For a pitch shot, the ball is hit high and travels further in the air than along the ground. A pitch is an extension of both the medium and high chip shots and is played between 35yd (32m) and 100yd (91 m) from the green.

 The aim of a pitch is to play the ball close enough to the hole so that your next shot is a short putt. To play it well requires a lot of practice as well as a fine touch, but once you've mastered it you could save yourself several shots per round.

 The pitch is a feel shot played with no more than a three-quarter swing and with any one of a number of clubs. The most common are the sand wedge, pitching wedge and 9 iron.

Choosing your club

The club you use depends on the distance of the shot. The sand wedge, with a clubface loft of about 56°, is for shots of 35-60yd (32-55m) while a pitching wedge (with a loft of about 50°) is for 61-80yd (56-73m) strikes. A 9 iron (about 46° loft) hits the ball 81-100yd (74-91 m) with a three-quarter swing.

These distances increase as you improve. But whatever the distance of the shot and whichever club you use, your tempo must stay the same.

The technique is the same for each club - although the swing plane changes slightly according to the length of the shaft. The shorter the shaft the more your back is bent and the more upright the swing plane is. The sand wedge has a steeper swing plane than either the pitching wedge or the 9 iron.

Address and swing

Hold the club about 2in (5cm) down the shaft with the standard overlap grip. Take a slightly open stance with your left foot about 2in (5cm) behind your right, so that your hands and arms can swing freely through impact. However, your hips, chest and shoulders remain parallel to the ball-to-target line.

Your stance is slightly wider than if playing a chip and run. The ball is midway between your feet.

Let your left wrist break immediately you start the takeaway. This helps create a steep back-swing and moves your hands and arms into the correct position to start the downswing.

Your left hand must stay ahead of the clubface on the downswing, and pull it into the ball. Keep both
hands, your wrists and arms firm as you hit the ball. At impact, both hands are still slightly ahead of the clubface - it is only after impact that it moves level with your hands. Your right hand stays behind the left for as long as possible.

It's vital to remember that your left hand dominates the swing, while your right remains passive. This is the single most important point in pitching because your left arm and hand pull the clubface through the ball and so control its speed and path.

Let your body rotate to the left on the throughswing and allow your left shoulder to rise. From an even distribution at address your weight moves on to your right foot on the backswing, and on to the outside of your left foot by the completion of the swing.

A firm impact

Your hands must be firm at impact to give you clubface control, direction and feel. Many golfers flick at the ball in an effort to gain height. Not only is this bad technique, it is also unnecessary. It's the loft of the clubface that gives your ball height.

As you practice, note that the s and wedge imparts more backspin than either the pitching wedge or the 9 iron. It has the most loft and creates a steep swing plane with its short shaft.

However, when learning to pitch, concentrate on selecting the club that hits your ball the necessary distance with a three-quarter swing. If the pin is close to a hazard don't risk forcing a sand wedge up to a full swing just because it imparts more backspin and stops the ball quickly. Take a longer club and accept that your ball will roll further on landing.

At this stage concentrate on developing a repeatable swing with all three clubs. Your backswing and followthrough must be of equal length.

Out of the rough

Pitching from long grass (rough) provides its own special problems, although the basic technique remains the same.

As the clubface passes through the rough, the tall, thick grass acts as a barrier and tries to twist the club in your hand to the left (clubface closes). Your left hand feels a greater strain at impact than if playing a pitch from the fairway.

You must counter the extra pressure exerted on the clubhead -and your left hand - by gripping the club a little more firmly and opening the clubface slightly at address. Be sure to keep an even tempo throughout the swing.

Grass gets entangled between the ball and the clubface. This is unavoidable, so concentrate on hitting down on the ball and making as clean a strike as possible. Your swing path, stance, and ball position do not change when playing from the rough.


Reduced backspin from rough

You can't generate much backspin when playing from the rough. This is because blades of grass become trapped between the clubface and the ball and stop the clubface grooves from imparting spin. This results in a 'flier' and the ball doesn't stop quickly on landing.

Keep this in mind when pitching from thick grass. Try to land your ball a few yards further back than normal and let it run up to the flag. Remember to visualize your shot carefully when playing from the rough.

Playing a pitch shot

1: Address position
Open your stance by sliding your left foot back about 2in (5cm) but keep your shoulders, chest and hips parallel to the ball-to-target line.


2: Top of back swing
Make about a three-quarter back swing. The exact length depends on the distance of the shot. Your weight moves from an even distribution at address to your right foot.

3: Through impact
Keep your left wrist firm and focus on striking the back of the ball. Don't scoop it. Just after impact the club head moves level with your hands for the first time.

4: Completion of swing
Your weight transfers on to your left side which lets your upper body rotate to the left to face the target. The through swing is the same length as the backswing.

Playing from the rough

1: Open clubface at address
 Open the clubface slightly at address and grip the club firmly.This limits the amount it slips in your hands as the club head cuts through the rough.
 
2: Focus on back of ball
Take the club away smoothly and break your wrists immediately to steepen the angle of the swing plane. Focus on cleanly striking the back of the ball.

3: Left hand firm in rough
Your left hand takes the strain at impact as the rough gets entangled with the clubface, which turns to the left. This is why you open the clubface at address. Keep your head down through impact.

4: Weight moves on to left side
Your weight transfers on to your left foot on the follow through and your body rotates to face the target. Try to maintain your tempo throughout the stroke.