Sand traps are not only more difficult to play than a regular lie shot they can also work on self confidence and wear you down mentaly. The first thing to set straight in your mind is that with a few basics under your belt and practice sand shots are really not that impossable.

First check your lie and determine how deep your ball is and the moisture of the sand. Depending on your lie and and how much green their is to the hole you can begin to determine how much of stroke you will need. The single biggest mistake golfers will make is that they do not complete their follow through. They often make a quick stab at the ball and look up before completing their stroke. 

If your ball is not buried and is setting on top of the sand then a few adjustments to your regular swing is all that is neccessary. However if your ball is buried then lightly choke up on the club and open the club face a bit. Also open your stance slightly and put a little more weight on your front foot. Try and keep your lower body as stable as you can. Dig your feet into the sand by by gently wiggling your feet once you have your body in postion. This will provide you with much greater stability. Remember to also keep your shoulders and hip open just like your feet.

Your goal is to hit behind the ball about two to three inches. To avoid from either hitting to close or to far way from the ball make a line in the sand where you want your club head to enter.  Put weight on your front leg and lean the club slightly forward. You want the front edge of the club face to get under the ball and the sand wedge will lift the ball out. 

More Related Articles on Sandtrap Shots: 

• Golf 101 Tips » Getting out of the sand – A Golfer’s recovery tip – You’re typically going to be using the sand wedge as this club gives you the greatest loft, although if you feel that you don’t have to knock the ball as high but want the ball to travel some distance from a fairway bunker you can use …
• What is Bounce? – A sand wedge, or sand iron, is a type of golf club primarily designed for use out of sand bunkers. It has the widest sole of any wedge, which provides the greatest amount of bounce, allowing the club head to glide through sand and avoid …

The Sand Wedge has been designed with one primary focus…to get the ball out of the sand and preferably onto the green.

To do this it has a reasonable amount of loft (usually 56 degrees) to get the ball up in the air. However if you were to use a normal wedge to play a bunker shot you would have to be very careful that it does not cut deep into the sand. To counteract this effect, the sand wedge has what is called “bounce” – it has a wide curved sole. If you place your sand wedge on firm level ground you will likely notice that the front edge sits up to ¼ inch off the ground…this is the “bounce”. What this does is to prevent the sand wedge sinking into the sand as you play a shot. It literally skims or bounces through the sand.

Opening the Club Face

Now, what happens if you follow conventional wisdom and open the club face of the sand wedge when you are in the bunker? Well again try it on a firm flat surface and you will notice how much higher the leading edge is now! So opening the club face creates more bounce, and if you are not careful (especially in firm bunkers), you will find the club will literally bounce through the sand and you can easily thin the ball straight into the face of the bunker!

Square it up!

So next time you are in the bunker, and you have your sand wedge in hand, try setting up much less open, with the club face square to the target. This is how the sand wedge was designed to be used…and you may be surprised how much easier it becomes.

MARK PEARSON plays and coaches golf professionally in the UK. With over 25 years golfing experience, Mark teaches a combination of good technique and proper course management techniques to enable golfers to get the most from their games.

Mark is the author of “How to Master Putting and Putt like a Pro”, and offers a FREE E-Course available at http://www.masterputting.com/

(c) Copyright – Mark Pearson. All Rights Reserved Worldwide.

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The sand wedge gets no respect. Many weekend golfers use it just for getting out of greenside bunkers. That’s because it’s hard to hit from the fairway. Even veteran golfers sometimes have problems hitting it from the fairway. But in the hands of a skilled player, the sand wedge is a potent offensive weapon that can help dramatically lower your scores and chop strokes off your golf handicap.

The key to transforming the sand wedge into a scoring club, as I tell students taking my golf lessons, is understanding how best to use it for full shots from the fairway and for touch shots around the green. Learning how to hit a sand wedge in these situations takes time and practice. It also takes concentration. But it’s worth it. If you looking to take your golf game to another level, the sand wedge is just what the doctor ordered.

Getting Out Of Trouble

Slashing strokes off your golf handicap means making the right decisions. It’s also means not compounding your mistakes. For example, weekend golfers who hit bad drives often compound their mistakes by taking a 5-iron or hybrid and trying to blast their way out of trouble, which is difficult if the rough is deep. Mis-hitting the shot, they find themselves still in deep rough facing another tough shot.

