Chipping Technique

[Jim Shaw]

1 hour ago, Jim418 said:

For short greenside chips where you want it to land "dead", I use a 56* wedge, set up like a putt and swing it like a putt (long smooth stroke with NO WRIST/HAND ACTION AT ALL).

Just a long, smooth stroke. You'll be shocked at how short the ball goes for how long you swing it. And it just lands dead soft (albeit with no spin). For me this discourages deceleration or rapid acceleration. Seems easier to manage distance control too.

I probably don't try to carry it more than 6ft as the stroke gets too long.

love that style, I do that on most of my chips around the green unless spin is needed and I dont generate a lot of that

[Ding-dong]

My chipping has been a disaster, I was wondering if I had the “yips” hence looking at a Ping chipr. Also my course is very bare and hard so loft is a bit of a disaster. 
I will practice the Phil M technique as I don’t want to give bag space away . My chipping used to be a really strong part of my game so I wonder if the confidence and setup has just gone.

[dinomack99]

I have changed my technique lately to simplify my chipping. I simply move my feet up to the ball just like a putt, my nose is basically right over the ball and with a wedge I simply use a putting stroke. I have about 60% of my weight on my left foot to ensure that I make a downward blow on the ball. It pops up really nicely and will roll out. You would need to experiment with the distance you get between your sand wedhe, gap wedge and pitching wedge. The fact that the toe is down and the heel is up off of the ground because you are standing so close to the ball, is key.

[saz0418]

Go to a practice green and set up some balls on the collar and in the rough.  Chip with your wedges and find the club that goes 50/50... 1:1... flies half and rolls half.   Mine is usually my 52, but it might be 56 or GW depending on conditions.  Once you have your 50/50 club, skip a club going down in loft, and the next club is 1/3 : 2/3-- meaning it flies 1/3 of the way, and rolls the other 2/3rds.  So, if my 52 degree is my 50/50 club, then I skip GW (49 degree)-- and my PW (45 degree) is my 1/3 carry chip club. 

 In a simple world, that will cover about 90% of what you encounter around the green.   So, find your 50/50 club when you get to the practice green, and you are good to go for the day.  Grab the 2 appropriate wedges and your putter when you get to the green and off you go.    If you are interested, there is quite a bit more to this whole story.   Oh, and I set up narrow, ball center, slightly open, weight forward, and often use the chip/putt motion where the wedge is more vertical, you are close to the ball, and the toe of the club contacts the ball.   You can look it up online.  It's a very popular chipping method that many, many players use. 

The "find your 50/50 club"  is based on the rule of 12 (or rule of 9, or however you want to call it).   The best description I have found is that every chipping club is approximately 10% of the fly:roll ratio.  So, if your GW is 50%, then your PW is 40% and your 9i is 30%, etc.    Same going the other way where your GW would be 50%, then your next wedge up in loft (maybe 52 or 54 degree) would be 60%, and so on.    You can see that my simple example is my 52 is my 50/50 club (so, 50% fly), and then skip GW (40%) and my PW is 1:3 (30%).  So it all works.     You can use this framework anywhere.   Generally gets me close to the hole assuming I have read the break correctly.   

Some easy mods:

- uphill lie, add one club.   

- uphill chip, add one club.   So, if you are chipping from an uphill apron to an uphill, back pin, you would add 2 clubs of loft, but hit the same aim/landing spot.   In my example, instead of 52 degree, half way there-- I would hit PW.   

- if you need (or want) to land in the apron or collar (closely mowed), add a club for that.   

- uphill and downhill:  I always pace my distance when I enter the green as I walk to my ball.   You can add or subtract paces to account for uphill and down hill chips pretty easy.  If I know I want to hit it firm uphill (say, 2 paces past the hole), then I add 2 to my distance.  I work in paces and not feet because its easy.  9 paces to my ball (level), I will it 3 paces on (1/3) and let it roll out.  If there is not room for 3 paces, then I go to the next club up.   

- likewise, you can go UP one club in loft if you are chipping from a downhill lie and/or chipping to a downhill roll.   Might be more depending on the severity of the slope.   General 2 -5 % slopes around the green, one club is often adequate.  

