WEDGES QUIET YOUR WRIST ACTION
CLUBFACE PARALLEL TO SPINE
CLOSED CLUBFACE
Try a shallower,
Keeping with the spirit of limiting
Steve Stricker method instead. Stay stable and make a backswing with very little wrist set ( left ). With less set and a wider arc, the attack angle will be much shallower and the ball comes out lower. You don’t need it to drop from the heavens to stop it, because your stability through the shot is going to produce cleaner contact and a lot of spin. Even if you don’t catch it just right, the shallower attack angle gets the bounce of the club, its backside, sliding on top of the turf, so you still produce a decent shot. Remember, if you’re taking big pelts of sod when you hit these shots, you’re doing it wrong.
choices when your game goes crooked, distance wedges are easier to hit under quieter hand-action conditions. The most forgiving wedge shot comes from a swing with a wider arc and minimal hinging and unhinging of the wrists. When you’re
struggling with these shots, it’s usually because you’re making a steep swing and
hitting the ground in inconsistent places. One shot is heavy and 20 metres short, and the next one is clean and 10 metres over the green.
ball comes off the club. You’ll compress it instead of wiping across it. Then it’s a matter of swinging more from inside the target line to straighten out shots
in a strong or “closed” position. Then as my arms drop in the downswing, I get the clubface parallel to my spine ( above, right ). Now it’s way more closed, I bet, than you have it at this point – and the sweet spot on the face stays behind me instead of lurching out towards the target line as I rotate my chest through. When you get the clubface in this position halfway down, you’ll notice a big difference in how the
IRON PLAY SET THE FACE, THEN SIMPLY PIVOT
It’s natural to feel desperate when you can’t
the ball curve or adding speed with extra hand action through impact. Instead, start hitting good shots again by getting the clubface in a stronger position and letting your body’s pivot do the work. Let me explain. If my clubface is skyward at the top of the swing ( above, left ), it’s
if you’re hitting pulls. Once you’re striping it and want to start changing trajectory
find the centre of the face with your irons, or you’re spraying the ball all over the place. I’ve been there, and the way out is to pare down as many things from your swing as you can. That means resisting the temptation to try to make
and curve, adjust only one thing: Move the ball slightly forward to hit it higher and fade it, or move it back to hit it lower with more draw. That formula is key to consistency.
28 GOLF DIGEST SOUTH AFRICA
GOLF DIGEST SOUTH AFRICA 29
NOVEMBER 2023
NOVEMBER 2023
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