Most golfers try to keep their hands ahead of the ball when chipping to create a downward strike for solid contact. But this can cause the left arm to drag the butt end of the club away from the body through impact, which leads to inconsistent contact. Try this drill: Stick a tee in the end of the grip, set up with the tee pointing just forward of your belly button, and keep it pointing at that spot throughout the swing. This will get your arms and body working in sync for better chipping.
—Jim McLean / Golf Digest Teaching Professional
Take The Fear Out Of Pitching
Keep it low, like the pros do, to eliminate disaster shots
I see a lot of average players trying to pitch the ball way up in the air. Then I watch pros at tour events, and they keep the ball down, so they can better control how far it goes. Sure, sometimes you need a high shot, but your standard pitch should be a lower one that releases and rolls. In these photos, you can see the differences between the low pitch (top) and what a lot of amateurs do (bottom). The pros play the ball in the middle to slightly back in their stance and keep the shaft angled forward through impact by shifting left on the downswing. Amateurs play the ball too far forward, then hang back on their right foot and try to scoop the ball. With this much hand action, they often wind up hitting it fat or thinwhich they live in fear of doing.
Think of it this way: The pros set the loft when they sole the club at address and maintain it throughout the swing. Amateurs try to add loft at impact, which isn't necessary and leads to poor contact. So play the ball back, and keep that shaft forward. Your pitching will improve, and your fear will disappear.
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