Fred Couples reveals technique for high, soft pitch shots

Golf instruction is ever-evolving, but the best advice stands the test of time. In GOLF.com’s new series, Timeless Tips, we’re highlighting some of the greatest advice teachers and players have dispensed in the pages of GOLF Magazine. Today, we look back at our October 1994 issue when Fred Couples explained why he likes to hit a high, soft pitch around the greens. For unlimited access to the full GOLF Magazine digital archive, join InsideGOLF today; you’ll enjoy $140 of value for only $39.99/year.

Saving par around the greens is all about having a versatile array of shots. While it’s great to have one go-to shot with a wedge in hand, the situation won’t always call for only one technique. That’s why it’s crucial to learn a variety of shot types around the greens.

If you watch the pros, you’ll see this mastery of a wide variety of shots every round. Take Fred Couples, for example. As a winner at Augusta National, he had quick a few tricks up his sleeve when it came to getting up-and-down.

Back in 1994, Couples joined GOLF Magazine to explain how to hit one of those shots: the high, soft pitch. Check it out below.

Couples’ high, lofted pitch shot

Most instructors of the short game will tell you the best way to play your chip shots is relatively low and running, using a fairly straight-faced iron. The idea is to carry the ball in the air just far enough so it lands on the green, then rolls the rest of the way to the hole as smoothly as a putt.

For many years, I had difficulty visualizing and executing that type of low, running chip shot. But with the help of teacher Paul Marchand, I’ve pretty much mastered it, and use it when dealing with certain difficult lies, or in situations when it’s better to “feed” the ball to the hole. In such predicaments, I play the ball back in my stance, with my hands ahead of it. I set 60 to 70 percent of my weight on my left foot, and leave it there throughout the action to ensure a sharp descending hit at impact. This is a handy shot, however the truth is, I prefer to hit lofted chip shots that land somewhat farther onto the green, then roll the shorter remaining distance to the hole.

Here’s an analogy that might better help you see the difference between the two styles. The running chip can almost be likened to the action of a bowler in releasing the ball down the lane. After he releases the ball from his hand, it’s in the air for just a fractional distance before contacting the lane and rolling the rest of the way to the target.

In contrast, I like to imagine playing most chip shots more softly through the air. A useful image is to think of lobbing a softball toward a four-year-old child from 10 feet away. You want to make it as easy as possible for the child to catch the ball, so you toss it at a fairly high angle to give the child time to react. Of course, you don’t want to throw a big “pop up” that the child would have to gauge like a shortstop, either — just a nice, soft, lofted toss.

Why this shot is useful

I’ll get to the execution of this kind of chip stroke shortly. But first, let me explain why I think it’s so useful, particularly on modern-day golf courses. 

Many modern courses feature greens that are more severely mounded and sloped than might have been the case 20 years ago. Say you have a chip shot that will cover 60 feet of green. If you plan to land the ball just onto the putting surface, you may have to read two or three different breaks perfectly in order to chip it close to the hole.

However, say you decide to play more of a lob-style chip, so you carry the ball 30 feet onto the green and let it roll the other 30 feet. In this case, you only need to read the green from the point where the ball will land to the hole. Thus you reduce the number of calculations you need to make and simplify your shot-planning process.

In general, I hit most of my chips with the higher-lofted clubs — the 9-iron, pitching wedge, sand wedge and lob wedge. Work with these clubs from various positions around the green, getting accustomed to the carry and roll each provides. Relying on four clubs instead of six or seven will also simplify your club-selection process.

Now that you know my basic philosophy about chipping, let’s discuss the mechanics of this scoring shot.

How to hit the high, lofted pitch shot

I try to play my chip shots similarly to the way I swing the club on my full shots, and recommend you do the same. The time-honored advice regarding the chipping stroke is that it be a relatively brief, firm-wristed punching action, in which you assume an address position with your hands well ahead of the ball, your weight mostly on your left foot, and the ball positioned back in your stance. All these address adjustments promote a steep descending motion in which the club strikes the ball in a de-lofted position, so the ball stays low to the ground. As I said earlier, there are certain situations where a firm-wristed, hands-leading approach is desirable, even necessary. But I don’t believe it’s the best approach all of the time.

Instead, consider adopting my more natural method, utilizing the following points:

Weight Evenly Balanced

For most chip shots my weight is divided evenly between the feet; if anything, I may set a touch more weight on my right foot, just as I do with the longer shots.

Ball Positioned Just Ahead of Center

Assuming you have a reasonably good lie, try playing the ball at the center or just ahead of center in a fairly narrow stance. It’s a good idea on short chips to keep your stance (and your body) slightly open in relation to your target. This will help you see the target more clearly as you’re settling in over the shot.

Hands Even With the Ball

Instead of assuming your address with your hands well ahead of the ball, try moving them back to level with the ball. This will help you to hit the ball cleanly at the bottom of your stroke. Your can put the whole clubface on the ball this way, as opposed to the “trapping” action between the leading edge of the clubface and the ball that the hands-ahead position promotes. Hitting the ball with the center of the clubface provides you with a much better feel and better control of your distance.

Right Hand Controls the Backswing

Start your backswing by taking the club back smoothly from the ball with your right hand controlling the movement. At the top of the backswing, let your right wrist hinge slightly rather than trying to make a stiff-wristed stroke. I think you’ll find that these backswing actions further enhance your feel.

You’ll notice that by using a touch of wrist action in your chipping stroke, the clubhead will move in a Ushaped arc, rising well off the ground at the top of the backswing. Don’t try to keep the clubhead unnaturally low by keeping your wrists ultra-stiff. I think this produces a wooden-type stroke that reduces the clubhead feel you’ll get by letting the right wrist hinge naturally.

The longer the chip, the higher the clubhead will rise off the ground. With practice, you’ll get the feel for exactly how you’ll carry the ball with varying clubs and varying lengths of backstroke. There’s no substitute for developing this awareness and feel for distance. In the long run, this will be practice time well spent as you’ll develop the ability to closely control the total distance — the combined carry and roll — you hit your chips. And, distance control is the most important factor in chipping. You’re much more likely to run a chip shot 10 feet past the hole or leave one 10 feet short, than you are to hit one 10 feet off-line.

Release the Club Freely Through the Ball

You should feel you’re releasing the club freely on the downswing with your right hand, so the clubhead describes the same U-shaped arc as it did going back. As you make contact, the clubhead will be moving on the rather shallow path I advocate, rather than chopping down sharply. 

You might notice that many golfers have virtually no follow-through on their chipping stroke—a result of their hands-ahead, downward stroke in which the followthrough is stunted by contact with the ground. By contrast, my right hand releases the clubhead through impact so that it describes a mirror-image arc on the followthrough to that of the backswing. You might imagine your stroke is ladling the ball toward the target with a big soup spoon.

As in the full swing, I don’t force my left hand to lead the clubhead past impact. I think this is a needlessly unnatural move. Trust your natural hand release to square the clubface to your target at impact, and you’ll achieve a soft, controlled flight that is the basis for improved chipping results.

As I stated, my chipping method will require some practice. The stroke should not be difficult to master because it’s so natural. Actually, the only thing you might have to do is to unlearn your old stiff-wristed method. That shouldn’t be too hard. However, you’ ll need to adjust your visualization of the shot so that you learn to pick the proper landing spot (closer to the hole) that your more-lofted club and lob-style will require to stop the ball stiff to the cup — or in!