Sparta Golf Society Golf School

	Sparta Golf Society
The Golfing Society of the Departments for Communities & Local Government and Transport

Golf School

Here you can get some tips to help you improve your game

Sand Play

Short bunker shot
During the short sand shot it is important to remember some key points:-

Stance – open your stance. The line of your feet should be at an angle of up to 45⁰ to the pin.

The ball should be towards your back foot.

Club hits sand - Sand hits ball - Ball is lifted from the bunker. Therefore, your target is not the ball. Your target is actually a spot in the sand between 1.5 and 3 inches behind the ball.

Swing smooth, with even tempo.

Swing on the line to the pin

Swing slightly steeper toward the sand. This helps the club to get fully under the ball.

Follow through

Long bunker shot
Facing a long greenside bunker shot, the average player can become panic-stricken after stepping into the sand. That's because they're afraid that if they take a full swing, they'll blade the shot over the green.

A good way to calm those nerves is to step out of the bunker and take a couple of full-length rehearsal swings to get the feel for the shot. This is better than taking practice swings above the ball in the bunker, because now you can actually hit the ground with a practice swing and not be penalized.

For the long bunker shot, set up with the ball forward in your stance and plan for your club to enter the sand two or three inches behind the ball, as with any other bunker shot (below). After that, it's simple: The longer the shot, the longer the swing. A rehearsal swing should give you confidence.

Follow through
The most important factor needed to get a ball out of a sand trap is the follow through. A full finish should be achieved each time after hitting a bunker shot. This helps maintain the forward momentum of the club and reduces the chance of deceleration through the ball.

When a club hits sand, the club head will slow drastically. Any type of deceleration just prior to impact will thus be magnified to the extent that the club could stop dead or at least not hit the sand with as much force as intended. Either of these outcomes will result in not enough force being applied to the sand immediately behind the ball to propel it from the bunker.

Remember: Club hits sand, sand hits ball, ball leaves bunker. To hit a sand shot like this it is absolutely necessary to maintain acceleration through the shot (especially the point of impact) and as such a proper follow through will ensure your ball gets up and out!

The 'Fried Egg'
There is nothing like adding insult to injury. Walking up to a sand trap and peering over the lip only to find your ball has buried itself in the sand. After having already hit a shot with which you're not happy this can be likened to being kicked while you're down or like being cheated by the golfing gods.

Fear not golfing friends, if you know how to hit the shot you'll not feel cheated any longer.

The problem with a buried ball or "fried egg" is getting the club under the ball enough to lift the ball from the bunker. Now, under normal circumstances a golfer would keep the face of the club square or slightly open during a sand shot. This allows the club to bounce off the sand rather than digging in to far. However, during the buried sand shot, you need your golf club to dig into the sand much more than normal in order to get the club face underneath the ball.

By slightly closing the club face you can encourage the club to dig under the ball and thus more easily lift the ball from the trap. You must also remember to swing harder at the sand when making this shot because you will need to displace more sand than normal as the club digs under the ball.

Again, make sure to produce a full follow through. This is the most important aspect of any sand shot. It helps your swing maintain its momentum as it passes under the ball and lifts it into the air and, hopefully, onto the green.

Fairway bunker
Any golfer will tell you this is one of the toughest shots to play in golf. Marooned in a fairway bunker is often the last place you want to find yourself. The important thing to bare in mind is not to attempt to play the shot like a normal bunker shot with a longer club. Below are 5 key swing thoughts to help you achieve more success from the fairway bunker:

You must hit closer to the ball than with a normal bunker shot. With greenside bunker shots we are only looking to advance the ball a few yards onto the green and must therefore take some stick out of a hard swing by hitting a few inches behind the ball. In a fairway bunker we may be upwards of 200 yards from the green and can definitely not afford to take so much sand.
The backswing you make is crucial to your success with long bunker shots. Unlike with greenside bunker shots we do not want to pick the club up so much on the backswing. Instead, make a normal long sweeping swing with the aim of having a much shallower cut into the sand.
Most of the long bunker shot is played in the same way as a normal fairway shot and the grip is no different. Whereas you would normally grip lightly and further down the shaft with your greenside bunker setup, here you want to play it as normal with hands at the top of the shaft and with a more firm grip.
One of the main causes of poorly played fairway bunker shots is a lack of belief that the ball is going to fly out the bunker Sandy Lyle esque. You must therefore concentrate on accelerating through the ball on the downswing and have trust that the shot will come off. Losing faith and dying on the ball is one way to ensure you will require another long shot to reach the green.
This shot takes practice. If you are a decent player then it's likely you may encounter a fairway bunker shot only once in several rounds so it becomes one of the least practised shots. Instead of going to the practise ground and hitting numerous mid irons off the flat that you can probably play with your eyes closed, practise your weaknesses one of which is probably the long bunker shot.