So many amateurs come to me completely spooked by the Darth Vader of golf, how to play out of bunkers without fear. It’s funny, from day one, I embraced bunker play. Perhaps it was the creative component the shot requires. There are several ways to skin this cat. Allow me to simply share a few thoughts that have helped me tremendously.

The first bit of information I received that helped me build my bunker play from average to outstanding was provided by my old friend and former swing coach during my playing days, John Elliott — a fine teacher from Ocala, Florida.

John calls the leading edge of the club the “digger” and the bounce of the club the “skidder.” He explained that if you could learn to use the bounce/skidder against the surface of the bunker and keep the club from digging, you could learn to hit those beautiful bunker contacts that sound like a thump and come out with beautiful spin and consistent trajectory. John also explained that the only situation that demanded a squared-up face and use of the leading edge, the digger, was if he had a fried egg or plugged lie in the bunker.

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