Here’s a drill that will improve your bunker shots and help you smash a sweeping fade without any fear of hitting a dreaded pull hook.
The key to both shots is one move, and, to learn it, you need to know what it feels like to make a swing while holding the clubface open through impact.
To assist, grab a Ping-Pong paddle. Hold it against the shaft of your driver as shown, making sure it’s pointing in the same direction as the clubface. Make a few practice swings. The paddle makes it much easier to see and feel where the clubface is pointing throughout your motion.
To practice both the sweeping fade and soft bunker shot, simply point the paddle more toward the sky as you swing down and through impact. (If it points down, you’re ingraining a hook.) Keep in mind that when you want to hit a fade or soft bunker shot by holding the clubface open, you still need to rotate your body and make sure you’re aiming to the left of your target to accommodate the ensuing left-to-right ballflight. Also, with less hand release, don’t expect the ball to fly as far.
Andrew Park is a GOLF Top 100 Teacher the director of instruction at Orange County National Golf Resort in Winter Garden, Fla.
