Chipping From Greenside Rough

Each golf course I play presents its own shots that you have to hit well in order to make a good score. One course demands that you put the ball in the right spot off the tee. If you can do that all day, you're home free. On another one, getting up to the green is easy, but if you miss, you'll frequently be chipping off uphill and downhill lies. A third one has deep rough, and by that I mean 2-4", no more than five feet off the green. I didn't solve that course until I learned how to play from there, and that's what we're going to talk about today.

Before you take your club out of the bag, you must find out where the ball is in the grass, vertically. That is, how much grass is underneath the ball? It will seldom sit all the way down on the earth, but be normally suspended by a cushion of grass. To hit the shot successfully the club must strike the ball off the same part of the clubface as it does when the ball is sitting on the ground. If the club comes in too high, you will blade the ball and perhaps bury it further in the rough. If you come in too low, you will strike the ball high on the clubface and pop the ball perhaps just a few feet or pass underneath it altogether.

Stick your forefinger straight down through the rough to the ground just a few inches from the ball, being careful to to disturb it. You will be able to tell right away where the ball is sitting and at what level the club must be swung through the grass.

Now you can take your club out of the bag. Your sand wedge is the best one to use, since it has the heaviest clubhead and will slide through resistant grass the easiest. Open the clubface, as the grass tends to catch the hosel and close the face on the throughstroke. Set up facing to the left of the target. Take several practice strokes to get the idea of swinging the club through the rough at the desired height.

You'll need more force on the stroke than normal to get the club through the grass, and a little practice will show you how much. It's still a smooth stroke, though, There is no need to jab at the ball or force it out in any way.

This part is important -- do not release the clubhead. At address, the open clubface will be facing the sky. At the end of the stroke, the clubface should be facing the same direction. It is also important that your grip pressure stay constant throughout the stroke. You'll need to hold on a little tighter, but take up the extra pressure, and not too much, at address.

If the ball is sitting on the ground, all the way down in the rough, a different stroke is required. You must get the clubhead underneath the ball. That is the only thing that can be on your mind. Make two adjustments. First, take the club back in a sharply upward direction. There will be a lot of wrist action in this takeaway. Second, when you hit down, think of thumping the sole of the club on the ground underneath the ball. Forget about hitting the ball. Thump the sole sharply against the ground on which the ball sits. Let the club follow through; do not thump and stop. This is a V-shaped swing.


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