Golf Chipping Tip - One Thing NOT To Do

Chipping in golf is supposed to softly carry the ball to your target, as opposed to driving or iron-play which are most often accompanied by strong and fast swings. Chips are supposed to be approached with finesse to produce loft and "quietly" roll the ball along the green once it makes contact. Because of this, golfers often try to slow down their swing and end up making physical mistakes which will have a negative impact on the outcome of the shot.

In essense a chip shot in golf is like sub-section of your normal swing. True your stance might be slightly different or you may play the ball at a different location, but essentially you want to swing the same. The only difference is that you are only taking a small percentage of your swing. So the key thing to remember is that you don't want to change anything about your actual swing. Your arms should come back the same way as a normal swing, you should have a slight weight shift, and your wrists should remain straight, especially your leading wrist.

Too many times golfers anticipate their shot and look up too soon to see where the ball is going. One major problem with this is that golfers will forget about the mechanics of the rest of the swing. What typically ends up happening is that, by looking up, the leading-hand wrist bends, causing the golfer's hands to "flick" through the chip shot.

The result is that the club head is picked up slightly and a "blade" type shot occurs which sends the ball on more of a line-drive trajectory. The reason is that the wrists bend or break before contact is made with the ball/ground in an attempt to delicately place the ball. The solution is to make sure your wrists do not break, especially the leading wrist, and that your follow-through continues just as a normal shot.

One way to practice keeping the leading wrist straight is with a rubberband and ruler. Grip your pitching wedge as you normally would. Now take a 12" ruler and hold the first 6" between your leading hand and the club. Now wrap the rubberband, which is already around your wrist, around the ruler and club. You should now be holding the club and ruler along a straight line. Practice some soft chip shots. If you feel tension from the ruler or stretching by the rubberbands, you're not keeping your wrist straight!

Keep your leading wrist straight when chipping. This will ensure you keep the same basic swing as your "normal" swing, only toned down a bit to produce a softer shot.

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