The Basics of Golf: Sand Wedge Technique

For many golfers, it is the most fearful situation: getting stuck in the sand. It feels as if you have no control, and the probability of a good shot is almost as bad as playing the lotto……

It doesn’t have to be that bad. By simply following a few simple basic steps when using your sand wedge, golf can be all pleasure once again.

Firstly, make sure that your practice range has a sand trap for practice. You need to familiarize yourself with the effects you get when changing the variables. Once you have an idea of what the ball will do upon being struck in a specific manner, the rest is just adjustment to distance, land layout, and sand type.

Opening the club face……

Opening the face of the club gives you more bounce. “Bounce” is literally a bouncing effect off the sand surface, so you don’t end up playing the sand and not the ball. It also dramatically changes the angle at which the ball is struck. As the results will vary from club to club, and from person to person, you have to practice and experiment to see how the ball responds to what YOU do.

Check your stance……

Your stance has a tremendous effect on the success on the shot. On an uphill, keep your shoulders level, with your feet slightly closer together than usual. Take care not to lean into the uphill. On a downhill, plant your feet a bit wider than normally, and then take a steeper back swing.

Check the sand…..

Just when you think you have mastered the sand wedge, golf presents a new challenge when you go to play on a different course. If you happen to run into softer sand, open up the club face a bit more. If you happen to run into very soft sand (glass sand), lower the trajectory at which you hit the ball. You will sacrifice some control over the ball, but at least you will get it out of the sand.

As you can see, playing from sand need not be a nightmare. Now that you know the basics of using a sand wedge, golf holds one less dreaded shot for you. Enjoy!