TOUR TECHNIQUE
Bowing your knees away from each other at address helps keep your lower body stable when you swing. CHANGE CLUBS For longer greenside shots, like I’m hitting here, you can open or close the clubface to regulate distance, but a more fail-safe option is to change clubs. For a longer greenside bunker shot, you can even go with a 9-iron. The beauty is, the technique stays the same. DON’T LOOK AT THE BALL Stare at a spot about four centimetres behind the ball and never take your eyes off of it. That’s where you’ll make contact. THUMP IT The back side of your wedge – the bounce – is your best friend. It should strike the sand first, and you should hear a loud thump when it does. LET YOUR DOMINANT HAND CONTROL THE SHOT Around the ball, it feels like my left hand stops, and my right hand passes it and keeps moving up and across my body (right). Don’t stop at impact. – WITH RON KASPRISKE PATRICK REED, who had 9 PGA Tour wins, including the 2018 Masters, won on the LIV Tour for the first time in 2025. He gets up and down from greenside bunkers three out of every five attempts. Your goal from a greenside bunker is simple: Give yourself a reasonable chance to hole out with your next shot. That’s it. You can do that if you come up with a simple strategy and stick with it. Here are my keys: DIG IN AND CHOKE DOWN From an open stance, play the ball close to your front heel and keep your chest hovering over it. The key is to get low with your hands and stance. This will help you skim the club through the sand. The long and short of good bunker play BY PATRICK REED Succeed from the Sand FLARE YOUR KNEES OUT
PHOTOGRAPH BY JOHN LOOMIS
66 GOLF DIGEST SOUTH AFRICA
JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2026
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