Chipping and Pitching

Chipping and Pitching

David J. Bodner Sr.

Author of:

Putting Advice

Golf: Learn to Play and Have Fun,

And now: Chipping and Pitching

Smashwords publication

Copyright © 2019 by David J. Bodner, Sr.

All rights reserved.

No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any way by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording or otherwise without the prior permission of the author except as provided by USA copyright law.

The author did not interview any of the celebrities referred to in this book, for the descriptions ar4e based solely on publicly available information. Any opinions within are derived from the sole interpretations by the author.

The opinions expressed by the author are based on his knowledge.

Illustrations: by David J. Bodner Sr.

Published in the United States of America

ISBN: 9780463979976

Chipping

AND PITCHING:

by David J. Bodner Sr.

Acknowledgements:

I am very pleased to be a golfer like so many others, and that I have had the opportunity to enjoy this game through-out my life. Enjoyment of the comradery with fellow golfers and the environments that each golf course provides are very special in anyone’s golfing life; …and are sincerely cherished.

We who play golf are thankful for the efforts of all golfing establishments and their owners who struggle with the burdens of over governmental taxation, irrational insurance liability laws and costs, as well as the high costs of keeping the surrounding natures of a golfing landscape alive and in a playable condition. Whether their course is a pristine and delightful one, or one with many challenges; every day they allow golfers of all ages, races and genders to have a place to learn and explore their talents; …and to enjoy this honorable game, rubbing elbows with god’s nature.

My wife Linda has a special place in my heart. She has provided me with the special encouragement and support that have helped to make this book possible; as well as making me as happy as any man can be. She is a special girl to anyone she may meet; and a twinkle in my eye. Linda is the most important person to me; and with her, we have been blessed to enjoy the vistas of life together, …hand in hand.

Introduction:

As with any sport endeavor, challenges are observed when they are attempted.

To accept and improve upon these challenges may be a daunting task in the game of golf without a bit of assistance along the way. With some help, knowledge and understanding; problems can be seen, worked on, and ways to improve, found.

In this book, Chipping and Pitching, written by the author David J. Bodner Sr. the reader will find helpful and detailed information that clarifies complicated thoughts into simple, yet clear, understandings.

Some of the knowledges presented will find a common thread among that of golfing history.

Other knowledges will be new to the reader; and accepted or rejected based upon individual preferences, or thought. No one is absolute or all-knowing on golfing issues; but some ideas possess an advantage or two over another, …and only at a particular time in the golfer’s personal history.

David is one of those individuals whose analysis and detail is quite good; allowing the reader to decide which avenue they wish to take. Too often instruction is given in one way on a one-way street.

An author of two other books (Putting Advice and Golf: Learn to Play and Have Fun), David presents very detailed information which clarifies complicated concepts that may elude, or, are ignored by others. As in golf: David is aware that there is no one way to look at a painting or the landscapes of golf. The paints and oils that go into each different and unique artistic stroke are to be selected by the particular artist or golfer for his or her painted work of art; and to be, in the end, only personally adored.

In this book, the art of chipping and pitching is discussed in the detail that it deserves.

No good understanding is simplistic and without complexity. Time needs to be devoted to details, first; selected, second; and, lastly, used simplistically.

Together, chipping and pitching is one of the most important and sensitive aspects of the golfing game. One cannot go away from this dissertation without knowing how to improve one’s game, or, understand one’s game where it counts the most: on the scorecard and in the heart of each individual golfer!

Of course, the mastery of chipping and pitching will never be completed by any mortal; but this book goes a long way to improving a golfer’s skills, talents and knowledges along his or her trodden way.

Much of the scoring game will be so much more improved when the golfer can pitch and chip that little white ball to and around the hole. After digesting David’s discussions, strokes that are often lost will have a good chance to be understood and found.

In the game of golf: There is the drive, the iron, the pitch, the chip and lastly, of course, there is the putting! Knowing them all, and putting all these parts successfully together: …ah, no matter the score! Ah…, that makes all the difference!

