[ChrisNZ]

Just wanted to recommend this practice to others. I’m lucky to not only live in the country with the greatest number of golf courses per capita, but also to live 5 minutes walk from a beach. The other day, I took my pitching wedge to the beach while picnicking with the family, and hit some shots off soft sand. Not sand shots but basic motion, acquired motion etc. Also tried the ‘great wall of China’ drill. It was such an educational experience that I’ve been back the last couple of evenings to hit more shots in this way.

If you lose lag, flip, fail to load lag or quit then the ball goes nowhere. Also, if you don’t maintain a very steady pivot tripod, clean contact is very difficult. But... after finding it difficult at first you very quickly start to get it. I heard the best compression I have ever achieved on some of these shots – short or long – very much the hitting a stone sound (is this the best sound in the world!!!!). Plus it wasn’t the usual kind of ‘intellectual’ experience I have when practicing of ‘lets try this..., lets try that’ - it was very much an intuitive learning process, more like learning to catch a ball – you either get it or you don’t.

This seems to me like a great way of training in an environment that won’t forgive your mistakes at all – I’d recommend it to anyone near a beach, a desert or a usable bunker. Any dangers with this?

Chris