If you watch the best players in the world regularly on the PGA and European Tour, you will notice they have a range of wedge shots at their disposal.
One of the most popular is known as the flighted wedge shot and this sees the ball take a lower flight path to the green than a standard wedge shot. The lower trajectory of the shot is coupled with a right to left movement (the opposite is true for left-handed players) towards the flag.
The flighted wedge shot is useful because the lower trajectory keeps the ball out of the wind, it can provide more spin and improve consistency.
To play this shot, start with the ball just back of centre in the stance and keep your feet quite narrow. Aim to have your feet no more than 12 inches apart when setting up the shot.
You should be aiming the shot straight at the target but your hips and feet should be angled slightly to the left. This may feel a little strange at first and you may find yourself fighting to keep your body in that position but it will come naturally with some practice.
Place roughly 70% of your body weight on your front foot and lean the shaft of the wedge towards the target. Keep your hands ahead of the ball when playing the flighted wedge shot.
As you start the back swing, use your body to power the shot and keep your wrist movement to a minimum. Do not be tempted to hinge your wrists at the top of the back swing. This should be easier because your back swing should not be very long, therefore reducing the chances of your wrists coming into play.
As you swing down, towards the ball, you want to think about punching through the ball at impact.
With 70% of your weight on your front foot, you will find this helps to generate a good downward strike of the ball. Your hands should be in-front of the ball at the time contact is made, so for right-handed players this would see your hands opposite your left thigh and for left handed players your hands should be opposite your right thigh.
As with the back swing, your follow though should be short, with very little movement in the wrists. Again, as the follow through is short, you should have no trouble keeping the wrists out of the shot.
As the swing is short and the shot punchy, you will see the ball leave the club at a lower trajectory than a normal wedge shot. However, the ball will have plenty of spin and this will see it check on the green and stop quite quickly.
As with any new golf shot, this flighted wedge shot will take practice but it can be an invaluable weapon around the green.
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