HOW TO TAKE A RELIABLE BUNKER SWING
Madelene Sagstrom of Sweden had her biggest breakthrough in her first LPGA Tour event of 2020, winning the Gainbridge LPGA in Boca Rio. Sagstrom joined the LPGA Tour in 2017 after one of the most successful seasons in Symetra Tour history, featuring three wins and four top-10s in his rookie campaign. Known for being a good driver and a solid putter, Sagstrom, now 27, could be at her best in the bunkers on the green. In 2017, he finished seventh on the LPGA Tour in sand saves (60.24 percent), going up and down 50 times. Here are his smart (and simple) tips for improving the consistency of your bunker.
First, Sagstrom offers a quick run-through of the standard instructions for a bunker shot from the green: "Take a wide stance, dig in, hit the sand before the ball - you've probably heard all of that before," she says. "For me, the key to good bunker shots is finding a balance between pace and speed. You need clubhead speed to cut through the sand, but forcing speed can ruin your rhythm. I see fans trying to increase your speed by swinging harder or faster. If you do that, you probably just stick your club in the sand and hit the shot. The swing thought that works for me are, get the club to the ball before your hands. ".
That thinking helps her create clubhead speed in a way that doesn't spin her too much and lose control. "It's the first step to being more consistent outside the bunker," he says.
His next tip also improves consistency: "Take a few bunker shots and watch the size of the marks you're making in the sand. I bet they're all different," says Sagstrom. "I think about making an indentation in the bunker that is always the same length, roughly the amount of space between the thumb and forefinger when they are separated. The marks I make are actually longer than that, but focusing on that size makes my Movement through impact is concise. The results are more predictable."
“YOU SHOULD TRY TO ENTER THE SAND IN THE SAME SPOT EVERY TIME.”
SCOOP DRILL
To get the ball out of the dugout and land it delicately on the green, the clubface needs to stay open through effect so it skims through the sand and doesn't stall out, Sagstrom says. "A ton of novices know how to open their faces and afterward grasp the club at setup. Be that as it may, they disregard keeping the face open on their takeaway—or simply don't have the foggiest idea how to do it," she says. "The takeaway is that in such a case that you take it back open, you're significantly bound to come through with an open face."
A drill to rehearse what an open-face backswing feels like is to scoop a little sand on the essence of the wedge and afterward let it stay there as you claim to hit a fortification shot, Sagstrom says. The objective is to keep the sand on your face until you arrive at the head of the backswing and at that point toss it behind you (underneath). "If you're spilling a great deal of sand before you arrive at the top, you realize you're shutting your face," she says.
RAKE DRILL
"On the off chance that you tend to swing down too steeply and stall out in the sand, this next drill is for you, Sagstrom says. "Trust me, I know since I tend to get excessively steep with greenside shelter shots."
Her drill: Put a rake in the sand between your feet and the ball with the handle adjusted somewhat left of the objective. Play the ball forward of focus your position, however, ensure your position is corresponding to the brake line, not the objective line. Presently hit a shelter shot, attempting to enter the sand behind the ball while swinging along the rake line (underneath). This swing bearing along the rake line counters the open essence of the club—so the ball flies at the objective—and the forward ball position permits you to sprinkle the sand. "I feel like the drill encourages me to take shallow divots," Sagstrom says. "Simply recall that you can possibly do this when you practice. At the point when you play, simply envision that rake. You'll begin hitting extraordinary dugout shots."
