Sand Play, the Modern Way

Since the lob wedge was introduced in the ‘80s, it has gradually worked its way into the bag of just about every golfer. 60- to 64- degree wedges are now commonplace in tour professionals’ sets. This club has completely changed sand play.

Previously, the accepted way to play a sand shot was to stand with your feet aimed well left of the target line (for a right-hander) and aim the clubface to the right of the target.

What then followed was a steep backswing followed by a slicing action across the ball with the clubface being held open.

A New Technique

The technique that most tour players now employ when faced with a standard greenside bunker shot is relatively simple – feet line parallel to the target line and square clubface. What follows is a straightforward swing, with the clubface being allowed to rotate through to the finish like a hooked shot.

The use of a lob wedge means that no opening of the clubface is needed, simplifying the shot. This results in a truer-running shot compared to the old shot, which had a lot of slice spin. This made it harder to predict what the ball would do on landing.

Slicing across the ball needs a lot of power to get the ball out of a bunker, whereas the square stance shot is easy to hit through the resistance of the sand. For this reason, ladies find this way of escaping the sand much easier. It’s also why tour pros make bunkers look so smooth and effortless.