My Pitch Shots Kept Rolling Past The Hole Until I Tried This

What I’m about to show you is not rocket science. It’s simple but it’s helped me get a lot more control over my wedge shots, especially when playing on faster greens. I’m all for the ball rolling past the hole and giving it a chance to get in. My problem is when I leave myself six or eight feet coming back.

Practicing (and exaggerating) this concept has helped me feel more confident being aggressive with higher-lofted pitch shots.

I love the lower-lofted chip. Any chance I get to use it, I take it. I use a pitching wedge or 9-iron and swing with a simple putter-like stroke. However, there are times when the pitch shot is necessary and having enough spin on a shot to stop it in its tracks can be hard to generate from short distances. This trick should help.

What you need to know

The ideal position for your wrist to be in at impact when you take a full-swing golf shot Is slightly flexed or bowed. With a flat or slightly bowed wrist, it’s easier to compress the ball and square the club face.

However, if you try and play a high-lofted club with a bowed wrist, your face shuts and you don’t get as much control (the ball lands and keeps rolling).

My natural tendency is to keep the club face a little shut in my swing. I know it’s why I’ve struggled to get these shorter shots to stop at times.

The fix

After watching this video from HackMotion and Rob Cheney (below), I started keeping my lead wrist more extended (cupped) through impact on these shorter pitch shots. I set up with the clubface a little open and my swing thought is to feel like I keep the label on my glove pointing up through impact.

Normally, I would want that Velcro/label to be facing toward the target or even the ground, depending on the shot.

Rob Cheney says you can “imagine the clubface remains open and facing you in both the backswing and follow-through.”

When I first started doing it, I had to exaggerate the feeling because my tendency was the opposite. I was surprised by the results after some practice sessions on the range. I was hitting it higher and spinning much more.

Check out his explanation around the 5:18 mark.

Just don’t flip it

One thing to make sure you understand is the difference between holding the extension and flipping your wrists at impact. You’ll see in the video that even though Cheney’s lead wrist is in a more extended position, he’s not letting the clubhead get past the hands at impact.

Flipping or scooping in the short game leads to inconsistency. This method of just maintaining a little extra extension in the lead wrist has helped me increase the amount of time the grooves on the club and the dimples on the ball interact—but I still let my hands lead through impact and use my body for consistency.

Cheney says, “The entirety of this movement is matched with a body pivot that pulls the arms along for the ride. This is not an arms-only swing.”

It works well from the bunkers as well. Holding the face a little more open through impact gives you loft.

Final thoughts

I’ve always known that my tendency to play with a bit of a shut face caused some issues around the green. I learned to adapt and land my shots short of the hole. This trick has allowed me to be more aggressive.

Regardless of your handicap, there are always ways to get better. Sometimes all it takes is a “feel.” Take your sand wedge to the short-game practice area. See if you can feel this extension or cupping in the lead wrist. You may be surprised just how much control it gives you.