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Bunker shot Wedges Beginner ⏱ 4 min 🇫🇷 Video in French

Symmetry and Speed During a Bunker Shot with Van de Velde

A bunker shot is intimidating for many amateur golfers. Jean Van de Velde focuses here on speed: if the clubface comes to a stop in the sand, the ball will either stay in the bunker or come up short. He offers two simple tips to avoid this.

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Jean Van de Velde
Jean Van de Velde · his YouTube channelFree lesson selected by Fred P.
Schedule · Step 4 of 7Escape Bunkers in 7 StepsCounted as successful when: 8 out of 10 balls come out of the bunker on the first shot.
Step 5 →

To be continued

11 minSame problemGetting Out of the Bunker with a Square Stance: 8 TipsGuillaume Biaugeaud · Beginner / Intermediate11 minNext Level UpDeChambeau's Short Game Practice: Chips, Rough, BunkerBryson DeChambeau · Intermediate / Expert6 minFrom the same proShank and chipping: Don't push your hands toward the ballJean Van de Velde · Beginner / Intermediate

What the lesson shows

For Jean Van de Velde, the bunker shot is a anxiety-inducing moment because beginners don't really know how to position themselves, when to accelerate, or how to turn the board. Here, he focuses on speed. The board penetrates the sand, encounters resistance, and slows down: So you have to remember to pick up the pace. This is something he sees often: players who are well-positioned but lack speed, whose clubs come to a stop in the sand. If the ball comes out, it’s always short.

First point of reference: the symmetry. The downswing should be the same length as the backswing; to achieve this despite the resistance of the sand, you need to accelerate. The club shouldn't feel like it's hitting a wall. Second tip: to hit the sand onto the green. Dropping the club also displaces sand, but it stays in the bunker or against the mound. Seeing the sand roll onto the green shows that you’ve kept up your momentum, and the ball comes out with a little life left in it.

The Exercise, Step by Step

  1. Just settle in as usual in the bunker.
  2. Choose the length of your backswing.
  3. Plan for a crossing of the same magnitude.
  4. Speed up through the sand to reach this crossing.
  5. Look where the sand is going: it must be heading toward the green.

Key Takeaways

In the sand, the club encounters resistance and slows down.
A shot that lands in the sand results in a short ball, at best.
Symmetry reference point: the follow-through is the same length as the backswing.
To maintain this symmetry, we need to speed up.
The sand must be propelled all the way onto the green.
Sand that remains against the mound indicates that the club has slowed down.

Mistakes to Avoid

  • Be in a good position but don't pick up speed.
  • Let the face come to rest in the sand.
  • A swing path that is shorter than the backswing.
  • Just giving up on the club: the sand stays in the bunker.

Driving Range Mode

Keep it in plain sight, on the rug.

  1. Swinging in the sand without a ball, with the follow-through equal to the backswing
  2. Do the same exercise with a ball, watching where the sand lands
  3. The goal of the series: sand on the green with every shot

Your Questions

Why does my ball stay in the bunker even though I'm in a good spot?

According to Jean Van de Velde, it's often a lack of speed: the clubface encounters resistance from the sand, slows down, and stops. If the ball comes out, it will fall short.

What does a symmetrical bunker shot mean?

A follow-through of the same amplitude as the backswing. Since the sand slows the club down, this symmetry forces you to accelerate.

How can I tell if I really sped up?

Look at the sand. If it’s propelled all the way onto the green, you kept accelerating. If it stays in the bunker or against the mound, the club slowed down.

Learn More

All “Bunker Shot” videos →Find the lesson that's right for you DeChambeau's Short Game Practice: Chips, Rough, BunkerHis typical practice session around the green: three basic chip shots, three shots from the rough handled differently, and in the bunker, controlling the point of impact on the clubface. Scheffler and McIlroy's Wedge Workshop: Chips and BunkersScheffler and McIlroy are looking for a “shallow” swing and a draw feel around the green, from a tight lie to the bunker, to make better contact with the ball. Getting Out of the Bunker with a Square Stance: 8 TipsForget the open stance and the out-to-in swing: square, very low, face open to use the bounce, speed from the wrists; distance from how much you open the face. Jean Van de VeldeAll of his lessons

Video posted on YouTube by its creator (Jean Van de Velde). Best Golf Tips selects and summarizes the best free lessons without hosting them.

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