Last month, I watched one of my younger competitive students step into a fairway bunker 140 yards from the green with complete confidence. Perfect lie, clear view to the flag, and he’d been hitting his irons well all day.
His swing looked good, with a reasonably smooth tempo and solid rhythm, but the ball traveled barely 30 yards before rolling back toward his feet. The dreaded chunk seems to plague more than a few golfers from the fairway bunker.
After two more attempts, each worse than the last, he walked out, having added unnecessary strokes to his card on this relatively simple par-4.
“I don’t get it, Coach B. I tried to pick it clean,” he said in frustration.
Sound familiar? It should. Fairway bunker play is one of golf’s most misunderstood skills.
Why fairway bunkers eat golfers alive
The biggest myth? You need to “pick the ball clean.” I’ve heard this from hundreds of students and it is likely what’s keeping you from being a better fairway bunker player. This thinking causes topped shots that leave you right back in the sand.
Treat fairway bunker shots like hitting from grass. Hit ball first, then sand, exactly like a normal iron shot. The divot happens after impact, on the target side.
The second killer is poor club selection. Many amateurs grab a club that doesn’t have enough loft to clear the bunker face. The correct loft gets you airborne and out of trouble, which is always objective No. 1, or should be.
The lip test that can quickly make you better
Before choosing your club, run this simple test.
Step on your club just outside the bunker with the face pointing up. The shaft angle shows your ball’s launch trajectory. If the shaft points above the lip, you’re good. If it might catch the edge, grab more loft.
Thinking 5-iron? Take a 7-iron instead. Better to be short and in play than perfect and still in the sand.
As I mentioned, the goal isn’t nailing the perfect yardage. It’s getting out and advancing the ball.
Set up for solid contact
Your fairway bunker setup differs completely from greenside shots.
Ball position: Center to slightly back of center. This ensures ball-first contact before your swing’s low point.
Stance: Narrow your stance for consistent contact. This limits where the club can hit ground and promotes rotary motion over lateral slide.
Footing: Dig in just enough for stability, not the deep excavation you’d use around the green.
Two distance killers
Swinging too hard wrecks everything. When you try to crush it, the club more often than not slides through the sand instead of finding the ball first.
Trying to help the ball up destroys your natural pivot. I see golfers hanging back on their trail foot, trying to scoop the ball to get it airborne. Let the club’s loft do the work.
The system that works
Check your lie — Clean lie means you can be aggressive; a ball sitting down means play safe.
Check the lip — Use the shaft test every time.
Club up — Take one more club than you’d use from grass. That 130-yard shot that’s normally a 9-iron? Hit an 8-iron instead.
Setup properly — Ball back, narrow stance, solid footing.
Swing smoothly — Control beats power every time.
The trick is to make ball-first contact, then brush the sand. All that noise you hear about picking it clean from a fairway bunker often leads to thin shots that won’t clear the lip. “Ball first, sand second”, is more reliable and relatable as it is what you want to do with most iron shots.
Fairway bunkers don’t have to ruin your round. Get the right loft, make solid contact and trust your swing. Do this right and you’ll start seeing bunkers as just another lie to play from.
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