Forget "Use the bounce" can't miss short game method with tour pro Berry Henson

[Nels55]

This is how I was taught to chip and pitch using a sand wedge several decades ago:

 

It does work.

[getitdaily]

This is where I'll use an absolute...

 

Everyone should have the back foot runner and a forward position high and soft shot in their arsenal. 

 

Get good at both and you can master up and downs from most spots with as little as 1 hour of practice a week.

[Hawkeye77]

LOL, further you get it back, more leading edge you expose, more margin for error you have, even a foot behind your right foot with a 60 degree wedge. The guy said that.
 

Later suggesting average golfers should manipulate the club face and left hand grip - not going to end well for those needing the “safest” approach. 

 

BBG boy will push anything. 
 

Learn what works for you and anything practiced a lot can work for sure (if you have the time and talent) but the above claim is bogus.  Not saying different shots aren’t useful but he’s overselling this method, which some use and enjoy for sure. 

Edited February 1 by Hawkeye77

[Liveonce]

52 minutes ago, Hawkeye77 said:

LOL, further you get it back, more leading edge you expose, more margin for error you have, even a foot behind your right foot with a 60 degree wedge. The guy said that.
 

Later suggesting average golfers should manipulate the club face and left hand grip - not going to end well for those needing the “safest” approach. 

 

BBG boy will push anything. 
 

Learn what works for you and anything practiced a lot can work for sure (if you have the time and talent) but the above claim is bogus.  Not saying different shots aren’t useful but he’s overselling this method, which some use and enjoy for sure. 

Maybe I’m in the minority but BBG’ swing and personality annoys this sh*t out of me

[Hawkeye77]

1 minute ago, Liveonce said:

Maybe I’m in the minority but BBG’ swing and personality annoys this sh*t out of me

He was somewhat engaging in an awkward sort of way when he started but then magically he was a “pro” and then magically an instructor - why anyone shucks out for his clinics is beyond me. He would just parrot the latest thing someone told him on his channel when dispensing swing advice. He’ll find someone and push that notion beyond that horse dying and move on to the next. 
 

Having said that, he’s found a way to make a living at what he enjoys so I respect that and good for him.  
 

Catchy title and good guest in this one (beats a guy dancing with a rope) but I learned that method years ago and (the way he says it allegedly works) - unlearning it the best thing ever for my game and handicap - but that’s me.  The people I see swear by it and are successful fall more under the really good golfers category - the ones who fail and defaulted to it just to make contact are the ones he’s tying to help and IMO shouldn’t be doing it. 
 

 

[virtuoso]

Not so much about this vid in particular, but it is among the usual suspects, my main gripe is the underemphasis on difficult lies.

 

What really makes the short game difficult is trying to make good contact and get a predictable result from hard pan, heavy rough, in to the grain Bermuda, sitting up on Kikuyu, the dreaded soft pan, etc.

 

These types of videos are always showing different techniques off perfect manicured, ball perched up, short game areas…….where, honestly, every technique works. You can literally flick at it with one hand and chip it to tap in.

Edited February 1 by virtuoso

[johnrobison]

27 minutes ago, virtuoso said:

Not so much about this vid in particular, but it is among the usual suspects, my main gripe is the underemphasis on difficult lies.

 

What really makes the short game difficult is trying to make good contact and get a predictable result from hard pan, heavy rough, in to the grain Bermuda, sitting up on Kikuyu, the dreaded soft pan, etc.

 

These types of videos are always showing different techniques off perfect manicured, ball perched up, short game areas…….where, honestly, every technique works. You can literally flick at it with one hand and chip it to tap in.

Not only already perfect conditions but they created, if not improved, the lie for every single ball that was hit in that demonstration

[virtuoso]

18 minutes ago, johnrobison said:

Not only already perfect conditions but they created, if not improved, the lie for every single ball that was hit in that demonstration

Yeah, if you perch the ball up, you can hit a sexy zipper with a garden hoe.

[JayMas]

1 hour ago, Liveonce said:

Maybe I’m in the minority but BBG’ swing and personality annoys this sh*t out of me

I'd imagine you are not in the minority.

[virtuoso]

6 minutes ago, JayMas said:

I'd imagine you are not in the minority.

If the MO for your youtube channel is working briefly with 37 different teachers, and your metric for improvement is based almost entirely on increasing your clubhead speed, then it probably works perfectly fine for channel content……but it’s almost completely counter productive to actually dropping your score.

Edited February 1 by virtuoso

[JayMas]

16 minutes ago, virtuoso said:

If the MO for your youtube channel is working briefly with 37 different teachers, and your metric for improvement is based almost entirely on increasing your clubhead speed, then it probably works perfectly fine for channel content……but it’s almost completely counter productive to actually dropping your score.

