Playing The Golf Swing Punch Shot
Playing The Golf Swing Punch Shot
The golf swing punch shot has always impressed me out on the golf course when it has been executed properly. It has been one of the most interesting golf shots that I learned to play and have watched others perform. It requires the art of timing and touch to master the art of a soft landing punch shot or a bump and run. This type of shot saves golfers a number of strokes from time to time, and is quite effective in a tough situation.
The punch shot is pretty much the only golf shot that you must quit on the follow through. Feeling the club head is very important in executing a good punch shot. The golf shot is lead by the left forearm (right-handed golfers) and requires little arm movement and more wrist action. To visualize this shot, imagine throwing your forearm wrist and club head at the ball and quitting the follow through at impact.
Depending on the distance of the shot needed determines the golf club selection and how far to take the club back, mainly with the wrists. Both wrists and forearm control the distance of the club going back and through as the club picks up speed coming down towards the ball with your knees and hip starting the down swing, and only to quit the golf swing punch shot after impact.
I have seen players perform and play this shot using a driver right through to a pitching wedge. The loftier clubs are needed to get the ball up quickly. The club selection is very important on accuracy on how far and how high the ball will come off of the clubface.
There are a number of reasons to quit on the follow through on this type of golf shot. One situation would be a restricted golf swing because of a tree stump ahead of your swing path and or a branch where the golfer has to keep it low for a certain distance. Another reason would be to simply control the distance of a particular golf shot. One may want to use a 3 iron for a more restricted golf swing and keeping the golf ball closer to the ground to clear the branches before it starts to rise. The 7 iron would help pick the ball up right away to go over a tree stump or clear a branch, but one would have to use the power of the forearm and wrist for distance when using loftier clubs.
Another golf swing punch shot to practice would be an uphill mound facing you with a green sloping away from you and the pin tucked closely to the front with no green to work with. Take out a 7 iron and close the clubface a little and punch the golf ball off of and against the slope face of the mound to make it fly straight up and land softly onto the green. The mound in front of you must have a considerable amount of slope for this golf shot to work, but it is a very impressing punch shot to perform.
Practicing and mastering this golf swing punch shot will save you strokes and help lower you handicap. There are good golf swing instruction manuals on the Internet that will help you master this punch golf shot when needed in a pinch.