You're Correct!

Hitting pitches from tight lies is something many golfers literally dread facing.

This is because the ball sits tight to the ground, which is also normally firm. This tight lie does not allow players to get the club underneath the ball easily. Hitting wedges from tight lies can often result in skulled or thin shots as the club bounces up at impact, firing the ball over the green.

Tight lies are a challenge when hitting pitch shots but can be played successfully by understanding how the wedge interacts with the ground at impact and how slightly altering the technique can result in cleaner strikes.

The bounce on a wedge’s sole is the angle created when the rear edge of the wedge sole is lower than the leading edge. This bounce will help stop the club from digging into the ground on a normal shot or in the sand. When playing off a tight lie, this bounce needs to be reduced and the ball picked cleanly from the surface.

Use this technique when faced with a shot from a bare lie:

• Place the ball in the middle of the stance with 60% body weight on the front foot.
• The hands should be pressed slightly ahead of the ball, but not leaning aggressively towards the target.
• Keep the club face square or slightly closed at address to reduce the amount of bounce on the wedge.
• Ensure the body is correctly aligned and not open to the target.
• Keep the hands relaxed and return to impact with the hands slightly ahead of the ball, try to nip the ball cleanly from the surface.
• The ball will come out with a consistent amount of spin. There should be a slight bruising of the ground after impact but no great divot.

Although pitching from tight lies around the green can be difficult, try to neutralize the bounce angle and clip the ball away cleanly from the surface.

There needs to be a slightly descending blow as the shaft leans ahead of the ball at impact but players should not try and strike aggressively down on the ball. The angle of attack should be relatively shallow to nip the ball away cleanly. An aggressively steep angle of attack will cause inconsistent results.

Although hitting a flop shot from a tight lie is not impossible, the difficulty is very high. Opening the club face will increase bounce angle and the chance of hitting a thin shot across the green. Keep things simple and clip the ball away cleanly.

Bounce angle is designed to guide the club up through impact and not allow the leading edge to dig into the ground. On most wedge shots, the bounce angle can be used to help with consistency. On tight lies, try to neutralize the bounce angle and nip the ball away cleanly, bruising the ground slightly after impact.