What Is the Short Game in Golf?

Saving strokes on your scorecard isn’t about booming 300-yard drives, it’s about what you do in the crucial 100 yards leading up to the hole. This area is called the short game, and it's where scores are made and broken. This guide will walk you through exactly what the short game is, breaking down the core shots - putting, chipping, pitching, and bunker play - so you can understand not just how to hit them, but more importantly, when to hit them.

What Exactly Is the "Short Game" in Golf?

In simple terms, the short game encompasses all the shots you play from roughly 100 yards and closer to the green. It’s the art of finesse, control, and strategy. You've probably heard the old saying, “drive for show, putt for dough,” and there’s a ton of truth to it. While a long drive feels fantastic, the average amateur golfer wastes the most strokes around the greens.

Mastering your short game means you can salvage a good score even on a bad ball-striking day. A poor tee shot followed by a solid short game recovery can still lead to a par. That’s the power of these shots. The ultimate goal is to get "up and down" - which means getting your ball from off the green into the hole in just two strokes (one shot onto the green, followed by one putt).

To do that effectively, you need to understand the four fundamental pillars of any great short game:

• Putting: The final shot to get the ball in the hole.
• Chipping: A low-trajectory shot that gets onto the green quickly and rolls out towards the pin.
• Pitching: A higher-trajectory shot designed to fly over obstacles and land softly with minimal roll.
• Greenside Bunker Play: The specialized technique for getting out of the sand traps near the green.

Let's look at each of these so you can build a more reliable game around the greens.

The Four Pillars of a Great Short Game

Think of these four shots as different tools in your toolkit. Using the right tool for the job makes everything easier. Learning the unique technique for each is the first step toward shooting lower scores.

Putting: The Foundation of Scoring

More than 40% of all golf shots are hit with a putter. If you want to makean immediate impact on your score, this is the place to start. The goal? Makeeverything inside of five feet and eliminate stressful three-putts from yourgame.

Putting Setup Basics

A consistent setup creates a consistent stroke. Here are a few simple checkpoints:

• Stand Comfortably: Your feet should be about shoulder-width apart, with a slight bend in your knees and a modest tilt forward from your hips. You want to feel balanced and stable.
• Eyes Over the Ball: A classic checkpoint is to have your eyes directly over, or just slightly inside, your ball. You can check this by holding a ball up at your eye level and letting it drop. It should land on or very near your golf ball.
• Light Grip Pressure: Hold the putter with just enough pressure to control it. Gripping too tight a common mistake that introduces tension and leads to a jerky stroke. Think of holding a baby bird - firm enough so it can't fly away, but gentle enough not to harm it.

The Putting Stroke: Rock, Don't Hit

The best putting strokes are powered by the large muscles, not the small, twitchy ones in your hands and wrists. Think of your arms and shoulders forming a triangle. The goal is to move this triangle back and forth like a pendulum, rocking your shoulders.

Avoid any conscious effort to "hit" the ball or "flick" it with your wrists. A smooth, simple rock of the shoulders will send the putter head back and through on a consistent path, allowing the ball to roll purely off the face. The length of your backswing dictates the distance, a longer putt requires a longer, smoother pendulum swing. A short putt needs a short, compact swing.

Chipping: The Reliable, Low-Running Shot

Chipping is your high-percentage shot when you’re just off the green. The idea is to hit a low-flying shot that lands on the green as soon as possible and a shot that rolls the rest of the way to the hole, just like a putt.

When Do You Chip?

Use a chip shot when there are no obstacles (like a bunker or thick rough) between you and the hole, and you have a good amount of green to work with. Think "less air time, more roll time."

Step-by-Step Chipping Technique

The chipping motion feels very similar to a putting stroke, but with a different club and setup.

1. Club Choice: Don't just automatically grab a sand wedge. For shots with lots of green to cover, a lower-lofted club like an 8-iron or 9-iron works great because it produces more roll. For shorter chips, a pitching wedge (PW) is ideal.
2. Narrow Your Stance: Bring your feet close together, almost touching. This helps you to stay centered and discourages any extra body movement.
3. Ball Back, Weight Forward: Position the ball back in your stance, roughly in line with the inside of your trail foot's heel (your right foot for a right-handed golfer). Lean about 70% of your weight onto your front foot.
4. Hands Ahead: Press your hands slightly forward, so they are ahead of the ball. This helps you to make crisp, descending contact with the ball, preventing chunks or thin shots.
5. Rock Your Shoulders: Just like with putting, use a shoulder-rocking motion. There's almost no wrist hinge needed. It is just a putting stroke with an iron. Simply rock your shoulders back and through, keeping that triangle of your arms and shoulders intact.

