The long greenside bunker shot has plagued golfers since the day greenside bunkers were first introduced. The number one fault that I see players make when faced with this shot is hitting too far behind the ball and taking too much sand. However, much like every other shot in golf, proper club selection and set up will eliminate this fault make this shot much easier.

The first thing you want to do is choose the correct club. From short greenside bunkers where the ball needs to fly high, stop quickly, and travel a short distance, a 60º lob wedge with little bounce is a better club. However, on a long greenside bunker shot, the ball needs to fly further and roll more in order to reach the hole. In order to achieve this, use a 56º sand wedge that has a little more bounce. This club will slide through the sand a little easier and help you maintain the speed through the ball needed to get the ball to fly the correct distance.

Now that we have the right club in our hand, there is only one other adjustment that needs to be made. Move the ball about inch further back in your stance. This will encourage us to take a little less sand and prevent digging in too deeply behind the ball. Now take your normal bunker stance aiming slightly left of the target and open the clubface so that it is aiming slightly right of the target. With our weight forward, make a good aggressive swing splashing the sand out onto the green. Because we need the ball to travel further, we will need to make a longer swing than normal to get the ball to the hole.

Remember, like every other greenside bunker shot, the goal is to splash the sand out onto the green and let the ball ride that pillow of sand. If we need to get the ball to fly carry further as we do in long bunker shots, use a sand wedge with a lot of bounce, make a longer swing, and take a little less sand.

If you follow these keys, I promise you will not become another victim of the dreaded Long Greenside Bunker Shot.

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