TOUR TECHNIQUE
2 hit it through a low window
1 approach the ball from the inside Since I started working with my swing coach, Scott Hamilton, eight years ago, we’ve focused on shallowing my downswing. I used to hang on my lead side too much on the takeaway, which caused the clubhead to get too steep and off-line at the top. Now I set up with my weight evenly distributed between my feet, which helps me rotate into my trail side more easily going back. I also limit the
length of my backswing to three-quar- ters or less for more control. These aren’t power shots, so no need to take it all the way back. From this abbreviated position, it’s much easier to shallow the club’s path into the ball, which is an essential ele- ment to making solid contact. As my arms start down from the top of the backswing, I have this feeling that my pelvis is shifting forward, but my hips haven’t opened fully in relation to my target ( below, left ). By delaying hip rotation, I can drop the club behind me
on a shallower plane, which is what you want with most wedge shots. As you can see in this photo (bot- tom, right), I still have some trail side bend, and my lead shoulder is directly over my hip as the club gets to half- way down. This combination of being shallow with my approach into the ball and feeling on top of it at impact is the perfect recipe to hitting solid wedges. If you come into it too steep or hanging back, you’re either going to skull it or chunk it. I see that a lot from amateur players.
Growing up in North Dakota and playing college golf at Texas Christian, I’m used to dealing with wind. It’s probably why I learned to keep the ball down as much as possible with my wedge shots. But now I do it even when it’s not windy. As I look at the target, I visualise hit- ting the ball through a very low window about 10 metres out (left). The lower launch (it’s around 30 degrees) helps compress the ball and creates more spin. If I want to fly it further, I swing harder. To hit it higher, I might move the ball a little further forward in my stance, but I don’t change the window substantially. Higher shots tend to run up the face and lose spin, making it harder to predict distance. Next time you practice, flight all your wedges lower and compare your accu- racy to when you try to hit them higher. I bet lower wins.
3 grip down and shorten up for distance control One reason I do so well inside 115 metres is that I keep my technique simple. By doing the same things on the course and in practice, I’ve learned how to subconsciously take speed off a club and hit it shorter if necessary. I’ve found that the easiest way to do that is by gripping the club fur- ther down the shaft or shortening
the length your arms swing back and through – or doing both. For example: I know that if I make my normal back- swing with my lob wedge (above, left), the ball will carry 75 metres. I don’t need to grip down. If I want to make it go 65 metres, I’ll grip down five centi- metres on the handle or abbreviate my backswing and follow-through. To hit my lob wedge 50 metres, I’ll shorten my arm swing even more, to about where my arms are parallel to the
ground, and grip down some as well (above, right). By establishing bench- marks for each wedge, which you do by calibrating the distance a shot travels to the length of your arm swing and how much you grip down, you can cover a lot of ground and fill a bunch of distance gaps for these shorter ap- proach shots. You might miss left or right of your target, but if you’re pin-high more of- ten, your scores will come down.
122 GOLF DIGEST SOUTH AFRICA
GOLF DIGEST SOUTH AFRICA 123
MARCH/APRIL 2026
MARCH/APRIL 2026
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