Padraig Harrington Chipping Drill
The Padraig Harrington Chipping Drill is from the Golf Practice Planner.
Name
Padraig Harrington Chipping Drill
Category
Distant Wedges Practice Drills
Difficulty
4 out of 10
Time
5 minutes
Props
Wedge. Tee peg. Ball. Golf Practice Planner.
Overview
Chipping is the only shot in golf (apart from putting) where you set yourself up at the address into the impact position because you don’t have time to transfer weight in a chip shot.
For years out on Tour Paddy would see 99% of golfers have the same “one” chipping problem.
Most golfers try to find a solution by changing their ball position, using more knees, using more hands, etc, etc. But if this “one thing” is out, it’s always going to require some horrible compensations in your chipping.
Most people will try to help the ball up. The moment you try to help the ball up, you will back up – your sternum (centre of gravity) is going to move backwards. That will cause you to hit the ground several inches behind the ball which will result in all sorts of bad shots (fat and thins). That’s where the compensations creep in (e.g. using excessive knees and shaft lean). If you get any weight on the right side (if you’re a right-hander) you’ve just shifted your low point of the swing “backwards” too far behind the ball which is the number “one” chipping problem for 99% of golfers.
What you really need to do is get your body in the correct place at the address, and then your hands, arms and wrists will all start working in sync.
Steps
Step 1: Watch
Watch the video.
Step 2: Centre Of Gravity Drill
Address the ball making sure your centre of gravity is on top of or even “left” of the ball.
This will ensure your divot comes “after the golf ball”. In this position it doesn’t matter if you use a lot of wrists or no wrists, the shaft will always come back to a straight line underneath your sternum (eliminating any need for manipulations).
To get the feeling of your centre of gravity being on top of or left of the ball at address, sit on your left-hand side taking the weight of your right foot (see image below). Watch your divot. Make sure it is after the ball. When you hit a shot, stay down long enough to watch the divot, then come up.
To recap. Have the ball forward, have your weight forward, and make sure you never transfer your weight backwards as you hit the ball.
Ball Forward. Keep Weight Forward Throughout Entire Shot
Raymond Floyd used to feel that he was throwing a ball (he is considered one of the greatest chippers of all time). See how much he moves towards the target when throwing a ball. That’s the feeling you want!
See how similar the image of Harrington (see above) and Floyd (see below) are.
Raymond Floyd Throwing Ball Chipping Drill
Step 3: Exaggerate Centre Of Gravity
To hit a high shot, exaggerate the centre of gravity left of the ball.
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