Although there is a divergence of opinion as to which facet of the game is more important, the woods, irons, or putting, almost all golf veterans agree on this point: Mastery of the short shots, is absolutely necessary if you are to become a consistent scorer.

The reasoning behind this theory is simple. You cannot hope to hit all of the greens in regulation figures during a round of golf (on the green in one stroke on the par-three holes, on in two on par-four holes, and on in three on the par-five holes); therefore, you must depend upon your short game and putting to salvage the holes where you get into trouble or where you miss the greens.

Despite the importance of the short game, I have found that it is practiced the least of all phases of golf. Golfers will spend an hour or two on the practice tee hitting everything through the irons and woods, but for some unexplained reason they pay scant attention to the short shots that are so vital to consistent scoring.

It is my firm belief that every golfer can knock from one to five strokes per round off his scores if he will be as attentive to his short game as he is to his long game.

The way to do this is to first acquire a fundamental understanding of how the pitch and chip shots are executed, and then, secondly, set up a definite routine for practicing these shots.

In this regard, I can highly recommend the technique employed by Paul Runyan, the veteran professional at the La Jolla Country Club in La Jolla, California.

Runyan uses a system called power progression, in which, when warming up on the practice tee for a round of golf, he begins his warmup by hitting a few shots in a very leisurely fashion. He will do this by chipping or pitching the balls to a preselected area (always select a target in practice, for you are actually target-shooting at the greens and pins when playing) in order to loosen up his fingers and hands and the muscles of his body.

After he feels that he is sufficiently loosened up, he increases the power of his swing and his shots, progressing through his short irons to his medium irons, then to his long irons and wood shots. When doing this he selects one or two odd-numbered clubs from each of the short, medium, and long irons and progresses, say, from a nine-iron to a seven-iron, then from a five-iron to a three-iron, and then to the woods. The next day, he might start with the even-numbered clubs and work down from the eight-iron to the two-iron, then to the woods.

In this way, Runyan not only limbers up his muscles but also tunes up his swing for the coming round. Thus, he is in good mental and physical shape before he tees off.

Runyan's system has proved almost infallible down through the years and, if such a thing is possible, he seems to become more deadly and more accurate with his approach shots from around the greens as the years go by. The reason for this is that he practices incessantly, before lessons, between lessons, and after lessons.

Paul probably gives as many lessons as any teaching professional in the country, but he still finds time to practice his short game because he realizes how important these shots are to his game.

The one thing that has always struck me about Runyan, if I may digress a bit here, is the confident manner in which he approaches his short shots. While most golfers, including the professionals, are just trying to get the ball close, Paul is trying to chip the ball into the hole. And he has succeeded in doing so many, many times, not only in important competitions but in friendly matches when only a dollar Nassau was at stake.

This also brings to mind the statement Paul once made while giving a pitching and chipping clinic to the West Coast PGA Business School in Los Angeles. "Give me a week to practice," he said positively, "and I'll take on anybody in the world in a chipping or pitching contest, and I'll guarantee you I'll clean their plow!" I am positive he would.

Runyan's uncanny accuracy with his short shots long ago earned him the appropriate sobriquet "Little Poison" among his fellow professionals. He twice won the PGA championship (1934 and 1938, the latter title coming with an 8 and 7 victory over Sam Snead). Twenty-three years later, in 1961, Paul captured the PGA National and World Seniors' titles, shooting a record-breaking ten-under-par 278 at the PGA course in Dunedin, Florida while winning the National event.

In these major events, Runyan can point to a key chip, pitch, or putt which saved a par at a crucial time during each round. In the 1934 final against Craig Wood, Paul sent a 50-yard pitch shot winging toward the cup on the thirty-seventh hole. It stopped just 15 inches from the cup. Veteran observers still rate this shot as one of the greatest ever hit in competition, and it allowed Runyan to go to the thirty-eighth hole where he finally defeated Wood, one up.

Runyan's enduring qualities as a master of the short game point up this important rule: Master the fundamentals of the short game well, and then perfect them through constant practice and application on the golf course.

By doing this, you will find that as you progress through the years you may lose a little strength and distance, but your short game will lose none of its polish. You will find, if anything, that it will improve with age through more constant use.

The pitch shot is one of the greatest stroke savers in the game. It is a versatile shot to add to your repertoire, for it can be played as a low pitch-and-run, a high pitch, or lob shot, or just a regular pitch shot. Normally, it is played from distances under 100 yards. When learning this shot, it is best to practice hitting the regular pitch shot, for the others mentioned herein require considerably more finesse and experience before they can be executed properly. However, I will outline them for you so that you can work on them after you have mastered the regular pitch shot.

