How do I chip over a nearside bunker?

3 years ago by Strae to c/golf

I've attached a picture that hopefully illustrates the situation I often find myself in. I'm still quite a beginner at golf.

I'm in the rough outside of the bunker, but I have to chip over the bunker to a nearside pin. Bonus jank if the green runs downhill.

I feel essentially incapable of getting the ball close to the pin. I just have to settle for ending up on the far side of the green, 30-50 feet away or whatever. Then I have at least two putts to get it down, so this shot feels super score-inflating.

In a perfect world I wouldn't be in this situation, but I'm not good enough to avoid it.

Ideally I would like to get more loft and just barely plop it on the other side of the bunker and roll to the pin. Is that essentially the ideal play? Any general tips on achieving this?

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iTipTurtles 4 points 3 years ago

It can be a score inflating on in multiple ways. If you try and get too tight with it you risk ending up in the bunker, which could be even more inflating.
I am a mid handicap but generally I try and add a little more loft to my club which will reduce the overall distance.
And then just settle for a long putt and hopefully then convert the 2 putt. I find that is fairly safe

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Strae 1 point 3 years ago

Yeah this is my fear. I don't really know how to hit a flop, so I just chip it extra far to avoid the bunker.

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iTipTurtles 1 point 3 years ago

It can be a difficult shot to execute, and can also go horribly wrong and smash it 50 yards past the green.
Just got to practice it until you feel confident, then try it when the conditions are good.

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