You have two goals when you hit into trouble. The first is finding a way to get out of trouble and onto the fairway with the least amount of risk. The second is hitting the ball solidly. A sand wedge helps you achieve both goals. It’s leading edge cuts through deep rough, enabling you to hit the ball cleanly and solidly. Next time you’re in trouble, consider the sand wedge. It’s a sure-fire way of getting out of trouble.

Hitting Approach Shots

The sand wedge is also ideal for hitting approach shots. With 56 degrees of loft, it provides precision when you need it the most. When combined with a pitching wedge (48 degrees) and a loft-wedge (62 degrees), it is a key component of a three-club system for getting it close. For additional precision, add a gap wedge (52 degrees). Learn to hit these wedges with short, medium, and long swings, and you’ll have a great way of hitting the green from anywhere inside of 100 yards.

To hit fairway wedge shots, you must rotate the clubface open, just like you do with any full shot. Also, learn to trust the loft on your club. Resist the urge to try and help the ball in the air by focusing on your finish position, not on impact. For example, it you want to hit a 70 percent shot with your wedge, focus on finishing with a follow-through slightly shorter than a full-wedge follow-through, not on what happens to the ball.

Hitting Shots Close To The Green

The sand wedge works well for delicate shots around the green. These are shots you can’t afford to mis-hit because they can cost you strokes. To hit them with a sand wedge, you must learn to control trajectory with the club. You can learn to hit wedge shots low or high by making some simple setup adjustments, instead of changing the way you swing.

For a low shot, strengthen your grip (turn your hands away from the target), move the ball back in your stance, and close your shoulders. Keep the clubface aimed at the target. For a high shot, weaken your grip (turn your hands toward the target), move the ball forward in your stance, and open your shoulders. Again, keep the clubface aimed at the target. The club follows your shoulder line and produces the right loft.

One Drill For The Sand Wedge

Many drills teach you how to hit a sand wedge. But if you have time to practice only one, use the Two Tee Drill:

To grove a shallower path into the ball, take a tee and break it in half. Stick the pointy half in the ground an inch behind the ball, angled at the target. Take a second tee and stick in the ground an inch in front of the ball, also angled at the target. Now hit practice shots, clipping both tees from the grass.

If you’re swing is too steep, you’ll catch only the second tee. If you’re swing is too shallow, you’ll catch only the first tee. Hit both tees and you’re hitting it pure.

Don’t disrespect the sand wedge. It’s more versatile than you think. In addition to a greenside bunker, use it for getting out of the rough, hitting approach shots inside of 100 yards, and executing delicate shots around the green. Master the sand wedge and you’ll have a great tool for lopping strokes off your golf handicap.

Jack Moorehouse is the author of the best-selling book How To Break 80 And Shoot Like The Pros. He is NOT a golf pro, rather a working man that has helped thousands of golfers from all seven continents lower their handicap immediately. Free weekly newsletter available with the latest golf tips, lessons and instructions.

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Getting out of a bunker can be regarded as one of the most difficult shots in golf but actually most pros would prefer to be playing from a greenside bunker than the rough.

If you master the basics you can always look forward to playing out of a bunker and not regard it as a so called hazard.

In this article I will be sharing with you four key checks to go through each time you step into a bunker, if you follow these steps it will be easy for you to hit balls out with ease and control.

Open the Clubface

When stepping into the sand make sure your clubface is open so much that it lies flat on the ground. With the face pointing straight up, with the club in position take your grip of the club. The clubface being open will ensure it triggers bounce and the club glides through the sand, this will stop the club being dug into the ground. When in the bunker, point the clubface directly towards the target holding it above the ground about two inches behind the ball, which is where the club will enter the sand.

Shuffle your Feet

You need to ensure your feet are stable in the sand, to do this shuffle your feet into the sand. This will also give you an idea of the thickness of the sand. Your swing arc will be lowered when you bury your feet into the sand which will help you hit into the sand before hitting the ball. Take your stance making sure the ball is just inside your left heel, with your hands in line with your left thigh, with your weight 70% to the left side (opposite for left handers). This stance will really help you to regularly hit your ball out of the sand and increase your confidence.

