Do you struggle with chipping? Do you feel like you have no problem getting around the green but then once you are there you feel some anxiety about the upcoming shot?  You are not alone with that feeling!  I have given many lessons where the player says to me “I can’t get the ball on the green close to the hole!” In this article, I am going to get you set up for success so when you go to hit the shot you are in a perfect position to succeed.

Setup

When you are setting up to the ball there are a couple of key factors, the first one is choking down on the club.  What this does for you is make it easier to control where the club bottoms out both in terms of the depth the club impacts the ground as well as how far forward the club bottoms out in relation to the ball. 

The second setup key is getting both the feet and the chest pointing open to the target line.  This means for the right-handed golfer the feet and the chest point left of the target line.  What this will do for you is make it easier to get the club to bottom out in the correct position in relation to the ball.  It also makes it easier to have a path, which makes it easier to hit the proper shot.

The last setup key is ball position.  I would like the ball position to be in the middle of the stance for a standard chip shot.

Swing

The ideal swing motion for a chip shot is simple and could produce consistent results when executed properly.  There are 3 keys to an ideal swing motion.  The first key is getting the clubhead to swing back on the shaft line in the backswing.  This helps to get the club to bottom out in the correct place and also gets the direction the club is traveling down the target line.

The second key is making sure that the clubhead, shaft, and hands are all in a straight line at impact.  This does a couple of things for you, first it helps you deliver a consistent loft into the ball.  By having the club head, the shaft, and the hands in a line it will produce a consistent height in which the ball flies and will lead to a consistent amount of run out, making it easier for you to judge how far you have to fly it.  The other thing having this position helps with is getting the club to interact with the turf correctly.  When hitting a chip shot it is important for the bounce of the club to interact with the turf, this means the club is less likely to dig into the ground and more likely to glide along the top of the turf.  The nice thing about the club interacting with turf in this fashion is it gives you a larger margin for error.

The last key is having the clubface maintaining the loft of the club after impact.  There are countless photos of great short game players and after impact, they almost all finish with the club in the same position.  The lead arm is bent, the lead wrist is bent, and the clubface is pointing upward toward the sky.  This ensures the club is releasing correctly and is swinging in the correct circle. 

With the keys that I have highlighted above you should be well on your way to hitting more efficient chip shots and lead to lower scores!

Give It A Try!!