What is the “better player” miss out of bunker?

neighborhoodhero · January 7

After seeing Hovland struggle out of the bunker today on both ends of the spectrum, it got me thinking, what is the better player miss out of the bunker a blade or a fat? I can see arguments for both sides.

I have been struggling with blades on longer bunker for quite some time.

iacas · January 7

If there's trouble long, the chunk. If there's trouble short… the blade. 😉

(Good players hit closer to the ball in a bunker than most golfers realize. So, they catch a lot of ball more often than they catch it just really fat.)

Edited January 7 by iacas

ThinkingPlus · January 7

Green side it's fat. Blades are generally double and counting. Fairway bunker a blade can play better, but may still not get out. Fat will generally get out so a better miss except for the blade that clears the lip.

I have a great deal of experience blading balls out of green side bunkers. It isn't even close to fun.

getitdaily · January 7

I can only speak from personal perspective here...I think it depends on how the better player likes to play bunker shots. I prefer a bit heavier with run out so my miss is a bit too heavy.

The player who likes to carry the ball closer to the hole with a lot of spin will miss too close to the ball.

Overall, I think the predominant miss of the better player is heavy, but that's just a guess.

Llortamaisey · January 7

Due to all the variables that come along with a bunker shot I would say it’s not as easy to generally say there’s one particular miss for a low handicapped, however of the better players I play with I would say the most typical miss is out of the bunker but short of the hole. It seems like that’s generally true for most shots around the green. I just don’t normally see better players rocketing the ball past the hole like a high handicapper would, but it does occasionally happen.

iacas · January 7

26 minutes ago, ThinkingPlus said:

I have a great deal of experience blading balls out of green side bunkers. It isn't even close to fun.

"I don't always hit my lob wedge 110 yards, but when I do it's from a greenside bunker."

ThinkingPlus · January 7

20 minutes ago, iacas said:

"I don't always hit my lob wedge 110 yards, but when I do it's from a greenside bunker."

Yep. The patrons scatter like quail.

Soloman1 · January 7

1 hour ago, neighborhoodhero said:

After seeing Hovland struggle out of the bunker today on both ends of the spectrum, it got me thinking, what is the better player miss out of the bunker a blade or a fat? I can see arguments for both sides.

I have been struggling with blades on longer bunker for quite some time.

Most tour courses have a “standard” silica mixture for bunkers. The players can count on consistency. I’m not sure if the course this week has a different sand.

OnTheBag · January 7

1 hour ago, neighborhoodhero said:

After seeing Hovland struggle out of the bunker today on both ends of the spectrum, it got me thinking, what is the better player miss out of the bunker a blade or a fat? I can see arguments for both sides.

I have been struggling with blades on longer bunker for quite some time.

There's no special miss for professionals compared to decent amateurs. They screw it up just like we do, only much less often. I've seen it all. To @ThinkingPlus point, fat at greenside and thin from the fairway is the most common, due to the shot being attempted.

Sean124 · January 7

Just now, Soloman1 said:

Most tour courses have a “standard” silica mixture for bunkers. The players can count on consistency. I’m not sure if the course this week has a different sand.

I just wish my course had a standard mixture from hole to hole

ShortGolfer · January 7

Getting out of bunkers is one of the most consistent parts of my game! My natural swing is a high fade. I hit normal sand a little fat and the ball pops out of the sand trap!

I find it helps to use the same swing all the time and vary the loft/setup. Typically 58* for greenside and 54 for normal works well for me.

I would think that if you hit a draw bunkers are going to be a lot harder for you than I find it with a high fade.

b.mattay · January 7

It depends a little bit on the shot. Obviously with a hazard past the pin, it might be a smidge heavy.

If you take penalty hazards out of play though, I think it is the "super clean" spinner that might fly 10-15 feet too far but bites immediately. I know for me that is the ideal miss. Shows mechanics are good and there isn't excessive speed going into the shot.

GolfTurkey · January 7

1 hour ago, Sean124 said:

I just wish my course had a standard mixture from hole to hole

Luxury! My courses has huge variances between greenside bunkers on the same hole!

TLUBulldogGolf · January 8

On 1/6/2024 at 6:43 PM, iacas said:

If there's trouble long, the chunk. If there's trouble short… the blade. 😉

(Good players hit closer to the ball in a bunker than most golfers realize. So, they catch a lot of ball more often than they catch it just really fat.)

This is the answer, good players will tend react to the trouble if anything. I hit pretty close to it and most of the time heavy/short isn’t going to kill me whereas thin is over the green to who knows where, so heavy is the more common miss.