Short Game

Chipping, pitching and bunkers with your two wedges.

Clubs

Sand wedge (55°) — your scoring club: greenside chips, pitches and bunker shots, everything inside about 60 m. The wider sole and bounce make it the club for the sand.
Pitching wedge (46°) — longer, lower pitches and chip-and-runs; flies a bit further and runs out more than the sand wedge.

Setup

Short-game stance (differs from the full swing):

Feet closer together.
Left foot set back a bit, behind the hips.
Ball centred between both feet.

Lesson learnings

Chipping — land the ball on a spot near the green and let it roll out to the hole.
Pitching — higher, softer shots from around 35–60 m. Control distance with the length of your backswing, not by swinging harder.
Bunker — hit the sand a couple of inches behind the ball, not the ball itself; the sand splashes it out. Commit to the swing — don’t quit on it.

Benchmarks — where you stand

These are approximate feel-guides, not exact targets. Real performance varies with course conditions, nerves, and how well you slept.

Beginner (20+ hdcp)Good amateur (5–10 hdcp)Tour

Short game — up-and-down %

Up-and-down (a.k.a. greenside scramble) means getting the ball in the hole in just two shots from near the green: one chip or pitch on, one putt in. This measures how often you save par after missing the green.

Greenside scramble (within ~30 yd of the green)

Beginner

25%

Good amateur

45%

Tour

60%