Sandy Lyle’s chipping system which takes only 30 minutes to learn but could save you many strokes

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Judging distance control from inside 100 feet can be incredibly difficult for amateur golfers. 

When hitting from between 50 and 100 yards, a 15 handicapper will hit the ball to an average of 48 feet from the pin, according to Shot Scope. That’s partly because of inconsistent ball striking, but also because of a lack of distance control.

We often spend time at the range working on our swing and our contact with the ball, but how much time do you dedicate to locking in your yardages?

If your answer to that was, ‘Not enough’, then Sandy Lyle has a 30-minute drill that can help you improve your distance control within 100 feet that he says he wishes he had known 40 years ago.

Sandy Lyle’s chipping system that he wishes he knew 40 years ago 

Lyle’s system, which will see you consistently hit balls closer to the pin when you make solid contact, takes around half an hour at the range.

He imagines a clock face in his backswing when going through all of his shorter clubs to get an idea of his distances in close. 

Speaking to 1010, the two-time major winner said, “I play to a clock system. What I do with nearly all my chip shots is play with a 7:30 backswing (on the clock face). I do all my chip shots playing at 7:30. You go through and you hold it. It’s very simple. You go through to about 8 o’clock.

“You don’t have to finish the swing. You just do a stinger shot. And you will start to see a pattern of distance control. I know with my 60-degree, I will hit the ball about 55 yards. When I’m very comfortable with that, 55 yards, because you will put it in all the time. I will even write my little number on the shaft.

“If I then get a 50-yard shot, I know that if I choke down on the club and hold the club virtually down on the shaft here (at the bottom of the grip), and I do the same thing again. Swing from 7:30, with speed, and I will get a little bit of a shorter distance.

“If you have a spare half an hour on the range, you can go out there and go through nearly all your wedges from a sand iron to a 60-degree to a pitching wedge to even an eight iron. And you will start to see a pattern.

“It’s very, very good to give some confidence about hitting the ball a certain distance, which is very important. When you are in the pro ranks, you want to score well on the par fives, so the 60-yard shots are very important.

“I wish I knew this information 30 or 40 years ago, I would probably have been a lot better golfer than I am now. It’s a great way of saving shots and getting some numbers on your shafts, very important.”

Stepping up to a 50-yard shot and knowing exactly the shot to hit, and the club to hit it with, can do a great deal for your confidence when out on the course!

Phil Mickelson explains the importance of a good short game

Phil Mickelson is one of the all-time great short game players. His creativity and accuracy with his chipping are unrivalled by nearly any player in the history of the game. Mickelson has a host of chipping advice for amateurs, and you should hang on his every word on that topic.

He once explained that playing well around the greens is the single most important factor in winning golf tournaments.

The six-time major winner said, “The only way to win tournaments is with the short game. Over half your shots out here are within 30 or 40 yards. Ballstriking is where I’m trying to improve, yes, but more to eliminate big numbers than make birdies.”

And for amateur golfers, scrambling is especially important. A 15 handicap golfer will hit 23% of greens in regulation during an average round, so being able to navigate tricky positions around the green is going to make or break your score.