Chipping on the wrong side

[Ole Gray]

I read a tip last evening in Golf Digest that I though was odd but interesting. It was talking about a guy who had terribly yips while chipping right handed. He would chunk or skull the ball and nothing his instructor did seemed to help. The instuctor got radical and tried something I had only heard of for putting. He had the guy take a left handed wedge out and practice with it. He told the guy all the bad habits would be gone because it was like reloading a computer. Going left handed while chipping would work because the left side would not remember the bad habits. Well I stopped by the golf course this morning and there was a old left handed 9 iron in the loss and found box. I chip fairly decent because I practice that part of my game but like all of us sometimes I fall out of good habits. I said what the heck. I took three balls out to a practice green and chipped with the left handed nine iron. It blew me away. I hit some pretty little twenty yard chips with one hop and stop with no hipcups!!!!! Hmmmm if you are having chipping yips why not try it? Hey it might work for you. I did bat both ways in baseball and can throw a football or basketball a short distance left handed but I am not anything special. I certainly can't write with my left hand. I know I could not hit a 50 yard wedge shot left handed but the chipping thing was truly amazing! What can you loose )......

 

[jefffann]

I got lazy and borrowed my left handed buddies wedge cause I didn't want to walk back to the cart to get my wedge.After the shot I was pleasantly surprised at the outcome.I think there might be something to this also.

 

[Andy804]

I read a tip last evening in Golf Digest that I though was odd but interesting. It was talking about a guy who had terribly yips while chipping right handed. He would chunk or skull the ball and nothing his instructor did seemed to help. The instuctor got radical and tried something I had only heard of for putting. He had the guy take a left handed wedge out and practice with it. He told the guy all the bad habits would be gone because it was like reloading a computer. Going left handed while chipping would work because the left side would not remember the bad habits. Well I stopped by the golf course this morning and there was a old left handed 9 iron in the loss and found box. I chip fairly decent because I practice that part of my game but like all of us sometimes I fall out of good habits. I said what the heck. I took three balls out to a practice green and chipped with the left handed nine iron. It blew me away. I hit some pretty little twenty yard chips with one hop and stop with no hipcups!!!!! Hmmmm if you are having chipping yips why not try it? Hey it might work for you. I did bat both ways in baseball and can throw a football or basketball a short distance left handed but I am not anything special. I certainly can't write with my left hand. I know I could not hit a 50 yard wedge shot left handed but the chipping thing was truly amazing! What can you loose )......

One hop and stop does not sound like a chip, it sounds like a pitch. That is just semantics though. I agree with your theme of trying things out from the other side. I practice sometimes pitching the ball lefty and find that it really gets my body to turn and I do not flip at the ball. I will even take practice swings lefty on the course for pitch shots.

By the way, I chip cross handed due to the yips and I believe my chipping is above average. I find the direction is really good cross handed, but the longer chips demand that I use lower irons more readily to get the ball to the hole.

 

[ClairefromClare]

I wonder if this is akin to the one-handed pitching/chipping drill. Which I totally hate.

 

[provisional]

As I understand it one of the cures for the "yips" was to get the dominant hand more involved in the stroke. By hitting from the opposite side, the dominant hand becomes even more involved in the swing/stroke. :confused2:

 

[Ole Gray]

One hop and stop does not sound like a chip, it sounds like a pitch. That is just semantics though. I agree with your theme of trying things out from the other side. I practice sometimes pitching the ball lefty and find that it really gets my body to turn and I do not flip at the ball. I will even take practice swings lefty on the course for pitch shots.

By the way, I chip cross handed due to the yips and I believe my chipping is above average. I find the direction is really good cross handed, but the longer chips demand that I use lower irons more readily to get the ball to the hole.

Andy -- You are right. It was pitching the ball but it worked great. I am thinking about taking that old nine iron out to the course tomorrow and watching a few eyebrows )..... That is if this darn fridgid cold weather here in middle Georgia allows for play. I had to buy two more canisters of propane today to make sure I was covered for this weekend.

P.S. I have heard of the cross handed chipping. I think one of the guys on tour was doing this?

 

[White Rhino]

Now I have to try this!!!

 

[v3.0]

I am saving my wrong side for when I get truly desparate about my game. I have gotten close, but I am not quite there yet! :sarcastic: