The plugged bunker lie—where the ball is buried deeply in the sand can make you pull your hair out. Normally, you’d use the standard bunker setup and swing and float the ball out on a layer of sand. But you can’t do that with this shot. There’s just too much sand. You’ll have to make some adjustments to escape in one.
Here are five tips on how to hit a plugged lie:
- Use a sand wedge
- Adopt a normal bunker shot setup
- Keep the clubface square
- Grip down tightly for control
- Emphasize your finish
You need to take more sand with this shot than with a normal bunker shot to escape in one. So if you usually hit two inches behind the ball, figure on hitting three inches in-stead.
Club choice is critical: Use your sand wedge to hit this shot. The extra bounce it features saves you from digging too deeply into the sand, which will cause you to hit the ball heavy.
Use your normal bunker setup. Spread your feet about shoulder width apart, dig your feet in the sand a bit to prevent slipping, and play the ball forward in your stance.
Keep your clubface square to the target instead of opening it up as you would normally do with a typical bunker shot. Align your feet slightly left of target and square your shoulders to the target. You want more of a square stance here than otherwise.
Grip down on the club. Hold it tight. On a scale of 1 to 10 with 10 being the tightest, hold the club at an 8 or 9. Tightening up on the club prevents it from twisting in your hands as it digs into the sand. It also prevents you from decelerating.
Emphasize your follow-through as much as you can. You want to drive as much sand forward as possible.
Don’t try to be too precise with this shot. The ball is going to come out with little spin on it, so it may roll past the pin.
Excellent guide. I’ve had success with plugged balls by closing the face of the wedge. That creates a funnel towards the hozel of the club that will create the lift for the ball. Works close to the lip of the bunker also. Just have to swing down and hard.