Chipping and Pitching are the techniques that put the golfer in position to save the round, readying the ball for the final putt in. They might, also, be, on occasion, the technique that avoids the putt altogether!

Chipping and Pitching…

By David J. Bodner Sr.

Contents:

Chapter 1: The essential Circular Arc Concept

Chapter 2: Chipping – A definition: The Shot just off the green. Three Basic Choices: (Low and running, High and settle, Aggressive and back-spinning)

Chapter 3 Choice One: LOW AND RUNNING.

a. Club choice

b. The Head and Eyes first

c. Gripping Choices and Resulting actions

d. Ball and Shaft angle Positioning Choices – Forward or Back – Leading edge – Bounce – Hooding the club – Straightening the shaft

e. Foot Positioning

f. and g. Foot and Body Positioning Choices: Open, Closed, Square.

h. Shoulder Positioning Choices.

i. Hands Placement: Ahead of, even with or behind the ball: Settings to fit a Properly soled club.

j. Hands should Hang close to the body and down from the shoulders on a chip

k. Shoulder Actions in Performing the Swing-action

l. Forearm, Wrist and Hand Actions used to perform the Running Chip swing

m. Left Forearm Rotation and associated Wrist, Hands and Right Elbow involvements

Chapter 4 Choice Two:

The Lofted Chip: High and Settle. With an ideal lie, and limited body involvements; make a high lofted chip that flies close to the hole; and runs little.

Chapter 5 Choice Three:

Back-spinning Chip.

Chapter 6 Consistency of Hand placement, And Summing Things Up.

Chapter 7 Consistency of the Spine's tilt; and proper Clubhead Soling; And Summing Things Up.

Chapter 8 Consistency of the Spine's-angle, Spine's-tilt and Subsequent Head and Eye-line Positioning.

Chapter 9 Pitching – The shot to the green ranging from about 20 yards out to about 80 yards.

There are 6 basic considerations for pitches that the golfer will want to ponder.

A. Standard Pitch- Positioning and Setting-up.

B. Standard Pitch- Swing-action.

C. Modification to make the ball go high without a lot of roll-out.

D. Modification to make the ball go low with a boring flight and with some or a determinable roll-out.

E. The Flop-Shot Pitch.

F. The Back-spinning Pitch.

Appendix:

My Go-To Chip; In a Nut-Shell

My Go-To Pitch; In a Nut-Shell

Pictures and Comments:

Afterward:

Chapter 1:

The Essential Circular Arc Concept

One of the most important concepts in any golf swing is that the club head, the hands, the hips, the shoulders, and the body are, all, rotating in a circular arc from back-swing, to impact and to the finish. This circular arc concept is often overlooked; because the golfer’s instincts, naturally, want to make the ball go on a straight line toward the target. Though in error, the concept of pushing the club head straight down-the-line seems simple and correct enough.

Regardless of other actions of: the body, the hands, the shoulders, etc.; the main element in contacting the golf-ball should be, however, to make the club-head travel on a circular arc; and without regard to the ball. The ball will be hit at only one point on that circular path; and, at a point when the circular forces are at their peak.

This straight-line idea should, therefore, be replaced by the thought of the club head’s movement being on a smooth and consistent circular curve; somewhat akin to the smooth and consistent planetary orbits of our planets, as they are traveling on an arc-like path; and at their respective and consistent speeds, around the sun.

To maintain this arc on any golf swing, the hands should be pulling the club’s shaft inward while the club head pulls outward away from the pulling hands. These forces are very similar to that of the gravity of the sun always pulling the planets inward; while the planets on their inertial path always want to fling themselves out and away from the sun.

Hopefully, their forces and the golfer’s forces remain constant and consistent, equalizing one another; both producing a consistent circular arc around the sun. If one force were to become stronger or weaker our Solar System would be catastrophically different than it is today. Likewise, the golfer’s swing would be wrongly affected. Unlike the sun and the earth’s forces, however, the golf club’s inward forces on the shaft should be smoothly accelerating, and pulling the clubhead along at an ever-increasing rate.