- another caveat:   the "mulitplier" gets bigger the less loft you use to chip.   My 52 degree wedge (typically) flies 1/2 and rolls half.  The ration is 1:1.   Meaning, if I miss my landing spot by 1 yard long or short, then I will be 1 yard long or short of the pin.   If you chip with a 7 iron (example), it flies 1/4, rolls 3/4.   So, if you miss your landing spot by 1 yard, you miss the pin by 3 YARDS!   So your misses are magnified.  In theory, this is balanced by the idea that its easier to hit a spot closer to you  with a 7 iron (say, maybe 3 paces away ) than one farther away with your 50/50 wedge.  But,  I say you need to do some practice and see what you are good at.   If you can land a ball with your 50/50 wedge within, say, an area the size of a kids swimming pool from 10, 20 or 30 paces away, you will always be within 5 or 6 feet of the flag.  Some people just seem to have that knack.   If not,  employ as many clubs as you need.   The simple 50/50 and 1/3, 2/3rds model is pretty easy to work with.   

I am almost 65 and play to an 8/9 HDCP.   I am not a long hitter, so I spend a good bit of focus on my wedges (inside 100 yards) and chipping and pitching around the green.    

Sorry if this is too long-winded or technical.  I was an Engineer in my career.  Some would say I still am.  LOL

Good Luck.  

Edited September 25 by saz0418

[MarvChamp]

I seldom go high, seek to go low, and work on distance. 8-iron with a putting stroke mostly. Putter if I can get it off the fringe.

[Oudefart]

 

Seems to me just at looking at these stats alone, the problem is 3/15 greens!    Hit more greens in regulation and your won’t have to chip at all.

 

[LinksgolfFever]

As brief as possible……anything around the green regardless of carry/total distance required.  
Narrow stance (about 1 club head between your feet) and slightly open to your target line.

Weight distribution F/B 50/50-60/40

set up with ball on the instep of your back foot(slightly behind center)

Hover club head right behind the ball (don’t ground the club)

Club face position square to open depending on length and height needed for shot

forward press hands/grip (1/2 way between center and left side of left leg)

smooth swing tempo, accelerate into the ball.

This works for me to hit pretty much any shot around the green (15 yards or closer).  Clubface position, club head speed, swing length are the key variables for me, the rest of it is my blueprint to set up the chip.

hope this helps

 

[Thisway84]

3 hours ago, saz0418 said:

Go to a practice green and set up some balls on the collar and in the rough.  Chip with your wedges and find the club that goes 50/50... 1:1... flies half and rolls half.   Mine is usually my 52, but it might be 56 or GW depending on conditions.  Once you have your 50/50 club, skip a club going down in loft, and the next club is 1/3 : 2/3-- meaning it flies 1/3 of the way, and rolls the other 2/3rds.  So, if my 52 degree is my 50/50 club, then I skip GW (49 degree)-- and my PW (45 degree) is my 1/3 carry chip club. 

 In a simple world, that will cover about 90% of what you encounter around the green.   So, find your 50/50 club when you get to the practice green, and you are good to go for the day.  Grab the 2 appropriate wedges and your putter when you get to the green and off you go.    If you are interested, there is quite a bit more to this whole story.   Oh, and I set up narrow, ball center, slightly open, weight forward, and often use the chip/putt motion where the wedge is more vertical, you are close to the ball, and the toe of the club contacts the ball.   You can look it up online.  It's a very popular chipping method that many, many players use. 

The "find your 50/50 club"  is based on the rule of 12 (or rule of 9, or however you want to call it).   The best description I have found is that every chipping club is approximately 10% of the fly:roll ratio.  So, if your GW is 50%, then your PW is 40% and your 9i is 30%, etc.    Same going the other way where your GW would be 50%, then your next wedge up in loft (maybe 52 or 54 degree) would be 60%, and so on.    You can see that my simple example is my 52 is my 50/50 club (so, 50% fly), and then skip GW (40%) and my PW is 1:3 (30%).  So it all works.     You can use this framework anywhere.   Generally gets me close to the hole assuming I have read the break correctly.   

