Short Chip From The Apron

The Short Chip from the Apron

When they are faced with a short chip from the apron of a green,
most players feel compelled to try to loft the ball up to the
pin. Their thinking here seems to be that every shot in golf,
except the putt, has to travel through the air in a high arc and
land right at the target. The result is that a great many
golfers either use too lofted a club from the edge of the green
or they make an even more serious mistake: they try to scoop the
ball up—with faulty wrist action, of course.

Actually, the shot to play from the edge is a run-up-the kind of
shot where the ball is hit a short distance in the air and then
gradually sits down and rolls the rest of the way to the cup, as
a putt does. The club to use is one of the middle irons—from the
four-iron through the seven-iron, depending on the terrain and
your own choice of clubs. (I generally go with the six-iron.)

To play a chip-and-run shot, the player must hit the ball first,
the turf afterward. To do this, he must be sure and keep his
wrists firm and to address the ball with his hands slightly
ahead of the ball. The feet should be no more than ten inches
apart, the stance slightly open. With this unspectacular but
sound method, you won't be leaving yourself eight- and
ten-footers to hole. After a while you'll have five-footers or
less.

 

Richard Myers