Aim Left of the Target

The clubface as stated in the last step should be pointing to the target, with the club in place you now need to point your body in the correct direction. So move your body about 45 degrees left of the target, with an open stance ensuring your shoulders, hips, feet and knees are aiming left. This angle is the line your swing should be following.

Swing Out-To-In

Now your swing should go along the line of your feet. With your stance open your swing will complete a slightly steeper out-to-in path in relation to the target line. Your swing should be quite short, ensuring your wrists hinge which will ensure your club is always pointing to the target line during the backswing. The downswing needs to be completed with some power and speed to glide through the sand and hit the ball out.

Hitting ever bunker shot out first time is simple to achieve if you follow these basic proven steps in this article. You soon can be happy walking up to play any bunker shot and use these steps to splash shots out with control and ease.

James Powell has put together a complimentary report on the golf slice which will help you cure the golf slice quickly. To download it instantly visit
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The truth is that when you know what to do, there really isn’t very much to be afraid of. Whether you’re splashing your way out of a green-side bunker or escaping a fairway trap, if you have the right techniques you will soon discover that getting your ball out of the sand can be one of the simpler shots you’ll play.

Adjusting your setup is key. Dig your feet into the sand and get a more solid foundation for your shot. When playing out of a green-side bunker, aim just to the left of the target if you are right-handed, and just to the right if you are left-handed. For fairway bunker shots, try to hit the sand 1 inches (2.5cm) behind the ball. For all bunker shots, keep your eyes focused on the point at which you want the club-face to enter the sand. Whatever your position, remember to accelerate through the ball.

1. Fairway Bunkers

Fairway bunkers are usually fairly shallow and allow you to make regular club selections according to the distance you need to make. For shots from green-side bunkers, which are often quite steep, you’ll need to use a sand wedge.

This is an iron that has a very lofted face (typically 56 degrees) and is specially designed to bounce off the under-surface of a bunker. Its fat profile produces an explosion of sand that helps lift the ball out of bunker and onto the green. Never ground your club in the sand before you play a bunker shot! If you do, you’ll face a penalty.

Finding your ball in a fairway bunker presents an entirely different challenge from being caught in a green-side sand trap. You’ll need to take a much longer shot, so you’ll be using a different club. You won’t be trying to achieve an explosive effect when splashing out of a bunker near the green – instead, you should aim to nip the ball off the top of the sand.

2. Green-side Bunkers

It may sound strange, but when playing the green-side bunker shot you should deliberately aim to miss the ball. This is because your target is an area of sand about 2.5 cm (an inch or so) behind the ball. Striking the surface of the bunker here creates a pocket of sand that helps to lift the ball up and forward, and out of the sand trap.

As you swing back towards the ball you should feel as if you’re cutting across the ball, or, as golf coaches say, from outside to in. While this may feel unnatural, trust your swing. Even though you think you’re going to hit the ball too far left, the fact that your club-face is open will actually take the ball to the right.

As ever, it’s vital that you accelerate through the ball when you play your shot. Similarly, you should also make a proper follow-through with a good hip and shoulder turn. The last thing you want is the club stopping in the sand and the ball staying in the bunker.

All in all, golf bunkers are nothing to fear: With the right training and tactics, you’ll be able to escape sand traps with ease.

After learning about golf bunker shots, you might want to check out this great collection of the best golf tutorials on the internet. These are essential tools that will help you play better golf in as little as 12 hours. Click here to see a review of best golf lessons now! –> http://bestgolflessons.net

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How many times have you stood on the tee or in the fairway and thought to yourself “stay out of that sand”? And then you settle in to take the shot, make contact with the ball, and you know immediately, instinctively that your ball is flying like an arrow towards that trap? It seems so unfair that you make all that effort, only to by stymied by a pile of beautifully raked sand! It’s as if the ball is being pulled by a great big powerful magnet directly to the place that you did not want it to go.

And this is in fact exactly what did happen. I mean this figuratively, not literally, of course. It was your own thinking, and the associated emotion which drove that ball into the trap. You probably think that this just cannot be so, that you were thinking about the ball staying out of the trap, that you were begging the ball to stay out, willing it to not go into that trap. Your mind however sometimes works in ways which may seem to the uninitiated to be rather perverse.

If you want to play great golf, if you want to stay out of those traps, then you need to know how your mind works. It is readily accepted that 90% of great golf is in your mind, so it pays to know how your mind works and to train your mind in the ways of successful golfers. The first rule to remember is that where there is a conflict between your will power and your imagination, your imagination wins. This is fact.