Some easy mods:

- uphill lie, add one club.   

- uphill chip, add one club.   So, if you are chipping from an uphill apron to an uphill, back pin, you would add 2 clubs of loft, but hit the same aim/landing spot.   In my example, instead of 52 degree, half way there-- I would hit PW.   

- if you need (or want) to land in the apron or collar (closely mowed), add a club for that.   

- uphill and downhill:  I always pace my distance when I enter the green as I walk to my ball.   You can add or subtract paces to account for uphill and down hill chips pretty easy.  If I know I want to hit it firm uphill (say, 2 paces past the hole), then I add 2 to my distance.  I work in paces and not feet because its easy.  9 paces to my ball (level), I will it 3 paces on (1/3) and let it roll out.  If there is not room for 3 paces, then I go to the next club up.   

- likewise, you can go UP one club in loft if you are chipping from a downhill lie and/or chipping to a downhill roll.   Might be more depending on the severity of the slope.   General 2 -5 % slopes around the green, one club is often adequate.  

- another caveat:   the "mulitplier" gets bigger the less loft you use to chip.   My 52 degree wedge (typically) flies 1/2 and rolls half.  The ration is 1:1.   Meaning, if I miss my landing spot by 1 yard long or short, then I will be 1 yard long or short of the pin.   If you chip with a 7 iron (example), it flies 1/4, rolls 3/4.   So, if you miss your landing spot by 1 yard, you miss the pin by 3 YARDS!   So your misses are magnified.  In theory, this is balanced by the idea that its easier to hit a spot closer to you  with a 7 iron (say, maybe 3 paces away ) than one farther away with your 50/50 wedge.  But,  I say you need to do some practice and see what you are good at.   If you can land a ball with your 50/50 wedge within, say, an area the size of a kids swimming pool from 10, 20 or 30 paces away, you will always be within 5 or 6 feet of the flag.  Some people just seem to have that knack.   If not,  employ as many clubs as you need.   The simple 50/50 and 1/3, 2/3rds model is pretty easy to work with.   

I am almost 65 and play to an 8/9 HDCP.   I am not a long hitter, so I spend a good bit of focus on my wedges (inside 100 yards) and chipping and pitching around the green.    

Sorry if this is too long-winded or technical.  I was an Engineer in my career.  Some would say I still am.  LOL

Good Luck.  

This offers some great advice! Thanks! While off the bat my mind is swirling a bit in the detail but I love the thought of finding that 50/50 club. At the moment, everything is complete feel for me and it has been improving but sometimes my visualization feels a bit like a prayer. Finding that 50/50 could help solve some of that guess work.

[billybogey]

K.I.S.S.!! Took me awhile to learn. 

But, is paying off as Feet are closer to-gether, Weight on Left Foot, Opened Stance, Moved hands Down on Shaft.

Cleared "Head" & Swing Back & Thru.

Plus; really enjoy hitting "Flop Shot" as "Tick's Off" Young Guns. Big Time!!

Yippee!!

 

Edited September 25 by billybogey

[Thisway84]

2 hours ago, Oudefart said:

 

Seems to me just at looking at these stats alone, the problem is 3/15 greens!    Hit more greens in regulation and your won’t have to chip at all.

 

Without a doubt! That session gave me lots of opportunities to practice up and downs... That's how I chose to look at it, otherwise I probably would have cried. Just got done with a round where I hit 8/18 which is much better, however I had bogey's the last three holes to shoot an 80. I'm blaming the active verticuting, top dressing, watering, jet engine blowing of the greens the whole round for that...

[Thisway84]

3 minutes ago, billybogey said:

K.I.S.S.!! Take me awhile to learn. 

But, is paying off as Feet are closer to-gether, Weight on Left Foot, Opened Stance, Moved hands Down on Shaft.

Cleared "Head" & Swing Back & Thru.

Plus; really enjoy hitting "Flop Shot" as "Tick's Off" Young Guns. Big Time!!

Yippee!!

 

When in doubt, open 'er up and swing hard!

