Newsday.com: Short irons and wedges

Tip of the week

Short irons and wedges

April 14, 2005

"Tom Kite survived on Tour with stellar wedge play. Great players know the exact distance the short shots will travel when a certain swing is applied. Take your sand, pitching or other wedge, get 25 good balls - not range balls - find a field, and spend time measuring how far each shot travels. Make half swings, full swings and pitch motions, each time walking the distance off. What you'll find is you're your own distance marker for each shot. Remember, you can't guess short shot distances and be a good wedge player."

-Mike Caporale, head professional, North Hills CC