How to Hit a Golf Ball Just Right - Pt4: The Short Game

     We've seen how important spin becomes during the long game, but how does it come into play when the shots are shorter and more controlled? When approaching the green, accuracy and precision become more important than gaining distance. Approach shots don't curve in the air, but it suddenly starts to matter whether the ball rolls forward, backward, or stops after landing. In the short game satisfaction no longer comes from taking long, straight, powerful shots, but rather from taking gentle, high, arcing lobs that dance forward or backward after landing. So how does spin help in the short game, and how can you use it to make decisions about your swing?

    Note: this is part 4 of a series on hitting the ball just right. Read part 1 here, or read about why this matters here.

Spin in the Short Game

    Unlike in the long game, short game shots do not stay in the air long enough or move fast enough for spin to have an aerodynamic effect. There just isn't enough time or energy to move the ball off its original course. However, the short game is not about controlling where the ball goes, but about controlling where it stops. 

    Whether the shot is a long one or a short one, the spin of the ball affects what happens when it lands. Long shots have less of an effect because their forward momentum cancels out most of the sideways or backwards motion caused by spin. Short game shots don't have the same forward momentum, and spin plays a large role in the motion of the ball once it hits the ground. Low chips tend to roll forward, but backspin helps to slow the ball down. High pitches tend to stay put, but backspin can cause the ball to dance back.

    Side spin is useless in the short game. Remember that the ball launches off the club in the direction the clubface is pointing, and sidespin is used to fine-tune your aim. Because this in-air movement doesn't have time to happen in the short game, you end up with a shot that is significantly off your line. It is better simply to aim in the direction you actually want to end up, and use backspin to fine-tune your distance. 

    I'll repeat that. The long game uses the club to gain as much distance as possible and uses spin to fine-tune the direction of the shot. The short game uses the club to aim and spin to fine-tune the distance of the shot.

Chips, Pitches, and Sand Shots

    But how do you actually control the backspin on a short game shot? Well, the answer depends on the type of shot you are taking. In general the higher the type of shot, the more backspin it has. Remember that golf balls stick to the club (although much less in this type of shot than a more powerful one), and spin is caused by the clubhead moving in a different direction than it is facing. Wedges and high irons have a lot of loft, meaning that they point upwards and so naturally put backspin on the ball. In general, if the clubhead moves faster the ball will stick longer, its edge will be carried further in the same time, and it will have more spin. So how does this apply to each of the short game shots?

    Chips are low, gentle shots taken when close to the green. They tend to roll forward when landing, because their slow swing causes less backspin and the ball's forward motion cancels any backspin out. The main control for most chips comes from the swing itself, there is almost no influence on the ball from spin. Of course, if you can "pinch" the ball where it meets the ground at a higher speed, you may be able to induce enough backspin to do something, but this is risky. If you miss by even a hair you either hit the ball with the blade of the club and send it flying over the green or you hit the ground first, which can cause any number of unpredictable outcomes.

    Pitches are high, arcing shots taken when farther away from the green. The purpose of a pitch is to cover the remaining distance without rolling far, or rolling backwards a short length. A good pitch meets the ball closer to the ground than a chip does and sends it flying with a satisfying "scoop" feeling. Pitches naturally give more backspin than chips do because the clubface points higher and moves faster. Additionally, when the ball comes down it has less forward momentum and so any backspin has a greater effect. 

    Bunker shots are very similar to pitches in mechanics, but can have either a lot of backspin or very little. The difference is determined by how much sand is involved in the shot. Hits that touch the sand behind the ball and "push" the ball out of the bunker don't have much spin because the clubhead doesn't touch the ball as much if at all. Hits that meet the ball right at the sand can have very high backspin due to high clubhead speed and loft.

Summing Up

    The short game is characterized by accuracy and precision, and distance controlled with the help of spin. Backspin plays a major role in how the ball behaves after landing, and distance from the green helps to determine what kind of shot to make. Short game shots have natural backspin, but depending on the situation you may need to adjust how much spin you place on the ball. This is the last chapter on the basics of hitting the ball just right, but understanding these principles is the vital first step to making the right decisions for each and every swing.

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