[Thisway84]

Chipping is probably the #2 most mental part of the game aside from putting. The last few rounds I have been dialing in my intention and target. I have been seeing nice results through doing some journaling and keeping up with this thread. I have driven my average distance from 23ft to 14ft and my putting make conversion has gone from 36% to 44% which are all huge gains. I have never been a big journaler. I always felt as if there was no point when your swing thoughts and analysis in your head are solid. I'm seeing the benefit of some of that practice though. Thanks again for all the insight, I've really been enjoying the dialogue.

[Mike in Sarasota]

I was very good around the greens for many years, as I got older it declined and it bugged the s… out of me, then I tried cross handed from 15 yards and in and I am now “back” and hole  about 1 a week.  Try left hand low and focus on the right hand.

[cnosil]

52 minutes ago, Thisway84 said:

Chipping is probably the #2 most mental part of the game aside from putting.  The last few rounds I have been dialing in my intention and target.

What do you mean it is the most mental part of the game?     My  studies about course management; specifically DECADE, I think golf become less mental and is more the ability to actually execute the shot.  Golf is really about getting ride of your mental discussions and being able to commit which applies equally to every shot in golf.  I view your intention and target as simply a calculation and not a mental exercise.   Basically make a decision, commit to the decision, and live with the results.   I really liked what Bernhard Langer said during an interview that the mental part of golf is a myth.  

 

https://www.golfdigest.com/story/bernard-langer-golf-90-percent-mental-myth

 

[Thisway84]

53 minutes ago, cnosil said:

What do you mean it is the most mental part of the game?     My  studies about course management; specifically DECADE, I think golf become less mental and is more the ability to actually execute the shot.  Golf is really about getting ride of your mental discussions and being able to commit which applies equally to every shot in golf.  I view your intention and target as simply a calculation and not a mental exercise.   Basically make a decision, commit to the decision, and live with the results.   I really liked what Bernhard Langer said during an interview that the mental part of golf is a myth.  

 

https://www.golfdigest.com/story/bernard-langer-golf-90-percent-mental-myth

 

I certainly agree that golf is nowhere near 90% mental. I also agree that intent and target is part of the calculation. I feel the mental side of things come in after you have committed. The main thing that can make you mess up the shot is if you let the intrusive thoughts in as you are standing over the ball. As a single digit handicaper, I know I have a lot of shots in my bag to make things happen. When I do duff the ball or skull it, it is typically due to a mental lapse that takes me out of my commitment. If I hit the ball well and just miss my target, then that is typically a miscalculation or I don't have the skill to match my intent.

In general, I don't feel the mental game has a huge impact off the tee or on the approach unless you are someone who struggles with swing thoughts. Just grip it and rip it, then it's onto the next shot wherever that may be. Chipping and putting have more of a mental aspect because you are trying to hit an increasingly smaller target which you are not looking at when addressing the ball. The "mental game" comes into play for me as a tool to clear my head and simply let my body do what I have trained it to do. I am not someone who thinks if I visualize the ball going into the cup then my brainpower will make it happen. It is all a fine balance that I have been trying to grow in and will continue to do so.

[cnosil]

39 minutes ago, Thisway84 said:

In general, I don't feel the mental game has a huge impact off the tee or on the approach unless you are someone who struggles with swing thoughts. Just grip it and rip it, then it's onto the next shot wherever that may be. Chipping and putting have more of a mental aspect because you are trying to hit an increasingly smaller target which you are not looking at when addressing the ball. 

I personally disagree a bit with your assessment.   I look at my target when I am addressing tee and approach shots.   The degree of error for face at impact is about 1* for short putts and 300 yard tee shots.   Tee shot, approach shot, chip, or putt pick a target, setup, and them make your stroke basically the same. 

[Donn lost in San Diego]

Don Martin Up-N-In chipper.  Circa late 1950s or early 1960s.  I think it is bronze.  Flat face, about 25 degree loft ??  I know, most golfers don't want to add a club, they want a versatile wedge.  But look at your 14 clubs and see which one you use the least, and do you adjust your bag to different courses?  I think many golfers can drop a long iron or hybrid or fairway.  Or adjust what loft wedges you carry if you don't need one to chip from near or on the fringe. Or look at  Stan Thompson of Ginty fame, also made a chipper called Closup, which I have also, but I think it is for longer chip shots compared to the Don Martin.  Ping just came out with a chipper too. 

