Did you know that golfers in general take between 60 – 70% of their shots from a distance of 100 metres or less? Often you will be faced with a shot where one needs to be able to fly the ball a short distance and have it roll a very short distance. This shot will therefore be played as if you are trying to get the ball over an object (i.e. a bunker or water hazard) or if the flagstick is on the front of the green and you need to stop the ball quickly.
The first step is to choose the right club for the shot. Though you might use your pitching or sand wedge for short pitches to the green under normal circumstances, for the flop shot, take the highest loft you can find in your bag. A 60 degree lob wedge will always be better than a 52 degree wedge for this type of shot. A lob wedge should also be the preferred choice of club than a sand wedge as the sand wedge is designed with to much bounce i.e. the rounded ridge on the sole to enable it to bounce or skim off the sand.
To play the lob shot one needs to stand in a slightly open position where your feet, hips and shoulders are aiming left of target. The clubface needs to be square to the ball to target line. This will produce an out-to-in swing path with the clubface open relative to the swing path, similar to the way you would play a bunker shot. The ball position should be forward, 2-3 inches left of your sternum as this will then place the hands level, or even behind the ball which will aid in the ball flight having a higher trajectory.
A good image is to concentrate on keeping the face of the club pointing towards the sky at the finish of the shot.