THE REGULAR PITCH. Address the ball in the manner that you would for a short-iron swing, except that you should take a little narrower stance. Position your feet so that they are about 12 inches apart with the ball slightly right of center and between your feet (Fig. 70). The shaft of the club and your left arm should form a straight line from the clubhead to the left shoulder. An open stance is recommended for this shot. Your weight should favor the left side, while being centered back in through the left heel.

The clubhead is swung smoothly away from the ball, but quite upright through a turning action of the shoulders and an upward lifting of the arms and hands. The wrists are cocked almost immediately after the backswing has begun. At the top of the swing (Fig. 71), the hands are about belt-high for a shot of about 50 yards. The weight has become centered over the ball as a result of the backswing turn, but the left heel remains solidly on the ground. Do not let the left heel come off the ground on the short pitch shots. This helps keep the weight on the left side even though there is a definite flexing of the knees and a slight hip and shoulder turn.

Note particularly the position of the clubshaft and my right elbow in Fig. 71. The clubshaft has swung into a vertical position, bringing the clubhead to a point directly behind my right shoulder. My right elbow is tucked in close to my right side, giving me a short, compact, and controlled swing. Remember, you are seeking accuracy, not distance, with the short shots.

Fig. 70. The pitch shot. Stance is open, and weight favors the left side. The ball is positioned slightly right of center, and the hands are ahead of the ball.

On the downswing, the left side initiates the turn back into the ball. The left side is very active in this shot, as it must be turned out of the way rather quickly to allow the arms and hands to pass by in the hitting area. The left leg straightens, the left hip turns to the left, and the arms move in close to the body, all in, a smooth flowing movement that is designed to bring the clubshaft slightly on the inside of the line of flight on the downswing. Just as the hands reach a point approximately opposite the right leg, the hands lash out at the ball in whiplike fashion.

This is accomplished by a strong downward pull of the left hand and a hammer-like hit with the right hand and forearm, which forces the clubhead to strike the ball a downward blow, thus imparting backspin on the ball. At impact (Fig. 72), the arms are fully extended as in other shots, and they are merely carried through to a finish about belt-high. Note in the illustration the relaxed right side and the right heel, which has been allowed to come off the ground slightly at the finish of the swing.

THE PITCH-AND-RUN SHOT. The pitch-and-run shot is an excellent one to master, particularly on courses which have large greens where the ball has a lot of running area. When hitting this shot, play the ball a bit farther back toward the right foot. This will ensure that your hands will be well ahead of the ball at address. It will also automatically make the ball take off on a slightly lower trajectory when the ball is struck, which will result in a little more forward spin than when hitting a normal pitch shot. The best clubs to use for this shot are the seven-, eight-, and nine-irons or the pitching wedge.

This type of shot is usually played when a player must hit over a trap or a mound where there is a large putting surface between the point of landing and the hole. When hitting this shot, strike the ball with firm, crisp hand action and let the clubhead follow through toward the hole.

THE HIGH PITCH SHOT. In this shot, also called a lob or popshot, the ball is pitched high into the air with a pitching wedge or a sand wedge. For this shot, the ball is positioned opposite the inside of the left heel with the hands just over the ball. The weight is slightly on the left side of the address position. On the backswing, the wrists are broken, or cocked, immediately upright. When in the fairway, this shot is played with softer hand action in order to give the ball a soft, floating action. This is an excellent shot to hit when the pin is nestled just over a trap and you must "feather" the ball in and stop the ball quickly.

Fig. 71. The wrists are cocked immediately after the back-swing has begun, and the weight remains centered over the ball. The left heel is firmly on the ground.

Fig. 72. The arms are fully extended after the ball has been struck, and the weight is definitely on the left side and centered back toward the left heel at this point of the swing. The directional force of the hands and arms is always toward the target on all shots.

When playing out of the rough, it is best to use a sand wedge. For best results, try to hit slightly behind the ball. The heavy flange on the bottom of the clubhead will part the grass and allow the clubhead to slide underneath the ball much more easily than if you use a nine-iron or a pitching wedge. A little firmer hand action, however, is required when playing this shot out of the rough. The normal tendency on this shot is to hit and quit, so be sure to hit a little harder than you think is required and follow through toward the hole, bringing the clubhead up quite abruptly after the ball has been struck.

The chip shot, like the pitch shot, can save you many strokes a round if properly executed. The major differences between the chip shot and the pitch shot are in the club selection and the manner in which the stroke is played.

THE CLUBS TO USE. Normally, the best clubs for pitching the ball are the five-, six-, seven-, and eight-irons; the rule of thumb being that, if you are close to the edge of the green and the pin is close, use a more lofted club; if the pin is farther away, use a less lofted club and run the ball.

