Practical Hints To Make Your Short Game Swing Perfect

The in-between swing

Any shot in golf that is not a full shot (with an iron or a wooden club) and not a chip or a put, is what we term the short game swing. A short game swing is used when the ball is anywhere between 30-80 yards of the hole. This is the shot that will help you save pars and make lots of birdies.

Here are a few practical tips that you can try the next time you go out to play or practice:

Zero power

In your full swing, you want to turn and build resistance in your upper body. However, you don't want to do that on your short game swing because you will put too much power into the shot. The short game is all about finesse and not power. Our goal is to control (not maximize) distance.

Learn the clock method

Imagine your left arm holding the club is a hand on a clock. If the clock face is facing you head on, when you swing your left arm until it is parallel to the ground, you will be at nine o'clock.

Using the clock method, you can swing to 7.30,8,9 or 10 o'clock to produce four different distances with your favorite wedge.

Also, if you also experiment with moving your hands down the grip, you will also gain some additional "in between" distances. You will know how to hit the ball to a specific yardage.

Feel the club with your hands

Take off your golf glove for a little extra feel on the club. You can do this for all shots within 50 yards and in of the hole.

Match it up

Make your backswing and follow through the same length. Doing this will control the distance of the shot. Shorten both the backswing and the follow through to hit the ball a shorter distance and vice versa to hit the ball a further.

Ball position

For all pitch shots, put the ball in the center of your stance, equal distance from both heels. For chip shots, put the ball back in your stance off of your right toe. Placing the ball here will help you hit the ball before the turf.

A final tip: Keep your head down until after the ball has gone, you can drill this by seeing the divot where the ball was resting before you made contact.