The U.S. Open at the Olympic Club is just around the corner. I had the opportunity to play the course last week, and can tell you the pros are in for a rude awakening with the course conditions. The fairways are narrow and firm, the rough is long especially around the greens.
When you’re faced with a difficult chip shot out of thick rough, it’s hard to gauge how the ball will respond when it comes out. This is no time to get fancy; the main objective is to get the ball somewhere on the putting surface. Here’s a tip that explains how to execute these difficult chip shots:
Using a sand or lob wedge, play the ball back in your stance. Open the face a bit and take a firm grip with your left hand so that the face doesn’t close as the club moves through the thick turf. Hold the club above the grass so that it doesn’t grab during the takeaway. As you swing the club back, hinge your wrist and shaft up on a slightly vertical plane, then accelerate hitting down and behind the ball, keeping the face open, like you’re hitting a bunker shot. Because the ball is sitting down, the club will make contact with the turf, and the ball will pop out with little or no spin.
Next time you’re working on your short game, throw some balls into the deep rough and try hitting some of the these shots.
Note: if you get the chance to go to the Open (scheduled for June 14-17) or watch it on television, observe how the pros are executing these shots.