Let’s see if we can demonstrate this quickly. Try as hard as you can, right now, to NOT see a sand trap. What happened? What color was the sand? To expand on this point, when you last stood on the tee thinking “don’t go in the trap” what do you think was the image which you saw in your mind’s eye? Is it possible that you saw the ball in the trap, or simply an image of the trap? One thing I can guarantee is that this thought process will not elicit a picture of the ball sitting up in the middle of the lush green fairway.

Once you know a couple of the basic ways in which your mind can be so seemingly perverse, you can train your mind to play great golf. This can be expedited with the help of golf hypnosis. With hypnosis you have access to the inner workings of your mind so you can embed a great golf mind set easily and quickly. With golf hypnosis cds or golf hypnosis downloads you can train your brain to see what you want to happen as opposed to what you do not want to occur.

The second mental rule to consider is that the power of your emotions associated with your thought will directly affect the outcome. A thought without an emotion will have no effect. A thought which carries a great amount of emotion will have a great effect. Hence when you were “begging” your golf ball to stay out of the trap, you created a high emotional energy charge, and this was attached to what you were picturing (the trap), which combined to create a significant magnetic effect. Your emotion and visual image magnetized your golf ball right into the trap.

Your mind is amazingly powerful. You just need to know how it works and then you can train your mind to play great golf, with the help of golf hypnosis. You can learn to stay out of the traps and on the fairway with a little help from golf hypnosis.

Roseanna Leaton, golf psychologist, enthusiastic golfer and author of the GolferWithin golf mind training cds and hypnosis downloads.

http://www.RoseannaLeaton.com
http://www.GolferWithin.com

The best policy when playing golf is to stay out of trouble. But any golfer good or bad knows that is an impossibility. There are too many demons lying in wait for an errant drive or iron shot.

Woods, roughs and gaping sand traps are waiting to gobble up the golf ball, send our golf handicap soaring and make our golf round a miserable experience. So how do we battle these Ogres of the fairway?

The one that scares golfers the most is the golf sand trap. The golfer looks out at the fairway and sees enough sand to cover a desert, or at least it seems that way. That is why they are called a hazard. Sand traps and other trouble spots are put on a golf course to work on your mind. Upon seeing all these trouble spots, the first thought is, how to avoid them.

This places them more into the mind and the hazard becomes a target, whether we realize it or not. By trying so hard to avoid trouble the golfer unknowingly uses them as a magnet. Why do you suppose it is so hard for some golfers to hit over water? If the water hazard was just grass, the golfer would think nothing of it. But because the fear of hitting your golf ball into the water arises, that is where you hit it. Into the water.

But right now we are concerned with getting out of a sand trap and golf sand shots that you can utilize to get out of them.

If the ball has just rolled down into the trap and is not buried, just square or slightly open the club face, take a normal stance with the weight just a little on the back foot. Use a steep, vertical backswing, keeping your lower body still. Don’t shift your weight until you hit the sand. Keep the head down and follow through in a normal way.

Now, if you have been unlucky enough to hit it into the trap on the fly and it settled into the sand to a point where only about half of the ball is visible, this will require a little different tactics:

Choke down on the sand wedge about 2 inches from the bottom of the grip.

Open your stance a little from normal.

This time put most of your weight on your front foot (you are going to have to dig that rascal out of there).

Close the club face and press your hands forward.

It is very important that you keep your lower body still.

Take a steep backswing and keep your left arm going to lead the shot.

As you start the downswing, keep the weight on the front foot (don’t shift your weight).

Hit about 2 inches behind the ball. By hitting 2 inches behind the ball you actually cause the sand to lift the ball and your wedge doesn’t even touch the ball. If you try to hit the ball first you will just drive it back into the sand.

Don’t stop once you hit the sand. You must follow through to the top of the swing.

A good way to practice this shot is to put a ball into the sand trap and step on it until you see only the top of the ball.

Using these tips can get you to playing better golf right now.

You can become a better than average golfer. All you need are a few tips that are easy to understand and adapt to your game. Harry Archer a tournament and match play golfer with years of experience offers these tips and other useful information on golf at http://www.golfshotswiz.com/how-to-play-great-golf-in-tough-competition/.

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