Hold Clubface Open to Escape Sand, Golf (Video) - by Pete Styles
Hold Clubface Open to Escape Sand, Golf (Video) - by Pete Styles Now here's a great tip for you if you're struggling in bunkers. One of the biggest issues we see in bunkers is that people try and release the golf club through the sand because they think they need to make a nice, big follow-through. So they almost expect that the hands have to get involved in this and have the big high finish. And that's not strictly true because we certainly don't want to release the golf club too early towards the golf ball. Two main issues when you do that, firstly you're going to reduce the loft on the golf club as the club face turns over, but quite importantly for a bunk shot as well, you'll actually reduce the amount of bounce that you have on the golf club. Bounce angle is how the club sits on the floor and how we want the sole of the golf club on your sand wedge particularly to not let the tow end, or sorry, the front edge dig in to the sand too much. We want the club to sit nicely upon its heel, bounce off the sand and keep going forwards. Anytime when you release the golf club over this way, you're actually going to reduce the amount of bounce that you have. So holding the club face open when you're in bunkers is quite an important technique. If you follow a good bunker technique, you'll have the club face slightly open at the setup anyway and you'll have the feet slightly open at the setup, feet aiming left, club aiming right for the right-handed golfer, then making a nice, smooth backswing but now hold the club face in its open position, still keep it aiming up to the sky into the follow-through position here. Notice there's a full turn and it's still that I haven't quit on the ball and stopped. So I'm not encouraging that. I'm encouraging a nice full turn through to accelerate the club head through, but I'm just not releasing the golf club at the ball. We're not giving the hands the flick here. It reduces loft and it reduces bounce. So if you're struggling in bunkers, just make sure that you're holding the club face open in the follow-through to make sure that you're not de-lofting the golf club and then hopefully that will help you escape at the bunkers a little bit more regularly. 2012-05-29

Now here's a great tip for you if you're struggling in bunkers. One of the biggest issues we see in bunkers is that people try and release the golf club through the sand because they think they need to make a nice, big follow-through. So they almost expect that the hands have to get involved in this and have the big high finish. And that's not strictly true because we certainly don't want to release the golf club too early towards the golf ball.

Two main issues when you do that, firstly you're going to reduce the loft on the golf club as the club face turns over, but quite importantly for a bunk shot as well, you'll actually reduce the amount of bounce that you have on the golf club. Bounce angle is how the club sits on the floor and how we want the sole of the golf club on your sand wedge particularly to not let the tow end, or sorry, the front edge dig in to the sand too much. We want the club to sit nicely upon its heel, bounce off the sand and keep going forwards. Anytime when you release the golf club over this way, you're actually going to reduce the amount of bounce that you have.

So holding the club face open when you're in bunkers is quite an important technique. If you follow a good bunker technique, you'll have the club face slightly open at the setup anyway and you'll have the feet slightly open at the setup, feet aiming left, club aiming right for the right-handed golfer, then making a nice, smooth backswing but now hold the club face in its open position, still keep it aiming up to the sky into the follow-through position here. Notice there's a full turn and it's still that I haven't quit on the ball and stopped. So I'm not encouraging that. I'm encouraging a nice full turn through to accelerate the club head through, but I'm just not releasing the golf club at the ball. We're not giving the hands the flick here. It reduces loft and it reduces bounce.

So if you're struggling in bunkers, just make sure that you're holding the club face open in the follow-through to make sure that you're not de-lofting the golf club and then hopefully that will help you escape at the bunkers a little bit more regularly.