For a standard bunker shot try to hit several centimetres behind the ball (depending on the sand texture will determine exactly how far) we get a good idea of this by wiggling our feet into the sand whilst taking our stance - this will also help you create a firm foundation and will encourage you to hit the sand befofe the ball. Set your weight more to your left side (for right handed players). Try to make a long sand divot - good bunker players hit down and through on their bunker shots, creating and long shallow sand divot. Many club golfers only take a spoonful of sand causing the ball to stay in the bunker or go flying over the green into the next bunker. Make sure you accelerate through the ball, the hands will finish around shoulder high, the back of the left hand should be pointing to the sky and the club face angle will be around 45 degrees. If you achieve this the ball will stop quite quickly.

Do not decelerate at impact or transfer your weight to the right side. I think these 2 faults are the most common.

Practise your putts by aiming at a small target like a coin, this makes the hole appear larger when it comes to holing out.

Another idea is to practise putts with tennis balls this drill also tricks the mind into thinking the hole is bigger when you use a normal ball.

In the backswing try and get your left shoulder behing the ball. This simple swing thought will encourage you to tranfer your weight to the right side thus enabling you to maximise your power using body strength.

Weight transfer is one of the key factors to producing longer shots.

The Chip shot is a lot easier and safer than the Pitch and should be your preferred shot when possible.

Firsty choose the right club, imagine the flight of the the ball and how it will run. Take into consideration the speed of the greens, topography of the land, wind and condition of green – hard/soft. Look for a spot on the green and try to try to concentrate on landing the ball there.

Narrow your stance and point your feet slightly to the left of the target.

Your weight must be more on the left side at address and stay there throughout the shot. Bend your knees towards the target at address and this will help you achieve this.

Imagine a straight line starting behind your ball and continuing towards your target. Swing the club along this line. If your clubface is square and you follow this line the ball must go to the target. Many players make the mistake of taking the club away too much on the inside and then have to try to recover by using their wrists, which in turn leads to many golfing disasters. At address the hands should be more towards the left leg, de-lofting the clubface. The left wrist angle created at address should remain throughout the swing, this will ensure a perfect ball contact every time and is the simplist way to Chip, especially for people that do not have much time to practise.

Position the ball more towards the right side of your stance and move your hands towards your left leg, the ball flight should be quite low allowing the ball to roll up to the hole - the ball should roughly fly about 1 third of the distance and roll 2 thirds of the distance.

Take several practise swings to get a feel for the distance, picture in your mind what you want the ball to do and try to hole it.

The one bounce and stop shot – Advanced player

If your Pitch shots are landing on the green and running too far here is how to get the ball to stop.

• Take a Sand Wedge and open the face very slightly.
• Position the ball opposite the inside of your left shoe. Move your weight to the left side (set your      knees to the left, this will help you to keep your weight to the left), this set up will enalbe you to hit down and squeeze the ball against the grass, creating lots of spin.
• Make a shorter backswing, so that the hands stop around the hip high position.
• In the downswing try to pull the club down with the left side into the back of the ball. Make sure you accelerate through the ball hitting a divot out.
• The finish is abbreviated and should stop when the hands reach hip high. Thoe logo on your glove should point to the sky and the angle of the leading edge the clubface will be at a 45 degree angle.

The player should work hard and believe they can do it. To be a successful player at any level you must believe you can do it before you can. When away from the course, practise visualising yourself with a five footer to win, getting up and down from the bunker instead of dwelling on those bad strokes, choose to remember all the good shots. You must not only work hard on playing golf but also your attitude towards playing golf.

Winning and playing well is more than technique, more than course management - its also attitude. Too many players play out of fear and doubt. Believe you can hit every shot, believe you are a good putter. See yourself in pressure situations and coming through - and you will be surprised how often it happens.

Good luck, I hope you all have a breakthrough in your game.

Look for a place where the ground is even and where you can stand and swing without old divots interfering. Decide on what kind of shot you are going to hit and make sure you tee the ball up on the correct side of the teeing ground allowing you the easiest shot to the fairway or the green.

I see many golfers and also good players making the mistake of teeing up from the most difficult position and then hitting into trouble.

Many golfers, also sometimes very good players have problems with their alignment. Poor alignment is often responsible for many swing faults, as players have to compensate during their swing for standing in the wrong direction when they are addressing the ball.

A simple tip that I always recommend to all my student’s is to lay two clubs on the ground. One to help line up the feet parallel to the target line and the other parallel to the first club (like railway tracks) to help aim the club face correctly and to swing the club towards the target. Putting the clubs on the ground gets you used to standing in the right direction. This good habit will be of great benefit next time you are on the golf course.