Hitting out of wet bunkers

By Bruce Lewis
Weather is as unpredictable as life itself, so no matter where
or when you like to play golf, it’s very important to know how to
hit out of wet bunkers.
There are two key differences between hitting out of a dry
bunker and a wet one. No. 1: When you’re in a wet bunker, don’t try
the explosion shot you’d use when the sand is dry. You want your
wet bunker shot to be more like a chip shot as you would hit off of
hardpan. Therefore, you should use a
”
V
”
-shaped swing with a sharper angle of attack, instead of the
big
”
U
”
-shaped swing.
By Bruce Lewis

Weather is as unpredictable as life itself, so no matter where or when you like to play golf, it’s very important to know how to hit out of wet bunkers.

There are two key differences between hitting out of a dry bunker and a wet one. No. 1: When you’re in a wet bunker, don’t try the explosion shot you’d use when the sand is dry. You want your wet bunker shot to be more like a chip shot as you would hit off of hardpan. Therefore, you should use a “V”-shaped swing with a sharper angle of attack, instead of the big “U”-shaped swing.

No. 2: In a wet bunker, use your pitching wedge instead of your sand wedge in order to avoid all the bounce provided by the sole of your SW. That way, the ball will come out lower and with much more backspin than your normal dry bunker shot.

Rules Question

With all of the wet golf courses due to the heavy rains, what do you do if your ball is embedded or plugged in the fairway or on the green after your tee shot or approach shot? Can you clean it? Your answers can be found at the bottom of the column.

Rules Answer

Rule 25-2 states: “A ball embedded in its own pitch-mark in the ground in any closely-mown area through the green may be lifted, cleaned and dropped, without penalty, as near as possible to the spot where it lay but no nearer the hole.” 

The Rules also allow for a local rule if conditions are extremely wet and/or muddy for lift, clean, and place your ball anywhere through the green or on a closely-mown area through the green.