Okay, so, the other day I was out on the course, right? And I was thinking about trying out some new shots. I’ve been practicing my short game a lot lately, and I wanted to see if I could get the hang of these flop shots and lob shots. I mean, they look so cool when the pros do them, but they’re not easy!
So, first, I tried to figure out what the difference is between a flop shot and a lob shot. After some reading on internet, it looks like they’re basically the same thing? A flop shot is sometimes called a lob shot. You basically open up your wedge and try to hit the ball way up in the air so it lands softly and just stops. I watched a few videos online, and it seemed like it might be possible for a regular guy like me to learn.
I grabbed my sand wedge and headed to the practice green. First, I tried just a few regular chips, you know, just to get a feel for things. I was trying to get the ball to roll most of the way, like a normal chip shot. No problem there.
Then, it was time to get brave. I opened up the face of my wedge, like, really opened it up. It felt weird, to be honest. I took a few practice swings, trying to get the feel for it. I was aiming to swing more up, not down, if that makes any sense. It is not easy!
- First real swing: Total disaster. I think I hit the ground way before the ball. It barely went anywhere.
- Second try: A little better. I got the ball in the air, but it didn’t go very high, and it rolled out way too much.
- Third attempt: Okay, now we’re talking! I got some real height on that one. It went up, came down pretty soft, and stopped quicker than my normal chip. Not perfect, but I was getting somewhere.
I kept at it for a while, just trying to get a consistent feel for the shot. Some were good, some were terrible, some were decent. It’s definitely a tough shot to master. I can see why they say it takes a lot of practice. The key seems to be, from what I could tell, having some great touch and swinging way more vertically than I’m used to. Also, I was trying to think about landing the ball on a specific spot, not just getting it close to the hole. You almost have to imagine the ball just dropping straight down from the sky. I think so.
My key takeaways
Here’s what I realized. This kind of shot could be really useful in certain situations. Like, say you’re short-sided, and there’s a bunker between you and the pin. Or maybe there’s some kind of mound or something, and you can’t just roll the ball up there. That’s where a flop or lob shot could save the day.
For now, I’m going to keep practicing. It’s not a shot I’d feel comfortable using in a real round yet. But I think with enough time on the practice green, I might be able to add it to my game. It’s definitely a fun shot to try, even if it’s a little frustrating at times! It felt really good when I actually hit one well.
I’m going to keep working on it. Maybe I’ll even start to feel like one of those pros on TV, who knows? But for now, I’m just a regular golfer, trying to learn a new trick. Hopefully, this helps some of you out there who are thinking about trying this shot. Just be prepared to hit a lot of bad ones before you start hitting the good ones!
