Bunker Play
Understanding the Two Types of Bunkers
A greenside bunker and a fairway bunker are different problems demanding different solutions, and conflating the two is where most amateur golfers go wrong. The greenside bunker asks you to move sand — the ball rides out on a cushion of it. The fairway bunker demands precision contact and a controlled trajectory. Both require trust, and trust comes from understanding what the shot actually does.
Greenside bunkers are among the most misunderstood hazards in the game. The standard splash shot is the only shot in golf where you deliberately miss the ball, striking sand two or three inches behind it. The loft and bounce of a sand wedge do the work. Phil Mickelson has described the greenside bunker as a relatively easy shot precisely because the margin for error is so wide — you don't need to catch it perfectly. Most amateurs are afraid of bunkers because they try to help the ball out. They scoop. They decelerate. Both errors leave the ball in the sand or skull it across the green.
Setting Up for the Greenside Splash
The address position for a standard greenside bunker shot is specific and deliberate. Open your stance — aim your feet, hips and shoulders left of target (for a right-hander) by roughly 20 to 30 degrees. Open the clubface by rotating the grip in your hands before you grip it; this adds loft and exposes the bounce of the sole, which is the curved leading edge that prevents the club from digging. Flex your knees and sink into the sand slightly, which lowers your base and tells your body where the bottom of the swing will be.
The swing follows the line of your body, not the target. It is a full, committed motion — not a tap or a gentle swing. Commit to swinging through the sand and finishing high. The length of backswing controls distance: a smaller backswing for a short shot close to the flag, a longer one for a 30-yard bunker shot. The entry point behind the ball and the speed of the swing through the sand determine how far the ball travels. Most mid-handicappers need more speed, not less.
Fairway Bunkers: A Different Animal
In a fairway bunker, the objective is clean contact with the ball before the club touches sand. A thin layer of grass in front of the ball is an asset; pure sand contact means the club decelerates on impact and the ball goes nowhere useful.
Choose one to two clubs more than the distance would normally require, because you will choke down on the grip slightly to reduce the swing arc and decrease the chance of catching the sand first. Play the ball slightly back in your stance — not dramatically, but enough to promote a slightly steeper angle of attack. Keep your lower body quieter than usual; excess hip movement in a fairway bunker shifts the base of your swing and courts a fat shot. Aim for the back of the ball and commit to a three-quarter, controlled swing.
Pay attention to the lip of the bunker. The lip is the controlling factor in club selection. A steep front lip means you cannot take a low-lofted club regardless of the carry distance remaining. A three-iron cannot clear a bunker lip six feet high from 20 yards. Assess the lip before you assess the distance.
Reading the Sand
Not all sand plays the same way. Coarse, firm sand — common at many links courses in Britain and Ireland — offers less resistance and the ball tends to come out lower and run. Fine, fluffy sand found at many American resort courses creates more cushion and requires a harder swing to move enough material. Wet sand after rain is compacted and firm; you can catch it closer to the ball and it will not require the same force. Many seasoned players test the sand with their feet as they settle into the stance, feeling its consistency before committing to the shot.
The depth of the ball's lie matters as well. A plugged or buried lie — a so-called fried egg — requires a different technique entirely. Close the clubface rather than opening it. Take a steeper swing and drive the leading edge down into the sand behind the ball. The ball will come out lower, with more topspin, and will run significantly on landing. Allow for that. Trying to play a standard splash from a fried egg is how golfers make double bogeys from reasonable positions.
Lies and Slopes
Downhill slopes in bunkers require steepening the shoulder angle to match the terrain and playing the ball back in the stance. The tendency is to catch too much sand and leave the ball short. Uphill slopes are more forgiving; the natural slope adds loft and makes it easier to get the ball airborne. Side-hill lies, with the ball above or below your feet, change the effective loft and aim of the clubface and must be adjusted for accordingly.
The Rules of Golf permit you to ground your club in a bunker now — Rule 12 was amended in 2019, removing the old prohibition. You can touch the sand during your practice swing or address, though deliberately testing the conditions (pressing down to gauge consistency) remains prohibited. Most tournament professionals still avoid touching the sand habitually, but recreational golfers benefit from knowing the rules have changed.
Practice and Confidence
There is no substitute for bunker practice, and it is the area of the game most amateur players neglect entirely. A bucket of balls in a practice bunker, working through different distances, different lies and different slopes, builds the physical memory that makes the shot reliable under pressure. The goal is not to avoid bunkers — on most great courses, that is impossible — but to regard them as recoverable situations.
Augusta National's bunkers are relatively shallow and the sand is pristine white. The Church Pew bunkers at Oakmont are long and narrow and deeply penal. The Hell Bunker on the 14th at St Andrews is a landmark as much as a hazard. Understanding how to handle these situations distinguishes golfers who score from those who merely survive.
If you want to explore courses that test your bunker game across different terrains and traditions, Open the map and find venues near you or in destinations you're planning to visit.
Getting Out First, Getting Close Second
The first priority in any bunker is escape. A failed bunker shot that leaves you in the sand is catastrophic for a scorecard. Only after you have selected a shot you are confident will clear the lip and exit the hazard should you think about proximity to the flag.
Professionals make bunker play look effortless because they have spent thousands of hours in practice bunkers and because they understand the physics. They trust the bounce of the sand wedge. They commit to speed through impact. They know that a confident, full swing is more reliable than a tentative half-swing. Adopt those principles and the bunker becomes manageable — not a hazard to dread, but a problem you know how to solve.