I consider myself a reasonably good bunker player, and my first rule of thumb is get on the green. After that, it depends on the lie, and how close I am to the hole. For example, I was in one today, which was close to the end of the bunker, and I had an uphill lie. I hate the long bunker shots where I have to carry several yards over sand, but this one wasn't. Hence, I felt I could be aggressive, used my 60* and I hit it to 20 inches, and made par. If I had been further back, I would have used my 56*, and my focus would be to get on the green, and maybe make par, but nothing worse than bogey. For longer bunker shots, I will use my 52* or 48*, where getting out is not as worrisome, but I want the ball to run when it gets on the green.

Hope this helps. 

First off,(if you do not already) Open up and Widen your stance.  Keep your body weight tilted slightly forward.  Then lay the club near 90 degrees, either 54-58 depending on condition.   Be sure you are accelerating through the swing.  Hit behind the ball +-1" with a decent dig into the sand.  The ball should pop up better and land softer.  It also a feeling of being most in control, imho.

These tips will at least get you out of bunkers on a more consistent basis with a softer touch & more bite.  Sand is all touch & feel once you understand the conditions at hand.   Too many players try to get cute instead of first understanding the basics of proper bunker play.

Do you have a 60? I play my 60 Vokey out of the sand in all steep shots. If it's not a long shot, I choke way up, open it way up play the ball more slightly forward of center and stop my finish once I hear the thud. Checks up every time. What ball are you using?  

Nicklaus,

I have become pretty good out of the bunker (around 83%), however, the only club I use is my Sand Wedge.  The bottom of the club is a little more rounded helping me NOT to go too deep in the sand (if I am buried, I sometimes use a PW to help dig in).  I use the same stance as I do when not in the bunker, but I take a full swing, the only difference to determine distance is how hard I swing, and how much sand I take with the swing.  A bunker shot is more of a finesse shot, so arms are probably the prominent force.

If I am close to the lip of the bunker I might open the club face a little, but I find the normal club face angle will lift enough to get out of most green side bunkers.

Keep your head down,

Paul

Hi Nick,

There's a lot of good advice on here.  Open and widen your stance, and open that club face way up-  That's the key.

I would suggest practicing with different clubs.  For the dreaded 50 yard bunker shot, I've opened up a P or a 9 and played it just like a green side shot with some success.  Finding what works for you is key.

Who knows, maybe the 50 yard bunker will be the next "Tip from the Tour" -hint hint Mike

YouTube G Playr, Lee T and J Thrp and you'll be  sticking it close!

I've watched a few of those videos.  Very informative and worth watching.

I had been struggling last month with getting out of sand as well. Then I re-watched his bunker shot video and I realized I had too much of a forward shaft lean like my regular chip shot. It must have done the trick, the since I was able to make a few sand saves this last weekend.

The first on hole 6 got me to about 4'. "I might know what I'm doing!", I said surprised. And on hole 7 I lipped out to 6". Before teeing off at 8 my partners were asking if I was going to aim for one of the par 3's bunkers. I didn't mean to but that's where it went. Three for three? I got lucky with a ~10' long ~2' foot breaking put. The bunker shot out was a downhill lie and above the hole so it rolled out quite a bit. 

At 10 there was essentially out of bounds right and a huge bunker taking up half of the fairway on the left usually forcing a layup. Nope, bunker. We were all laughing, and one partner said, "I've never seen anyone so happy to be in a bunker before."  I got luck on this one too, as I thinned it out of there and caught the lip. Ironically that launched it a little higher and a little slower for the ball to just trickle onto the green in 2 put range. One partner was just dying with laughter at this point.

So yeah, I'd say that video was pretty helpful.

That dollar bill drill was shown to me by an older gentleman a few years ago.  I've gotten out of rather large deep bunkers with the 64 but you almost have to pick it clean. 

Basically open the clubface toward the pin, weight just about all on the front foot, ball forward (almost near your front foot). You swing along your foot path and hit about 2" behind the ball. 

Avoid coming over the top on the downswing and hit through the ball.  Don't try to help it up.

Honestly, you need to have fun with it. Until I started to have fun practicing my sand shots, they were always boring and usually bad. And the club choice is completely up to you, I used to use a 56 but now I favor my 52 more often. You also don't have to worry about getting the ball high because if you hit a good sand shot the ball will usually spin anyway. Also, you cannot approach a sand bunker with bad thoughts. You have to be ready to take on the challenge and embrace the opportunity to hit a great shot. This is what really helped my game out of bunkers.   

My wedge setup is SM4 48-06, 54-11 (1* strong), 58-06, 64-07.  I use the 54 primarily from soft sand.  The 58 is from firm or wet sand; although I can use it in soft sand.  I use the 64 for deep bunkers where there is little green.  I use the 48 for long shots. 

I'm a reasonable bunker player. 

Open the blade. 

The biggest thing to avoid is coming over the top and that is why the ball may fly so low or left. Most of your weight should be on your front foot.  There is a nifty drill you can try.....   put the ball on a dollar bill and try to go under without digging.  

Take those wedges and hit the practice bunker.

Don't leave till your hands are blistered and the sand is your friend.

IMHO most casual players don't pay enough attention to practicing these shots.

Mastering the sand will knock a few strokes off your scores...you will soon see the sand as a strategic play rather than a hazard.

Everybody Likes going to the Beach!

Dr. K

Years ago, following a move I found myself playing a course with real bunkers that always seemed to come between my ball and the green.  As the course I had grown up on had no real bunkers to speak of.  So I bought a sand wedge and taught myself how to play out of the bunkers.  I read a lot of tips from Billy Casper and Gary Player, then simply went out to the course in the evening a worked at it.  I practiced uphill lies, downhill lies, sidehill lies, fried eggs, buried balls, long shots, short shots--the full gamut.  And I got to the point where I could comfortably extricate myself from the bunker over 90% of the time.  I won't say I achieved that level of success with getting up and down from the bunkers, but that's as much an issue with my putting as with my sand play.  

A few years ago, I adjusted my sand play approach in keeping with an overall change in approach to my game.  I'm still comfortable getting out of bunkers, and still having those issues with getting up and down.  The answer, to me, is simple:  practice, practice, practice.  find a course with a good bunker practice area and just work at it, over and over, and then do it all again.

i started telling my self this to help me build confidence. open the face throw that club into the sand right behind the ball and keep driving through the sand. and i Quote Gary Player "90% of armatures don't swing hard enough. i figure if its 90% then there is a good chance i am part of that 90% so i swing alittle harder than i think i need to and most of the time it works out just fine. but the biggist key is learn the how the bounce of your club inter acts with the sand. for me my 60 dosent like to dig like my 56 so i have to be alittle more percise with the 60. other wise i will skip of the sand and skull. so yea go to the practice bunker and learn how the bounce works on your wedges. and practice practice practice. 

Cheers greens and fairways to all

Simba

and now the shameless plug. check out the Vokey site they have a good way of explaining wedges and helping you to get a good understanding how your club interacts with the turf and sand. also notice they offer so many different grinds you should be able to find one that works out perfect for you.

I'd suggest watching some Gary Player bunker videos.  Then spend some time at a practice facility and solve the mystery.  There is a nack to hitting good bunker shots and with some practice time it will come to you.  I have two wedges I use for greenside bunkers, one is good for short high shots with little roll out, the other is for longer shots that do run, likewise you'll probably find that your two wedges will give you some options playing out of bunkers.  Have some fun with the challenge ...