Play Your Best Scoring Secrets by George Kasparis
“Putting with a wedge is
a great practice tool.”
How and when to putt
with your wedge
This shot can get you
out of trouble and
also help improve
your stroke
he belly wedge is one of my favourite
practice shots from around the green,
and here’s why. In order to get the ball
rolling smoothly right away, you have to make
contact with the leading edge precisely in the
centre of the ball. If you impact too low, you’ll
strike it more like a chip, too high and you’ll top
it and not get the roll you need.
T
Belly wedge in Practice
Just by practice putting with a wedge and
getting the ball rolling to the hole, you’ll develop
a better feel for a pure strike. I like to go out on
our par 3 course here at Dubai Creek just with
my 54 degree wedge and play every shot with
that club – you can work on distance control
with your pitching, chipping, bunker shots and
especially putting, because it makes things just
that little bit more challenging, so when you do
get your putter back in your hands, it’s going to
feel a lot easier.
GOLF DIGEST M.E.
YOUTUBE CHANNEL
▶ To see George Kasparis
explain this drill, go to
youtube.com/GolfDigestME
When you practice
with a conventional
putter, it’s often difficult
to gauge whether you’re
striking it purely. Instead,
hitting putts with a wedge
offers instant feedback.
You’ll know straight away if
you’re getting the leading
edge to strike the ball
dead centre. I play these
shots exactly as I would
a normal putt, even using
the same palm-facing
grip. You’ll soon notice the
benefits when you switch
back to the putter.
George Kasparis
is a Senior PGA Teaching Professional at Dubai
Creek Golf & Yacht Club. For more information,
visit dubaigolf.com
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the benefits
Belly wedge in Play
This exercise also doubles up as a useful oncourse shot you can add to your repertoire. Every
now and again your ball will come to rest against
the collar of thicker rough cut against the fringe
of the green. Neither a standard chip nor putt
is ideal here, because it’s hard to get a wedge
into the back of the ball and your putter will be
snagged up in the grass, making it difficult to
judge pace of stroke. Having practiced the belly
wedge, you can simply take your wedge and play
it just like you would a putt, ensuring that the
leading edge strikes the centre of the golf ball.
The longer grass won’t affect this shot at all and
you’ll find yourself enjoying many more tap ins
for par, and maybe even the odd hole-out.