Bunker shots are ripe for a large number in the recreational game. Due to a lack of practice – and lack of understanding – most weekend warriors are doomed when they find their balls in the sand.
GOLF Top 100 Master David Armitage has made it his mission to change that. Throughout his career as an instructor, Armitage has made bunker play his area of expertise, with the goal of making bunker shots less scary for everyday players.
That’s why we enlisted him for our pilot episode of Top 100 Sessions for Teachers, where he breaks down everything there is to know about the bunker game. In the video (which you can watch in full below), Armitage explains how to vary distances on bunker shots — all without even changing your swing.
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How to vary distances on bunker shots
Once you have a basic understanding of how to hit a standard bunker shot, changing distances is easy. All you have to do is change your club selection and face position at address.
Armitage uses three different wedges for greenside bunker shots (gap wedge, sand wedge and lob wedge) and with each he can use a square face, a 1 o’clock face or a 2 o’clock face. This gives him nine different distances on greenside bunker shots all with the same swing.
However, while the distances will vary with each wedge and the position of the face, it is always important to take into consideration the conditions of the course, such as how well the sand stays in the bunkers. Armitage points out that Tour players don’t always create spin on these shots. Sometimes the sand is responsible for the way the ball reacts.
“When they see a ball spinning, they think the player is spinning it, and sometimes it’s to do with the circumstances,” he says.
For everyday golfers, the lesson is to focus on the setup and the strike rather than trying to manufacture spin.
The 2026 GOLF Top 100 Teachers Summit will take place November 1-4 at the Omni La Costa Resort & Spa in Carlsbad, California.
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