[Donn lost in San Diego]

3 hours ago, Mike in Sarasota said:

I was very good around the greens for many years, as I got older it declined and it bugged the s… out of me, then I tried cross handed from 15 yards and in and I am now “back” and hole  about 1 a week.  Try left hand low and focus on the right hand.

Brian Harman, the 19 yr old Thai gal who won a few weeks ago on the LPGA, both use the same cross handed that I do.  It took a while to figure out exatly what and how to use the front low hand, see videos of those 2, it is similar to mine, for putting mostly, but can be good chipping too. 

[Thisway84]

1 hour ago, cnosil said:

I personally disagree a bit with your assessment.   I look at my target when I am addressing tee and approach shots.   The degree of error for face at impact is about 1* for short putts and 300 yard tee shots.   Tee shot, approach shot, chip, or putt pick a target, setup, and them make your stroke basically the same. 

I totally get that. This is what makes this game so awesome. So many schools of thought that are then applied differently 100x's over all to get a white ball in a round hole...

I was struggling with my driver earlier this year taking a similar approach but found I was selecting targets and shot shapes that I had no business creating. I ditched that and simply went with the mentality to aim middle of the fairway and swing hard. Previously I would consistently shut the face down and end up with a long iron into the hole or in the trees. Today I only hit 4/14 fairways but averaged 245yds off the tee and had shots into the green on 9/10 that I "missed" averaging 140yds to the pin. I always aim middle of fairway on tee shots and middle of green on approaches. So for myself, the intentionality and targeting ramps up a bit for chipping and putting. This is in a way where this thread was born from as I realized I needed a place to gather some insights and different perspectives on handling green-side chipping.

And you know what? Next month I will probably see lots of flaws in this current approach and shift my mindset in a different direction. Such is the game of golf...

[Glennyboy]

Good question although you’re asking for a slew of answers that will kind of deviate from it 

just gonna assume the conditions are the most standard default as can be so both pins from the same spot with it being level to the green and both pins not being tucked to the edges and having at least 5-6 paces. Greens being friendly speed around 9 on a stimp with avg receptiveness. And obviously no obstruction or hazard between ball and green.
 

Since these call for relatively default shots I assume you just want what changes we make to these standard default shots. One presumably will be of a lower flighted and the other more of a higher apex variety. I haven’t read through all the replies and may be not the most chosen method but in terms of pre shot setup I would not change a thing. 
 

My setup will be identical in terms of having a narrow stance (maybe a clubs width apart), weight forward but more like shifting your weight forward to feel like your shoulders are level, ball position is the same with mine being maybe slightly forward of center (it could be middle but I feel like my eyes are over my left heel so it seems forward), and have a slightly weak grip on left hand along with a relaxed feel on my left wrist/elbow area. 
 

From there it’s for me all about the shot I’m trying to hit. The further pin I’ll have more of a quicker tempo back and through or a quick one two and have a feel the butt end of the club staying on the left hip. 
 

the closer pin I’ll have more of a deliberate tempo with a slower tempo of a Ooonnee Twwwooo to have time to have the face square up and feel like the butt end of the club finish pointing at my right toe. Then it’s all about practicing and getting your feels and distance down. 
 

You can use whatever club you feel most comfortable with. I prefer to use the same club. I've always use just one club and can manipulate the face at impact to do what’s needed. Easier to just have one setup and have multiple shots with it then a whole slew of clubs with multiple setups that leads to inconsistencies. If they are on the same spot with just the pin being different I think it’s more detrimental having two different setups. 

oh and I have the face just slightly open to expose just a tad of bounce so I’m not pointing the leading edge to sharply on both type of shots. I use a wedgeworks T grind 60° so pretty unforgiving in terms of bounce but I chip and pitch with the leading edge and don’t like using the bounce to chip.