5 essential chipping tips to help you master your golf game

Chipping is an essential skill to master if you want to improve your overall golf game. To help you become a better chipper here are five important tips.

Even though you want your chip to go up when you hit it, you also want to make sure you keep your weight on your front foot.

Choke down on your golf grip when you are getting ready to hit a chip shot.

• Not only does this get you closer to the ball so you have more control when you hit the shot, but it also makes sure the club is counterbalanced.
• An important tip for choking down is to make sure that you don't hunch your shoulders, but simply reposition your hands closer to the club head.

Your weight may be on your front foot, but you should hit the ball towards the back of your stance.

• This helps ensure that you don't hit a lob shot that goes too high or far.

To master the chip, practice with different clubs so you can see how it feels to hit chips from different parts of the course and from different lengths.

• Practice chipping 10 balls with a pitching wedge, 10 balls with an 8-iron, and 10 balls with a sand wedge. This will give you a feel for how different chips can feel on the course.

Then, when you're on the course, choose the right clubs for the right chips:

• An 8-iron is great for a low chip.
• A pitching wedge is good for low chips in deep grass.
• A sand wedge is great to use when hitting balls out of sand traps.

Rather than keep your head down like you do when you drive a ball, be sure to keep your head up. Don't look up, but simply keep your chin raised away from your chest.

• If your head is in line with your spine, your body will be able to rotate more easily through the shot.
• Avoiding flipping the ball or flicking it with your wrist.

Golf is a game about strategy, skill and technique. Sometimes mastering a single aspect of a sport, like chipping, is all it takes to  make a big difference in the outcome of your final score. So keep practicing and give these tips a try!