Chipping: keep it low and get up and down more often

From inside 25 yards of the green, a 15-handicapper with a putter gets up and down 71% of the time; with a sand wedge, 27%. MyGolfSpy published the figures from Shot Scope’s tracking, and they point most club golfers away from the lob wedge and towards a shot that keeps the ball on the ground for longer.

Putter 71%, sand wedge 27%

Overall, from inside 25 yards, a 15-handicapper saves par 43% of the time, a 25-handicapper 35%, and a scratch golfer 63%. The average 15-handicapper’s chip from that range finishes 18 feet away.

The same data breaks the results down by club. From within 25 yards of the green:

• 15-handicappers got up and down 71% of the time with a putter, 35% with a 9-iron and 27% with a sand wedge.
• 25-handicappers: 62% with a putter, 25% with a 9-iron, 17% with a sand wedge.
• 5-handicappers: 78% with a putter, 49% with a gap wedge and 39% with a lob wedge.

Yet the sand wedge was used for around one in five of these shots by the 15- and 25-handicap groups, and the 5-handicappers reached for a lob wedge almost as often as their putter.

Golfers putt from the easiest spots (tight lies, close to the edge, nothing in the way), so not all of the gap is down to the club. Still, the study’s own conclusion is that keeping the ball lower improves your chances.

Putt, chip, pitch: a three-step ladder

Before every shot from just off the green, work down this ladder and stop at the first step that works.

1. Putt it if the grass between you and the green is short and smooth enough to roll through.
2. Chip it if you can’t putt: land the ball a short way onto the green and let it run out like a putt.
3. Pitch it high only when you must: a bunker or thick rough in the way, very little green to work with, or a pin cut just over a ridge.

Ball central, weight forward

Todd Anderson, then director of instruction at the PGA TOUR Performance Center at TPC Sawgrass, explains in Golf Digest that the low point of the swing should be at or just in front of the ball. His set-up starts with the ball in the centre of your stance and your weight forward.

How far forward? PGA professional Brendon Elliott suggests in MyGolfSpy that around 55 to 65% of your pressure on the lead foot is a sensible starting point, and warns against leaning so far that you lose the club’s bounce and start digging. If you finish on your toes or need to step towards the ball after hitting it, you’ve overdone it.

From there, keep the stroke short and smooth, the wrists quiet, and let the length of the swing, not a hit with the hands, control the distance.

Build your own roll chart

You need a towel, three clubs (say a sand wedge, a pitching wedge and an 8-iron) and 20 minutes on a practice green.

1. Lay the towel about a pace onto the green from a spot just off the fringe, on a flat part of the green.
2. Hit five chips with each club, trying to land every ball on the towel with the same short stroke.
3. Pace off where they finish. Note roughly how far each club rolls after landing.
4. Write it down. That’s your personal chart: if the hole is close, use the sand wedge; further away, move down to the pitching wedge or 8-iron and keep the same landing spot.

Then test it. Drop ten balls at different spots around the green, use the ladder to pick a shot for each, and score one point for every ball that finishes within a putter length of the hole. Write the total down and try to beat it next time.

If you only have ten minutes, skip the chart and just hit five chips with your 8-iron and five with your sand wedge to the same hole. See which ones finish closer more often.

Green speed, lie and your own stroke

• Green speed and firmness. Your roll chart is only good for the greens you made it on. Wet autumn greens slow everything down; firm summer greens make low-lofted chips run much further. Re-check it on a few practice chips before a round.
• The lie. A tight lie suits a putter or a low chip. A ball sitting down in fluffy grass may need more loft to get out cleanly, and putting through long, wet fringe rarely works.
• Your own strengths. Some golfers chip well with one club and change their stroke length; others prefer one stroke and change clubs. Use the drill to find out which gives you more balls inside a putter length.

Which club to start with at your handicap

Aiming to break 100. Use the putter whenever the ground allows, even from a few yards off the green.

Handicaps of about 10 to 20. You probably use the sand wedge too often. Make the 8-iron or 9-iron chip your stock shot and keep the higher shot for when something is in the way.

Single-figure players. Track how far your chips finish from the hole and push to bring that number down, especially from 10 to 25 yards.

Keep score of your chips

Every time you miss a green, note on your scorecard the club you used and whether you got up and down. After 18 holes, look at the list. If your highest-lofted wedge keeps appearing next to the bogeys, work down the ladder first next time.

Sources

• MyGolfSpy: High versus low chips and pitches – which approach yields better results? (Shot Scope data)
• MyGolfSpy: How good is your short game? Performance chart by handicap (Shot Scope data)
• Golf Digest: The right way to chip, with Todd Anderson
• MyGolfSpy: Can your weight be too far forward when chipping?