Yet and especially for a short shot, as with the chip, the natural-instinct is to want to make that club-head go straight down the line toward the target! Therefore, the golfer’s natural, but incorrect efforts are to make the club head go straight back; and, then, straight forward along that target-line. Again, this kind of thinking and interruption to a circular movement seems very logical but; nevertheless, it is essential that the golfer be thinking oppositely: to, instead, create a circular arc-like swing with the hands pulling inward on the shaft; and with a stable body.

The arc of a golf swing may be great or little. On a chip the circular arc will, obviously, be less than that of a full swing; but it must, still, be there. The inward pulling on the shaft at the grip’s end, is, also, an integral part of keeping the chipping motion consistently accelerating, …just as the sun’s gravity must be constantly and consistently pulling the planets inward. So-to, the pulling inward on the shaft as the clubhead wants to go outward, is the appropriate and correct thought to keep in mind. Keeping that inward pulling of the hands and that outward flying of the club-head balanced, is the key to developing a good feel for the forward swinging of the club.

Therefore, the proper and essential movements of the club-head should always be: to define an arc with a circular motion. The golfer must not make the common mistake of trying to make the club-head go on a straight line at any time! The motion is circular; and can be maintained by the club’s shaft being pulled inward with a gradually increasing force (an accelerating force), while the clubhead is flinging outward!

In addition, and as an example, the golfer, especially on a short shot, must, therefore, resist the natural tendency to slide the body to the right or left while performing the swing. This thought of a full body swaying movement might be one where the golfer might think of a way to straighten the shot, or to increase the pull.

When the body sways, one way or the other, the singular and circular arc, defined by the body’s sway, changes with that swaying motion. When the head and body wrongly move, the curving arc of the clubhead also moves and straightens the arc out a bit.

The circular arc of the club-head may, also, be defined as: one which travels up and down, as well as around. (Imagining a Hula-hoop being tilted around the body; one part of the circular hoop is low while the other part is high.) If one were to change this natural up and down circular arc-like motion with a swaying of the body, they would be wrongly altering that consistent and reliable arc-like motion.

It will be okay to try and make the club-head go straight away from and toward the target for varying reasons with other shots; however, the correct most consistent movement of the club-head for the standard shot is always to be properly considered as: a circular arc where the ball is only a dot on that singular arc; and the body does not sway to change that arc.

This is the essential circular arc concept that applies to long tee shots, iron shots, pitch shots, and chipping shots. Although an arc concept is the proper thinking for putting, the arguments for a straight-back and straight-through manipulation of the putter, today, are so common; I will choose not to argue these points; and at this time.

On a chip’s or a pitch’s back-swing the club-head should move on an arc, both, from the ball inward and upward, until it reaches its apex above the ground.

After reaching the apex of the back-swing, the club head should return on a downward and outward arc to the ball at the ground.

After impacting the ball, the club-head should be moving circularly, inward and upward on a continuing arc until it reaches the apex of its follow-through, and above the ground.

The hands, forearms and wrists will direct the club head along a club-shaft. They will and by their connection, therefore, also define a similar and circular arc.

The forearms will rotate the shaft and clubhead clockwise on the backswing and then counterclockwise on the forward swing. Their actions are also circular.

This circular and arc-like concept, as opposed to a straight-line concept, must be thought of as essential golf-talk. It must be regarded throughout any discussion of chipping, or of pitching of the golf-ball. It must be considered in reference to club-head movement, forearm movement, … and indeed body movement.

Alterations may be made, of course; but the underlining concept for any chipping or pitching instruction should be done with the concept of producing a circular arc of the club-head; around, up, down, up and around.

The body’s tendency to sway to the left or to the right negatively changes the natural and singular circular arcs that should be maintained with a stable body.

The golf ball should be thought to get in the way of a singular club head arc with a stable body; and should, only, be thought to be involved incidentally to it.

In conclusion and simply put: the club-head travels on an arc, inward and upward for the backswing; then outward and downward for the downswing; and, finally, inward and upward after impact. As viewed from overhead it will follow a circular arc around the golfer: from in, to out; then to back in. In order for the arc to be smooth and consistent; no straightening, swaying or other