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A Drill to Help You Master Chips From Tight Lies

By Randy Taylor, Teaching Professional

When facing a chip from a tight lie, it’s crucial to hit the ball before the ground.

Amateurs usually make one of two mistakes on this type of shot. They hit too far behind the ball, which leads to heavy contact and a stubbed chip, or they flip their hands and try to pick the ball clean, which leads to thin shots screaming over the green.

Here’s a great drill to master the proper swing path and impact for this type of chip. First, set yourself up with a tight lie about 5-10 yards from your target. Second, put an alignment stick about 5 inches behind the ball. Once this setup is complete, work on hitting chips without hitting the alignment stick on either the backswing or the downswing. (See the video below.)

This drill forces you to get the club up quickly and hit the ball first with a downward strike. You will naturally lean the shaft forward, which stabilizes the clubface at impact and adds backspin for drop-and-stop control.

If you work hard on this drill, you’ll master the tight-lie chip in just a few sessions.

Want to work on your game with Randy Taylor? Book a lesson at The Bridge Golf Learning Center today.