Pepperell: Accept that some chip shots are damage limitation
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Eddie Pepperell: Accept that some chip shots are damage limitation
Sometimes you’ll find yourself in a really difficult spot if you miss a green – like chipping to a short-sided flag from a downslope in the rough. The fact is, this is a really hard shot so it’s a bit of damage limitation. You should accept that 10 or 12 feet from the hole is a good result from a situation like this.
It’s very important to understand what is realistically achievable from a shot, especially when the risk of getting it wrong is huge. The risk of getting this wrong isn’t massive, but if there was a bunker I had to carry or water then you naturally have to be more risk-averse.
Match the slope with body angles
I’d set-up so my body was matching the slope as much as possible and my weight is naturally going to be a little ahead of the ball. I’d have the ball middle or a little back in the stance.
Land it in the fringe
The best thing to do in this situation is to hit a soft shot and land it in the fringe to kill a bit of speed, rather than going for the big op shot from a downhill lie. I’d set the ball up an inch towards the toe because that helps prevent the heel of the club digging into the ground encourages it to pop up nicely with a softer flight.
Shallow attack to pop it up
You have to let the clubhead do the work of getting the ball airborne rather than trying to help it into the air from a downslope. You want a pretty shallow attack angle into the ball to help get as much height as possible.
Adapt your shot to the lie
If you’ve got a good lie then it’s as simple as trying to get as much height as possible, but when you have a poor lie it makes it really di cult to create loft so you either go extreme to create the loft or look at safer options like pitching it into the fringe.
