About the Lob Shot
Hitting a lob shot is one of the most difficult shots in golf, but it can be a great way to save par from tough situations around the green. Many amateur golfers don’t try this shot because of its difficulty, but with practice and proper technique, you can learn how to hit a good lob shot.
How to Hit a Lob Shot
Here are the steps to hit a lob shot:
- Choose the right club: Typically, a lob wedge with a loft of around 60 degrees is used for hitting a lob shot, but you can also use a sand wedge with a loft of around 56 degrees.
- Address the ball: Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart, the ball positioned in the center of your stance, and your weight evenly distributed on both feet. Your clubface should be square to the target line, and the ball should be positioned slightly forward in your stance.
- Open your clubface: Rotate the face of your wedge to the right (for right-handed golfers) so that it is pointing slightly towards the sky. This will increase the loft of the club, which is necessary for a lob shot.
- Swing: Use a smooth, controlled swing with a shorter backswing than a regular shot. Focus on keeping your wrists firm and maintaining a stable base, so you don’t scoop the ball. The goal is to make contact with the ball first, so the ball pops up into the air with spin.
- Follow through: After impact, continue your swing, and allow the club to follow through. The follow-through should be high and slightly longer than your backswing.
- Practice: Hitting a good lob shot requires practice and patience. Experiment with different degrees of opening your clubface and varying the amount of swing, depending on the distance you need to hit the shot.
Risks of Using Your Lob Wedge in General
The lob wedge is a great tool to have in your golf bag, as it can help you get out of tricky situations around the green. It can be used to hit high shots over bunkers or trees, or to chip up onto the green from tight lies. However, using a lob wedge successfully requires a lot of practice and understanding of the dynamics of hitting the shot properly. Without this knowledge, it can be difficult to repeat the same shot with any consistency.
Professionals at the highest level have an advantage when it comes to using a lob wedge, as they are able to practice these shots countless times in varying conditions on different grass types. For most amateur golfers, however, this isn’t an option and so they must rely on reasonable expectations and good decision making when attempting these shots. Simple technique changes such as adjusting your grip or stance can also make a big difference in how successful you are with your lob wedge shots.
The ultimate risk here is that you will hit a shot thin and send it screaming across the green, likely into a bunker, lake, or just way over on the other side of the green where you now face another chip. Just make sure you ask yourself, do I REALLY need to hit a lop shot here? If so, go for it and use the tips below. If not, maybe stick to the bump and run there Tiger Coulds!
Our Favorite Lob Wedge
Our favorite lob wedge is the Titleist Vokey SM9. Titleist Vokey Design wedges are the pinnacle of wedge making, designed by world-renowned wedges maker Bob Vokey. What we love about the Titleist SM9’s is the classic look and consistent spin rates from fairway, rough, and bunker shots. Compared to the SM8, this newer version has a slightly higher CG by adding weight higher in the club which allows for lower, more controlled ball flight. The SM9’s also feature the first groove improvements that we have seen since the SM6 wedges, thanks to a new spin milled process. For the best lob shots, we would recommend a 60 degree wedge with 8 degrees of bounce and Titleist’s M grind. This is one of the more neutral wedge setups to have with a mid bounce, benefitting most players.
If you are looking to generate the most spin possible, we would recommend going with a wedge like the Callaway Jaws Raw. After a lot of testing, we realized that the spin numbers from the Jaws Raw wedges were astounding, this is a result of the most aggressive grooves Callaway has ever produced.
More Lob Shot Instructional Videos:
Lob Shot vs Flop Shot: What’s the difference?
The terms “lob shot” and “flop shot” are often used interchangeably in golf, but they do have some differences:
A lob shot is a high-arcing shot that is designed to go a short distance but with a high trajectory. The ball will typically land softly and stop quickly, making it ideal for getting up and down from a short distance. To hit a lob shot, you will typically use a lob wedge or a sand wedge with a high degree of loft, open the clubface, and swing with a smooth, controlled motion.
A flop shot, on the other hand, is a more advanced and risky shot that involves hitting the ball high in the air and making it stop quickly, even from a tight lie or a bunker. The ball will typically fly high and stop quickly, making it ideal for getting out of trouble or onto a tightly guarded green. To hit a flop shot, you will typically use a lob wedge with a high degree of loft, open the clubface even more than for a lob shot, and swing with a more aggressive motion, sliding the clubhead underneath the ball.
So while both shots are high, soft shots that require a lot of finesse, the flop shot is a more advanced and riskier version of the lob shot, and should only be attempted by experienced golfers who are comfortable with the technique.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you perform a lob shot?
Executing a lob shot requires precision, confidence, and a correct setup. To start off, position the ball slightly ahead in your stance and open your clubface at address. Make sure your hands, clubface and body are aligned along the target line; more specifically, aim your body left of target for a right-handed player and vice versa. When you do your backswing, it should be slow and wide yet filled with confidence. The key lies in accelerating the clubhead through the ball. Your follow-through should ideally be higher than your backswing. Often when I look back on my successful lob shots, the most consistent element I notice is the commitment. If you’re hesitant or uncertain, the shot is very likely to go awry. Persistence and practice are paramount in nailing this shot.
How do you hit a lob wedge shot?
Using a lob wedge for your shot brings about a new dynamic. First, address with the ball forward in your stance and open the face of your lob wedge before you grip the club. Your body should be aimed left of the target if you’re right-handed, just like in a standard lob shot. The key component is in utilizing the loft of the wedge and the speed of your swing to launch the ball into the air. Your hands should be level or slightly behind the ball and your swing thought should be to slide the bounce of the wedge under the ball on the downswing. It’s important to keep a consistent speed and don’t decelerate on your follow-through. In my numerous years of golfing, slowing down or altering the swing midway is probably the most common mistake that I have noticed among beginners while using a lob wedge.
How do you hit a lob shot from a tight lie?
Hitting a lob shot from a tight or hardpan lie is firmly on the challenging end of the golf shot spectrum, but it is feasible with good practice and technique. Your set-up remains similar, with the ball a bit ahead in your stance and an open clubface. Shift your weight slightly forward, which helps impart loft and helps to prevent digging the club into the ground. The swing needs to be crisp and decisive, with a slightly steeper angle of attack. Follow through completely without slowing down at impact. I was once forced to play a tight lie lob shot in a tough course back in Scotland and even though it was nerve-racking, getting a clean contact with the ball and following through the shot made all the difference.
What is a lob shot?
A lob shot is a high-trajectory shot in golf that is designed to rise quickly and drop steeply. Generally employed when you need to get the ball over a hazard or other obstruction and stop it quickly on the green. It comes in handy when you’re close to the green but in scenarios where a putt or a low chip won’t cut it. I always think back to a round of golf I played in a course near the coast; there was a punctuating moment where I had to clear a bunker with the pin close by. A textbook lob shot was the only option and while it took couple of attempts to stick, the feeling of pulling off such a shot was simply exhilarating!