Maybe Brendan will consider renaming the channel to "Be Better at Swing Speed"

 

Okay, not my best, but it's early.

[ChrisATL]

38 minutes ago, virtuoso said:

Yeah, if you perch the ball up, you can hit a sexy zipper with a garden hoe.

My exact thought - your margin for error is so much higher in those bad lies, so I'm not sure this is super helpful in those type of situations.  

[getitdaily]

3 minutes ago, ChrisATL said:

My exact thought - your margin for error is so much higher in those bad lies, so I'm not sure this is super helpful in those type of situations.  

It can be, but it's very specific.  If the lie is really bad AND you have a very short carry with a ton of rollout then it can be useful. Just have to be ball first. 

 

[johnrobison]

I don't want to go too far OT, but I like most of the content Brendon has been bringing. The original concept for the channel was to bring unique and interesting ideas to the forefront, even if some contradicted others, and I enjoy that. In full disclosure, as I've said in the past, I've known Brendon, we played a round or two together, he's a really nice guy and super duper smart. He's a swing geek who loves to learn everyone's theories and I appreciate that. And as an audience member, I enjoy that the ideas can be all over the place. I'm not interested in watching his scores lower - frankly don't care whether they do - and only want to hear what different people think. Some of his instructors are at opposite ends of the spectrum on things and I learn from that. Quite a bit of what was presented in this video didn't resonate with me and I'm not on board with his guest's prescription (plus the whole "watch me pitch from the perfect lie" thing), but I still learn something in watching them, so I like that.

[SNIPERBBB]

2 hours ago, virtuoso said:

Not so much about this vid in particular, but it is among the usual suspects, my main gripe is the underemphasis on difficult lies.

 

What really makes the short game difficult is trying to make good contact and get a predictable result from hard pan, heavy rough, in to the grain Bermuda, sitting up on Kikuyu, the dreaded soft pan, etc.

 

These types of videos are always showing different techniques off perfect manicured, ball perched up, short game areas…….where, honestly, every technique works. You can literally flick at it with one hand and chip it to tap in.

thats the biggest issue most people have with chipping well. They dont read the lie well enough. Lot of guys have the right intentions fir the shot but if its sitting down or up too much for there intended shot, disaster looms.

[Nels55]

2 hours ago, virtuoso said:

Not so much about this vid in particular, but it is among the usual suspects, my main gripe is the underemphasis on difficult lies.

 

What really makes the short game difficult is trying to make good contact and get a predictable result from hard pan, heavy rough, in to the grain Bermuda, sitting up on Kikuyu, the dreaded soft pan, etc.

 

These types of videos are always showing different techniques off perfect manicured, ball perched up, short game areas…….where, honestly, every technique works. You can literally flick at it with one hand and chip it to tap in.

I used the ball back low runner with the highest lofted club shot for many, many years and it works perfectly from bad lies and kikuyu also.  It also fails miserably from perfect lies or bad lies.  LOL it is definitely operator dependent.  There is also the matter of controlling the spin which can be difficult as there is a lot more spin from a clean lie then chipping with an 8 iron or whatever.  In my experience it is easier to hit a really bad shot either chunked or thin with the ball back swing demoed here then simply chipping with a lower lofted club. 

 

That said I still use the ball back shot with my lob wedge fairly often as I know how to do it and I am comfortable with it...  Can be a round wrecker when it is not working.

 

LOL a friend of mine with an incredible case of short game yips used to ask me all the time how I hit that low shot that bounces twice and then stops and I was like "I dunno" as I really did not even realize I was doing that.

 

 

[Nard_S]

Ball back in stance is chipping 101.

[Nels55]

1 minute ago, Nard_S said:

Ball back in stance is chipping 101.

Ball back in stance using a lob wedge is not chipping 101 for many or maybe most instructors is it?

[iacas]

4 minutes ago, Nels55 said:

Ball back in stance using a lob wedge is not chipping 101 for many or maybe most instructors is it?

 

I don't teach that shot first. If you want to hit it lower, take a less lofted club.

[Nard_S]

2 minutes ago, Nels55 said:

Ball back in stance using a lob wedge is not chipping 101 for many or maybe most instructors is it?

It is for me, I was taught that way, use a 56* exclusively. If want a higher runner I move it up a bit but back a stance is default. Mind stance should be narrow, but setup wise what other option is there?

[Zitlow]

Isn't that similar to what Jason Day and Steve Stricker do? 

[Scottbox]

There are a lot of chipping styles that work. As with the full swing, matchups are key. This vid is a good explainer:

 

 

[Nels55]

1 hour ago, Nard_S said:

It is for me, I was taught that way, use a 56* exclusively. If want a higher runner I move it up a bit but back a stance is default. Mind stance should be narrow, but setup wise what other option is there?

