It seemed an appropriate time for a 3-part series on pitching with baseball season just around the corner. Golf pitching, that is! In Part 1 of this 3-part series, I tackle the subject of hitting off tight lies. Touch on club selection and head position. If you’re looking to save on shots, check out this latest video golf tip. As well as the next two in this series on pitching.

Club Selection

The ideal club for this shot would be a Lob Wedge with a fairly low bounce. Unfortunately, most Sand wedges have a fairly high bounce, so this is not suitable. The bounce on the bottom of this club would strike the ground first and skid into the ball, skulling it across the green. If you do not have a lob wedge, use a pitching wedge with no bounce. The downside of the pitching wedge is that it does not have much loft if you need to stop this shot quickly.

Ball Position

Most golfers tend to play this too far forward, thinking they need to get the ball up in the air. In fact, play this shot more towards the back foot. There must be a slightly downward blow to this shot to put additional backspin on the ball. However, the lob wedge has plenty of loft for this shot, even off the back foot.

Technique

Set the shaft leaning forward at about a 10-degree angle, hinge your wrists fairly quickly, and produce a downward blow to the shot. Ensure not to quit on the shot and let the club go through to about hip height on the follow-through. Stay down on the shot, as keeping the head level is critical to this shot.