Pitching: The High, Soft-Landing Shot

Pitching is for when you need to get the ball airborne. It's a higher, softer shot that’s used to fly over hazards or to stop the ball quickly on the green when have less green to work with.

When Do You Pitch?

Use a pitch when an obstacle lies between you and the pin, or when the hole is cut close to the edge of the green and you need the ball to land softly. It's a shot with more air time and less roll time.

Step-by-Step Pitching Technique

A pitch shot is essentially a miniature version of your full golf swing.

1. Club Choice: Your sand wedge (SW) or lob wedge (LW) are perfect for pitch shots, as their high loft helps get the ball up in the air quickly.
2. Wider Stance: a wider stnace, about shoulder-width, creates a more stable base, which is important for the more dynamic motion needed in this shot.
3. Centered Ball Position: Place the ball in the middle of your stance for a standard pitch shot.
4. Use Your Body and Wrists: This is a big point of difference from a chip shot. A pitch uses both body rotation and a slight hinge of the wrists on the backswing to generate power and height. Swing the club back, let your wrists hinge naturally, and then turn your body through toward the target as you swing down and through the ball. The length of your backswing should control the distance.

Bunker Play: Splashing It Out

Greenside bunker shots can be intimidating, but they are surprisingly simple once you understand the basic concept: you don't actually hit the golf ball. Instead, you swing the club a couple inches behind the ball with the intention of hiting the sand. TH the sand will splash an a nice cusion as it pushes the ball out and onto the green..

Setup for Success in the Sand

1. Grab Your Sand Wedge: It’s designed for this job with a feature called "bounce" that helps the club glide through the sand instead of digging in.
2. Open the Clubface: Before taking your grip, rotae an the clubface until theclubface is more open - or pointed towards the sky. This exposes the bounce and helps elevate the ball.
3. Dig Your Feet In: Get a firm footing by digging your feet into the sand. This not only provides stability but also lowers your body closer to the ball.
4. Aim Left (for right-handers): Because you've opened the face (which now aims right of target), you need to aim your feet, hips and shoulders a little left of target (aim left of the pin in a parallel line) to counter balance the open c,ub face and ensure hte all travels towards yor target.

Executing the Bunker Shot Splash

The #1 rule is to **Commit -n and Swing**! Hesitation is a killer in the sand.

The secret is to Aim for a spot about two inches behind the ball. Smply take your sand a full pich and a full swing - but nstead of hiting the ball, your taret is the stand. You must fully accelerate all the way through the sand as yuou follow through.. Remember, the sand moves the ball, so your only goal is to make a confident swing and just splash the ball out on ta cushion of sand.

Shot Selection Made Easy: Putt, Chip, or Pitch?

Knowing how to hit each shot is only half the picture - knowing *wen* to hit what shot and picking the rifght shot for eh situation is most impotant. To keep this simple as possible, just follow this easy a decision-making process whenever you approach a shot from around the green:

1. 1. Putt whenever you possibly can. If you're on the fringe and the grass isn't too thick, your putter is almost always yoursafest bet, givnig you the most reliable an highers pecenrage shot possible to keep the low. Remember: a bad putt is typicallybetter than a bad chip or ptich..
2. 2. Chip wheever you cant put put. If putting is off the tabe - due to slighty hicker rought ora very slight incline or obstacke, look next at your chipping options. The cipping metod provides the sext best option to the ut as t provides maxium controle anf he lest abomt of things which cao i wrong on any give shop. When deciding on what clube to se o r a chie, simply csooe a club with the lowest amopint of loft whch will just carrey your bal to safely clear he firsbt cut of rugh , while having it land as soon as ppssob,e allowing to safely and predictinly roll ourt ot the hiole ike a otu..
3. 3. Ptichonly ahen o y abolsye,lu HAVE ti.. I a pyyr is mp psooiv,er anf c chi[ sim,ly i snpr a option- s a highr p8tcg shjt s yotu,as t r4siyt, Wje u have an obstace t carry iverb or yneedt ospt the ab,, lveru ycuoc,kt j ytu r [otocing sgo is he only goj to geth teh ojb dne,/ Remebr that ptchjign is tyoei,ly tge hgest irsk sgot n te bagd , hiegh reuires t mos aont f ptact andc inotdecnve tob ull fof.

Final Thoughts

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