A Plan For The Sand

Step into every bunker with confidence

- Georgia Hall

When you hit into a greenside bunker, is your brain flooded with swing thoughts that make the next shot seem complicated, like you’re running through a long checklist just to get the ball out? Instead, clear your mind—if you can— and try my simpler approach: No matter the lie, no matter the yardage, play the ball roughly in the middle of your stance and swing so your club hits the sand about an inch or two behind the ball. But when I say hit the sand, I’m being literal. Accelerate the club down and under the ball, and keep it moving. Do that, and you’ll splash the sand toward the hole and execute a quality bunker shot just like we do on the LPGA Tour.

That’s my first lesson to better bunker play: Keep it simple. In my rookie season on tour in 2018, I got up and down from greenside bunkers more than 60 percent of the time. If you’d like to play better from the sand, check out my other tips on the following pages. I’ve even got a few for fairway bunkers. Let’s turn sand play into a strength of your game. —WITH KEELY LEVINS

The advice I gave you on the previous page is really going to help you get it on the green. And when you do that regularly, you’re ready to make some adjustments depending on the lie that will help you get the ball closer to the hole. I practice a few different shots.