Do your Pitches Hit and Stick?

If they don’t, you’re adding dozens of strokes to your scores. Closing the club face at address is one reason pitches often fail to hit and stick. “Hooding” the club like that creates less spin on the ball and lower ball flight.

That makes it almost impossible for the ball to stick when it hits. Failing to hold the green with an approach Shot is among the most common mistakes weekend golfers make and why they can’t break 80.

One key to hitting Pitches that stick is to open the clubface at address. That adds more spin to your shot, which helps the ball stick when it lands. You can also get shots to hold by hinging your wrists and allowing the natural rotation of your lead arm to open the clubface as you come down.

This adjustment produces higher, softer shots that land softly on the green and stay. That, in turn, helps set you up for par and chops strokes off your score.

Here’s a drill you can practice to master this technique:

Paper Plate Golf Drill

Take four paper plates—or any target that’s easily visible—and put one at 20, 30, 40, and 50 yards away. Now hit pitch shots to each of the plates. Hit several in a row to the same target. Make sure you open the clubface at address when you do. Switch targets when you feel comfortable hitting to a target.

Keep switching targets until you’ve gone through all of them. This effort builds consistency. At the end of practice, hit one shot to each of the various targets. Keep working on this golf drill until you’ve achieved a natural feel for the shot.

The key to hitting the targets is dialing in the feel by trusting your swing. As you practice the drill, vary the distances and the number of shots to each target. That ensures that the feel you’re ingraining is natural and not mechanical.

Mastering this technique will help you land pitches that stick, setting you up for pars and cutting strokes from your scores. If you’re serious about breaking 80, you’ll work hard on learning this golf skill.

The post Land Pitches Close to Break 80 appeared first on How To Break 80.