If you want to level up your short game, you have to be able to spin your chips and pitches around the greens. When you can do this effectively, it allows you to access event the most tucked-away hole locations.
Most recreational players have no clue how to go about generating spin with their wedges. They see what the pros do every weekend on TV and think it must be easy to put some zip on the ball around the greens. But when they get to the course, the ball rarely cooperates.
Most things the pros do on the course look easy, but in reality the shots are difficult to execute. However, when it comes to spinning shots around the greens, it’s not as tough as you might think. You just need to remember one key swing thought.
How to spin your wedges
Last week the GOLF team hosted our annual Top 100 Teachers Summit down at Cabot Citrus Farms in Florida. The event brings together some of the brightest minds in golf instruction, and every year I come away learning tons about the swing. This year was no different.
The event was full of great tips, but the one that stuck out to me came from GOLF Teacher to Watch and short-game guru Parker McLachlin, aka the Short Game Chef. While filming content with McLachlin, he explained to me the best way to hit a simple pitch shot, transforming the way I think about generating spin.
When hitting pitch shots, McLachlin instructed me to use my body as the engine of the movement. Essentially, the feeling should be to hit the shot by turning your body rather than just swinging your arms and hands.
After I started focusing on this feeling for the shot, I was amazed at how much extra spin it produced on my shots. That’s when McLachlin said the phrase that will stick with me for a long time.
“You’re generating speed in the right place.”
By using my body to drive the movement on my pitch shot, I was generating speed through the impact zone. This motion helped create spin — and without me even trying to do so.
If you’re looking to add spin to your shots around the greens, remember this phrase from McLachlin. If you can generate speed in the right place — i.e., through impact — you’ll generate more spin on your pitches and unlock a new skill in your short game.
For more great tips from McLachlin, sign up to become a Short Game Chef member below. Use promo code: GOLF50 for $50 off an annual membership.
