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near the putting green, need a chip or pitch, but the ball is in heavy grass, sometimes under the grass and sometimes just half way sticking out. I have had some success with this lately playing it like a bunker shot, but occasionally I shank this shot and I'm not sure if it's the grass grabbing my club or if I'm leaning, but is there a better way of playing this shot and if this is the best way to play this shot how can I keep for shanking it. Thanks

how do you play a bunker shot? Do you open the face of the club ? depending on how bad its buried and how fluffy the lie is I will either gouge it out or open the club face with a sand wedge and go down and get the ball on a steep angle. Don't grip too far down on your wedge, If I grip down all the way to the steel I will sometimes shank if I move my head slightly. If I grip about 2 inches above the steel with my right thumb then I have more margin of error in head movement and weight transfer.

Heres an tip i found that might be useful

Balls, which bury in lush fringe areas around the green
present a special shot-making problem. The heavy bent grass
tends to grab the club on normal pitches or chips, causing
a 'fat' shot. To avoid this, select a putter, play the ball
well back toward the right foot and position your hands
well ahead of the ball at address. Then simply hinge your
wrists, cocking the club away from the ball in a steep
upward arc, then drop the putter-head onto the back of the
ball.

Avoid any follow-through. The ball will pop up with a
high hop topspin, carrying it over the fringe and onto the
green toward the hole. Remember, the length of the
backswing is the determining factor in how far the ball
will go. A nominal amount of practice will give you a feel
for this and soon you'll be saving strokes in a surefire
way.