You will be far more accurate if you will keep the ball on the putting surface as much as possible. Most golfers tend to play a pitch shot when the best shot, percentagewise, is a chip shot. Practice chipping as much as possible so that you will have confidence in hitting these shots under actual playing conditions.

THE STROKE. In the chip stroke, the feet are very close together and the hands are in close to the body and ahead of the ball (Fig. 73). The weight is on the left side, and the stance is slightly open toward the hole. The wrists are not cocked upright as much as for the pitch shot. Instead, the stroke is more of a sweeping motion with the hands and arms acting as a unit. There is very little body movement in the stroke. The knees flex slightly and the hips turn very little so that no muscle tension will creep into the stroke.

On the backswing (Fig. 74) the wrists are broken slightly, then the follow-through is initiated by a pulling action of the left shoulder, arm, and hand toward the target. As the hands pass over the ball (Fig. 75), a sharp, crisp hit is supplied by the right hand, which is aimed toward the hole. After impact, the left arm and the clubshaft form a straight line from the shoulder to the clubhead (Fig. 76). Don't ever make the mistake of allowing the clubhead to pass the hands on the follow-through.

Fig. 73. Chip-shot address. Hands and arms are in close to the body, and feet are close together. Weight is definitely on the left side here. Hands are slightly ahead of the ball.

ADJUSTMENTS. I make two slight adjustments in my chipping which I feel give me a more reliable stroke under pressure. First, I weaken my left hand, or turn it toward the left about an inch, so that the V formed by the inside of the left thumb and the outside of the left hand above the top knuckle points toward my left shoulder rather than toward my right shoulder. Second, I toe the blade of the clubhead in slightly.

Fig. 74. On the backswing, the clubhead is taken straight back and low away from the ball. Clubface is still square to the ball.

Fig. 75. Hands still lead the clubface at impact, to ensure striking the ball with a crisp, firm blow.

Fig. 76. Follow-through is toward the hole. Note straight line formed by the clubshaft and left arm.

These two adjustments ensure that my clubface will not open going back, but will remain square to the line of flight, and that the ball will roll on a truer line toward the hole. If the clubface is not toed in, the tendency is to let it swing slightly open as the club is swung back. A counter closing movement must then be made in order to bring the clubface squarely into the ball.

If the hands and clubface are positioned in the manner recommended above, you will not have to worry about the face opening and closing. With a little practice, you will be amazed how consistently you can lay the ball up close to the hole from any given distance. It will become an automatic procedure for you to step up to the ball and address it in the manner prescribed above, and then all you will have to concentrate upon is the distance you want to hit the ball.

AIMING THE SHOT. In order to hit the ball straight toward the target, you must first aim toward the hole and then you must hit toward it. These two factors, when combined into a workable procedure, will produce amazing results for you whether you are hitting a pitch or a chip shot.

When lining up the shot, simply aim your right hand (as if you were going to pitch a ball underhanded) toward the hole, and then let your arms and hands move back and forth toward the target.

The ball will go exactly where you aim it. If the directional force is toward the right of the target and the face is open, the ball will go to the right. If the directional force of your arms and hands is to the left and the face is closed, the ball will go left. Always hit through the ball and toward the target.

After you have mastered the technique of lining up the shot, concentrate your attention on learning to judge various distances. Then, when you play a round of golf, you needn't devote too much attention to the directional line to the hole. Instead, your full attention and concentration should be on hitting the ball a certain desired distance.

JUDGING DISTANCES. Many golfers seem to have trouble judging distances when they have the short chips and pitches around the greens. This is because they are thinking too much about the stroke during the execution of it, rather than about the desired distance they want to hit, or roll, the ball. You can learn to judge distances by practicing from different positions around a practice green, or you can even do it on your back lawn. All you need is a seven- or eight-iron and a few balls. Just pick out a target, say about 30 feet away, and chip the ball to it simply by moving your arms back and forth toward the target. Try to get the feeling that the hands are leading the club-head on the downswing.

Each time you chip the ball, don't think of hitting the ball, but of hitting through it, as if it was just a twig or a leaf. With each swing, be sure that your club brushes the grass under the ball. The built-in loft of the clubface will put the ball into the air. Don't try to intentionally scoop the ball up. All you have to do is move your arms back and forth and let the bottom sole of the club touch the grass.

After you have chipped from 30 feet, try for 50 feet by merely moving your arms and hands back a bit farther and through a bit farther. In other words, distance is directly related to the distance you swing your arms and hands back and through the ball.

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