The Spinning Pitch Shot

How do you hit pitch or wedge shots that hop hop hop and stop or even spin back? The answer is in the lie. To put extra backspin on the ball on a wedge shot requires that the golf ball is on a perfect lie. That is; sitting up in the fairway will with no grass behind the back of the ball. Grass that is caught in between the ball and the clubface will affect the wedge's grooves ability to bite on the ball and produce maximum backspin. So the less grass that is behind the ball, the better when attempting to put more spin on the ball.

Other external factors that influence the amount of spin that a wedge shot has is the slope of the green, wind, whether the ball is hit from an uphill or downhill lie and the firmness of the green.

It's better to hit into a green that is sloping towards you. Hitting into a green that is sloping up encourages the ball to come back when it lands into the side of the slope.

Expect even more spin if the wedge shot is hit into the wind. We know that a properly hit golf ball with any club has backspin on it, which is what allows a ball to fly through the air a long way. A head wind enhances backspin by making it spin faster. The dimples on the golf ball will act like miniature weather vanes.

If the ball is hit from an uphill lie, also expect more backspin to be imparted. If the ball is hit from a downhill lie, adding more spin will be difficult as the ball will tend to fly much hotter and lower.

Lastly, the firmness of the green plays an important role in contributing to backspin action. The green must be receptive and just right. A firm green is ideal. If the green is too soft, the green will absorb the landing and incur a deep ball mark negating backspin. If the green is too hard, the ball will land and bounce forward almost as if it were bouncing on concrete.

If all of the ideal elements to producing maximum backspin on a wedge shot, the next step is to hit correctly.

Let's examine two approaches: The high pitch shot and the low punch shot. Both of these methods can be used in pitching as well as while hitting distance wedges between 30-100 yds. These methods should not be considered if trying to hit a pitch and run shot because these methods are meant to spin the ball to stop it close to the pin. Both approaches have advantages and disadvantages given any number of scenarios on the golf course.


The High Pitch Shot
Set up to hit the high spinning pitch shot by placing the ball slightly back in the stance than normal and press the shaft of the club ahead of the ball (forward press). Do not lean the club to far ahead of the ball because it will encourage a lower trajectory. You want some forward press to ensure crisp, ball first contact. To make sure the press is not too far ahead of the ball for this shot, line of the grip with the belt buckle.

Place most of the body weight on the front foot. Tilt the spine angle slightly away from the target. Doing so will promote hitting the ball higher.

You need some wrist action here so make sure the grip pressure on the club is light to allow the wrists to cock and uncock freely.

Swing the club back using the chest to initiate the backswing. Keep the club in front of the chest and allow the wrist to cock quickly. Don't control the club. Let it rotate back with the chest naturally. Halfway back, the toe of the club should point towards the sky.

Starting the downswing is easy. Simply turn the chest and upper body back towards the target. Keep the arms in front of the chest and allow the wrist hinge to uncock into the back of the ball at impact. You will want to feel the the clubhead brushes the top of the grass as it bottoms out and clips the ball off the turf, which will send it on a floating trajectory with plenty of spin.

If the ball is hit cleanly, the ball should sail high, land and suck back a foot or so.


The High-Spinning Punch Shot
Set up to hit a low punch pitch by placing the majority of your weight on the front foot and opening up the stance. Weight on the front foot promote a steep descending swing into the back of the ball. Instead of tilting the spine angle away from the ball as in a set up for a normal iron shot, lean the upper towards the target. A forward leaning upper body further promotes a steep approach and will increase the chances of contacting the ball first before the ground.

Make an upright backswing while keeping the weight on the forward foot. Do not let the club get behind the body. Keep the arms and the club in front of the body during the swing. If the club swings to the side of the body, the swing will likely be too shallow.

Swing down into impact. The hands should lead the way with the clubhead trailing behind. At impact, the shaft of the club must lean towards the target. This pressed position will maximize ball first contact which is a must.

Through impact, do not let the forearms roll over. Instead keep the face of the club open and facing the target. This move allows the ball to roll up the face of the club longer which will generate significant backspin. Through impact FIRE the right side of the body through to create speed.

This method should produce a low penetrating wedge shot (punch) with plenty of spin. Expect the ball to hop a few times and then stop.


High or Low: Which Method is Recommended?
Although the high shot is pretty and one well hit with enough speed will display some backspin sucking action on the green, the high shot is harder to get closer to the hole without a lot of practice. The higher shot requires a little more judgment to get it right. If you were going to throw a baseball to someone you wouldn't lob it high in the air. If you did you have would to take into consideration a number of other factors to get the ball close to the person catching it. Instead, you'd throw the baseball on a more direct line to the person catching it. That's easier.

That's why I would recommend learning to hit and favor the punch wedge shot instead of the high wedge shot. Sure, there will be pressure situations when throwing it high into the air just to get the ball somewhere on the green to clear a bogey producing hazard will make more sense. But generally speaking, hitting the ball on a punched trajectory with plenty of spin to stop it close will be the shot you need.

Pitching