Use lower lofted clubs to chip and pitch shots that run more without varying ball position.  Definitely two schools of thought.

[Nard_S]

6 minutes ago, Nels55 said:

Use lower lofted clubs to chip and pitch shots that run more without varying ball position.  Definitely two schools of thought.

Yeah there's a place for varying club choice, I choose not to not to do that, better to have several choices with one club than opposite but a chip set up center stance is not a chip, it's more a pitch or punched pitch. Want to call  an #8i pitch a chip, you can,. imo, it's not. Adds a ton of inconsistent outcomes to the mix.

[GolfTurkey]

6 hours ago, virtuoso said:

you can hit a sexy zipper with a garden hoe.

 

Thank goodness for that final e

[ac6]

10 hours ago, Hawkeye77 said:

He was somewhat engaging in an awkward sort of way when he started but then magically he was a “pro” and then magically an instructor - why anyone shucks out for his clinics is beyond me. He would just parrot the latest thing someone told him on his channel when dispensing swing advice. He’ll find someone and push that notion beyond that horse dying and move on to the next. 
 

Having said that, he’s found a way to make a living at what he enjoys so I respect that and good for him.  
 

Catchy title and good guest in this one (beats a guy dancing with a rope) but I learned that method years ago and (the way he says it allegedly works) - unlearning it the best thing ever for my game and handicap - but that’s me.  The people I see swear by it and are successful fall more under the really good golfers category - the ones who fail and defaulted to it just to make contact are the ones he’s tying to help and IMO shouldn’t be doing it. 
 

 

 

This is honestly the first video I've seen of his and just connected the dots on the fact that I've seen this guy driving around town here in Long Beach with the BBG advertising on his car. I'd always been curious but not curious enough to remember to check out the channel when I got home. I have to say....I'm not super impressed, but more power to him

[Nels55]

19 minutes ago, ac6 said:

 

This is honestly the first video I've seen of his and just connected the dots on the fact that I've seen this guy driving around town here in Long Beach with the BBG advertising on his car. I'd always been curious but not curious enough to remember to check out the channel when I got home. I have to say....I'm not super impressed, but more power to him

He has done some good stuff over the years and some cringe worthy imho.  I can say that I usually enjoy his videos and have watched most of them.  I have a friend who can't stand him though and I have heard the same from folks here.  To each their own!

[Hawkeye77]

24 minutes ago, ac6 said:

 

This is honestly the first video I've seen of his and just connected the dots on the fact that I've seen this guy driving around town here in Long Beach with the BBG advertising on his car. I'd always been curious but not curious enough to remember to check out the channel when I got home. I have to say....I'm not super impressed, but more power to him

Like a Batmobile! Honestly, I bet he’d love being stopped just to say “hey” - sounds like he’s a nice person, but I’ve got lots of friends who I wouldn’t ask to analyze my golf. 

Edited February 1 by Hawkeye77

[naval2006]

I don’t know why so much criticism for one of the popular ways of chipping. You see it on Tour. However I would never advocate for a quiet body when chipping unless you’re really gifted. 

[Hawkeye77]

14 hours ago, naval2006 said:

I don’t know why so much criticism for one of the popular ways of chipping. You see it on Tour. However I would never advocate for a quiet body when chipping unless you’re really gifted. 

 

Speaking only for me, and to be fair DeVore has him on there as a "voice" or option - DeVore doesn't teach this as the preferred method in his material, haha, which is a little interesting, so I should stop short of saying he's pushing this as something everyone should do.

 

I was taught the basic default method this guy shows by an accomplished pro who grew up using and learning the method.  Since moving on from it myself and asking him about it (because he no longer uses the method) he says he still teaches it a lot just to get horrible chippers contact and in a way, just making them happy, because using bounce and release to some extent and so forth are beyond what these folks are looking for and they aren't going to practice anyway and . . . yikes.

 

This guy claims he's teaching what Parker MacLachlin teaches (good name drop but not accurate) and what got my attention was his claim that the further back you put your 60, including way back behind the right foot, making the shot engage the leading edge more means more margin for error.  Well, that's just not true.

 

Totally agree in general it's a method used forever and still taught.  I can't speak for anyone else but for me, he's making some claims that aren't right and would mislead students.  Hey, he played in the U.S. Open last year and clearly has devoted thousands of hours to this over the years and could beat me with one hand in a chipping contest!  It's a shot - I think people would get more out of MacLachlin or Grieve's release one if they are looking for something similar but not the same and get really good explanations - and I sure do stiff wristed little shots (different setup ideas), everyone should have it, IMO.