Hall of Fame coach Mike Adams shares his advice on how to make one of the trickiest shots in golf, easy
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It certainly may look intimidating when you walk up to your golf ball around the green and it is resting on less than a perfect lie on the pine straw.
Not only do you need to make good contact, you need to be able to control distance and trajectory as much as possible.
You can accomplish this by playing it much like a green side sand shot. A proper set up, like in a green side bunker will help to turn a difficult shot into a true triumph.
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1. Play your ball forward in your stance:
When you play your ball forward in your stance, this will help slightly increase the loft, but more importantly, allow the wedge to hit the ground before the ball, much like the blast motion of a bunker shot.
2. Open the club face proportional to your desired distance
Opening the face will increase the loft of the club, but also help the club to glide along the ground once it makes contact.
3. Swing down the shoulder line:
When you play your golf ball more forward in your stance, it will open your shoulders to the target.
When you allow your arms to swing down your shoulder line, which wants to happen naturally if you let it, this more out to in, across path, like a bunker shot will produce a lofted wedge shot that can carry and hold the green.
When you already know a proper motion, like a green side bunker shot and you can apply it to an potentially intimidating situation like pine straw near the green, it can be a great tool to success.
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