chipping | Shooting 90

The Chipping Game

High handicap and beginner golfers lose a lot of strokes around the green. Yet it’s probably the area that golfers practice the least. How often do you see someone chipping by the practice green?

My 12 year old son started taking his golf game more seriously this season. Like many beginner golfers, he made quick improvements in his long game from tee to green, but still gives up too many strokes around and on the green.

We’ve identified the need to emphasize practicing chipping and putting, but chipping and putting ball after ball from the same spots is not the way. There’s been a lot written lately about the need to practice like you play in order to simulate real shots and golf round pressure.

My son and I play a game for our chipping practice. It’s simple, fun, and provides a large amount of chipping and putting practice.

Each player plays one ball. Players alternate choosing the spot off the green to chip from along with the hole on the practice green to chip to. The object is to get your ball in the hole in the less strokes than your opponent. No points are awarded to either player in a tie. The winning player receives three points if they chip it in with one stroke, two points for getting “up and down” in two strokes, and one point for getting the ball in the hole in three strokes. No points are awarded for four or more strokes even if you get in the hole in less strokes than your opponent. The winner of the match is the first player to reach ten points.

This chipping game is a great way to simulate real golf round pressure both with the match play aspect and the need to get the ball in the hole in three strokes or less.

Learn to Chip Around the Green

The short game probably has a bigger gap in ability between low and high handicap golfers than any area in golf. The ability to get up and down is critical in improving your game. How many times does a high handicap golfer take three or four shots from beside the green to get the ball in the hole?

The need to be able to shoot a variety of shots is one of the challenges high handicap golfers face in having a good short game. The chip, pitch, flop, and sand shots are all part of a well-rounded short game. In this post, we will be talking about the chip shot.

Around the green, many beginner and high handicap golfers exclusively use their pitching or sand wedge, attempting to fly the ball most of the way to the hole with a lofted shot. Sometimes it is best to play a chip shot. A chip shot consists of bumping the ball up in the air just enough to get it on the green and rolling. The big benefit of a chip shot is that it is much easier to control both the direction and distance when your ball is rolling opposed to flying through the air.

Chip shots can be made with a variety of clubs including your 7 iron, 8 iron, 9 iron, and wedges. Use your wedges for chipping when your ball is closer to the hole as they will provide more spin and your ball with roll less. Your less lofted clubs are for longer chip shots where you need your ball to roll a greater distance.

The stance and swing for a chip shot differs from a regular shot. The ball is played off the inside of your back foot with the handle of the club forward of the ball. Probably the most important thing to remember about a chip shot is that you strike down on the ball allowing the loft of the club to get it in the air. Many amateurs make the mistake of trying to scoop the ball into the air.

While the setup and execution is the same for all of your chip shots regardless of what club you choose, it is important to practice chipping with all of your wedges all the way down to your 6 or 7 iron. The club you choose will depend on how far away from the hole you are.

In the video below, Peter Finch, shows us how to control our distance when chipping.

Spend a serious amount of time chipping during your practice sessions. Becoming a successful chipper will most definitely lower your scores. The short game offers high handicap golfers the biggest impact on their game with more practice.

By Shooting 90

By Shooting 90