1. Understanding the Lie
The first thing I do when entering a bunker is analyzing my lie and how it can impact the shot. If someone enters the bunker without an understanding of the lie, that person will not be able to interpret how the lie will change the outcome of the shot.
When the ball is plugged, I take a harder and steeper swing than I normally would to ensure that I get the club under the ball and follow through. This will allow the golf ball to pop up in the air with no spin. This is the shot that I take do not risk going for the pin. I would rather give myself a putt rather than hitting it back in the bunker.
When the ball is above my feet, I try choking down on the club allowing me to shorten the club and maintain my posture without falling backwards. When the ball is below my feet, I bend my knees to shorten my legs and maintain the posture without falling forward.
When the ball is in an uphill or downhill position, I maintain my weight on my left side. I avoid falling back on my right side because it can cause me to mishit the shot. The only thing that will change between these two shots is the trajectory.
2. The Proper Stance
A proper stance is just as crucial as your swing in the bunker. If you follow these proper guidelines, then you will gain consistency out of the bunker.
When I start creating my stance I focus on stability, and I dig my feet in to avoid slipping in my swing. When my feet are in the proper stance, I bend my knees slightly to get a little lower and create a solid platform.
When I am ready to make a swing, I make sure that my weight is distributed to my left side. I keep my weight on this side even throughout my backswing to avoid too much shifting causing me to chunk the shot.
3. Open the Clubface
Many amateurs think that keeping the face squared up is the proper way. The face needs to be opened to allow the club to swipe underneath the ball and avoid catching the top part of the face.
When I open the club, the things I notice is my stance being aimed at my target and the club face being open pointing to the right of my target. It feels like I am going to hit it right, but with low movement in my legs has my upper body swipe across the ball in a straight trajectory.
If an amateur wants to make the proper contact, they will need to have the face open allowing the club to cleanly swipe underneath the ball allowing the sand to hoist the ball toward the target. You want to avoid hitting the ball first, so you must hit the sand first.
4. The Swing
Arguably the most important part of bunker play, the swing affects the shot in many ways. After many years hitting from the different types of bunkers, the best way is having the proper tempo.
The swing should be long and smooth rather than short and abrupt. The longer swing allows me to follow through the entire shot rather than stop and stub at the ball.
While I take my swing back, I focus on keeping my right arm tucked in to avoid separation on the backswing. When I give multiple bunker lessons, I see many people separate their arms from the torso on the takeaway and that can cause many problems on the downswing, and it can cause an inconsistent impact point.
If I am maintaining the connection with my right arm with the torso and taking the club back with a full swing, it allows me to have a proper tempo and follow through with the best results.
5. Confidence
Another thing I do before entering a bunker is having confidence that I am going to pull the shot off.
It can be easy to doubt yourself when entering the bunker and that alone can cause you to hit a poor shot. The game is just as much mental as it is physical, so going into any shot before you hit with bad thoughts about the shot can cause mistakes. Stick to a quick and simple routine to get into the proper setup and focus on the shot.
Having low confidence and being afraid of hitting the ball across the green can cause someone to decelerate their swing and hit it back into the bunker. Great ways to boost your confidence in the greenside bunker is practicing great drills.
