Why most golfers struggle to hit shots out of the bunker — and how to fix it

Hollywood star Michael Pena has played with his share of top-tier pros — and he’s even been lucky enough to make a hole-in-one on camera at the 2009 Bob Hope Desert Classic. But one thing that continually impresses him about the pro-level of the game is how consistent they are — especially when it comes to the shots around the green.

On this week’s episode of Off Course with Claude Harmon, Pena shared his admiration for the short-game talent showcased by the pros he’s played with.

“Chipping — even something as simple as chipping. [The pros] are trying to make these chips, dude,” Pena marveled.

Harmon concurred.

“The average golfer gets in the bunker and they can’t get out,” Harmon said. “But you give a good Tour player a decent lie and a little bit of green to work with out of a bunker, and it’s not that difficult of a shot, they’re going to probably try and make it.”

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“I just don’t want to blade it. I don’t want to hurt anybody,” Pena joked. “But what’s weird about us amateurs, we hit it fat so much. We should just swing at the ball when we’re in the bunker. We should just take normal swings. It’ll probably end up really good.”

Pena’s observation led to a discussion about bunker technique, and how the typical amateur has it all wrong.

“The biggest mistake that people make out of the bunker — the single biggest effect that the sand is going to have on the golf club — and it’s a good thing to think about, is as soon as the sand and the golf club come in contact, the sand is going to slow the golf club down,” Harmon said. “So most golfers really struggle out of the bunker because they don’t make a big enough swing to actually get the sand out.”

So what’s the solution? According to Harmon, it’s pretty simple.

“You’ve got to make a swing that’s big enough to get the sand out of the bunker,” Harmon said. “So if you’re not making a swing that’s going to throw the sand out of the bunker, the ball isn’t going to get out of the bunker.”

If the above issue sounds familiar, Harmon suggested working on taking practice swings in the bunker and hitting as much sand as you can onto the green.

“Those are real purdy words,” Pena said with a smile as Harmon laughed. “But the reality is, when we get in the fairway, we hit it fat, and then when we get in the bunker, we hit it thin.”

For more from Pena’s entertaining appearance — including the story of how he was initially bitten by the golf bug, check out the full interview below.