If you find it difficult to chip well when playing golf, you may wish to consider alternatives to chipping in order to achieve a better result when out on the golf course.

If the ground that the ball needs to cover isn’t too rough then first of all consider putting. Work on setting up so that your eyes look down directly on to the top of the golf ball and your feet are shoulder width apart with your weight even. To check this position, hold a golf ball on the bridge of your nose, between your eyes and then let the ball go. Wherever the ball lands is where the ball you are going to putt should be positioned. Now dangle your arms so that they are straight and relaxed and where your hands dangle next to the putter is where you should hold the club. This will create a Y shape look with your arms and the putter. Work on maintaining this Y shape as you swing the putter back and forth, swinging from your shoulders.

You will need to strike the ball hard enough to move it through any longer grass so make a big swing with the putter to ensure that the ball moves from the grass and on to the green, close to the target. Practice hitting putts from these positions around your practice green, to get a feel for how firmly to strike the ball and how big to make the swing. Make sure that however far you move the club head away from the ball, you equal the same distance with the movement on your follow through. With practice, you will gain distance control and hit putts close to the hole.

If you feel that the shot is too long to putt, or that the grass is too rough to putt through, then consider playing the shot with your hybrid or utility club. To do this, hold down on the handle to give you club head control and aim the club face towards the target. Set your feet up narrower than shoulder width apart to allow you to swing your arms and then pull your left foot directly back about four to six inches. This will allow you to swing your arms through the shot and along the target line. Play the ball from the centre of your stance and create a straight line from your left shoulder, down your left arm to your left hand and then down the club shaft to the club head.

Work on swinging this straight line back and through, brushing the grass where the ball is as you do this. This will produce a shot, very much like a putt but it will initially lift slightly from the ground to help you get the ball over any rougher surface directly in front of the ball. As you are playing this shot with your utility or hybrid club, the club face is also made from a harder material than your putter face will be, so the ball will spring forward more from the club face than it would if you were using the putter. This will allow you to play longer shots with a smaller swing when needed.

Try this technique with your 7 iron for a bump and run shot. The 7 iron has more loft than the hybrid so will lift the ball higher from the ground than the hybrid would. But remember when playing this shot that you need room for the ball to run. When this shot first lands, this will only be a quarter of it's overall journey. The ball will run another three times this distance, so bear this in mind when playing the shot.

If you struggle to keep the straight line from your left shoulder, down your left arm to your left hand and into the club shaft then practice the shot with your jacket on. Place the handle of the club up your left sleeve and then play the shot. If you are not keeping the straight line from your arm into the club, you will feel the handle of the club pulling your jacket sleeve. Play the shot again this time keeping the handle of the club close to your left forearm.

If you struggle with your chipping, try these two alternatives to improve your shots when out on the golf course.