under the ball while moving through the ball, keeping the club
face low and down the target line.
For pitching, you need to lengthen your swing as you
move farther from the hole. Remember to keep your
2
3
3
4
weight on the forward leg, even as you lengthen your back
swing. This allows you to make a steeper backswing to get your
descending blow to the ball.
Most importantly, is your follow through on the pitch. Your
follow through allows you to extend your arms, turn to
4
the target and accelerate the club head past impact. Don't be
afraid to pitch the ball past the hole. Most golfers come up very
short, which gives them a long putt. Remember, the higher the
ball goes, the less it rolls, so land it closer to the flagstick.
As a recap, there is no scooping in golf! Equally as important, a
descending blow makes the ball go up. I hope you have greater
success getting the ball onto the green and closer to the hole.
Until next time - keep it in the short grass.
MAGAZINE
39
The Villages - February 2022

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