golfrewind.com

Is that what they are called? When I get stuck with a tree in front of me, I am trying to hit a low trajectory shot so it doesn't hit the branches above. I always pop in up and get my ball mangled in the branches. How do you hit low piercing shots. I'd imagine this would be good for windy situations as well.

back of your stance place the ball, take your normal swing and try to hold off the follow through, you want to feel like your blocking the ball from going high up, this should give you a low-rising, punch shot

I also play the ball back in my stance and hold my followthrough. Most of the time it's a short shot, but every now and then I hit it hard and try to get on the green from a very tough place.

Let's not forget that more club will be needed for the distance intended...I hit mine like a big chip with no more than a 3/4 swing with matching follow through...

i also "hood" the face to deloft it.

Since the OP was unfamilar with the concept of a punch shot, maybe you could explain what hooding means? .... .... OK, I'm not sure what that means, either, so could you explain it for me, too?

Hooding = hands pressed forward with slightly closed clubface.

Shade

place the ball in back of your stance, and angle the club forward. and as mentioned before, short follow through, end w/ club pointing towards target.

Pratice this shot alot before you try it, I see alot of my friends instead of pitching back to the fairway too make 5 or 6, they put themselfs in alot worst position and end up making 8 or 9.

Cut off follow through, I always try too keep the logo on my glove point at the target as long as I can though impact.

I use the knockdown shot more then I do a full swing. But I live on the coast and 15-30mph wind is normal. Seems alot easier too judge distance.

i like the emblem on the glove pointing at the the target as long as possible swing thought....it's simple you dont have to think hood the face, hold the follow through....it's one thought and it does all the rest...i don't know about a true hooding of the club face...if you have an in to out swing this could cause another shot...the punch hook....from the trees i like ye olde 3 iron and press hands a bit farther ahead of the ball and keep that emblem pointing at the target...good luck...don't worry...within another 6 months you will have mastered this shot....it's the very first shot golfers learn to hit correctly.....must be all the practice we get

The punch is the most reliable shot in my game. Like most people here I play it back in my stance, and I mean really back; sometimes the ball is barely ahead of my right foot. I take a normal backswing and then I swing through and try to finish with my club pointing toward my target. The ball comes out low and stays low through the flight. I take about 2 clubs more than usual for the distance.

Because I play the ball so far back, I put some hook spin on the ball, so it goes about ten yards left at the end. I play for this, but sometimes I need to straighten it out, so I set up exactly the same way, but with the face open about 15 degrees. That does the trick.

It's basically the same as a chip but you hit it harder. I use a hybrid. It's great for punches. Helps ensure a solid contact and gives you a little more distance because of the COR. I'll use a low iron if I'm trying to work it a bit, like around a tree, but the hybrid's my usual punch club.

I second the hybrid...punched out of deep rough in the treeline to left of the green, made the up and down thanks to a rocket punch from my 19* rescue which traveled about 170yds with no portion of the flight higher than my shoulders...I have always wondered how the low punch would play around the course...take one round and see how low I could go with only punch shots for 1st and 2nd shots...

All of the above is good advice. The only thing I'd add is that while you want to cut off your follow-through at about 3:00, be careful not to decellerate through the ball.

The key with that^^^ is to not think about restricting your follow through, but instead think about not letting your hands release. As someone else said, keep the back of your left hand pointing to the target as long as possible. This will automatically restrict your follow through. You definitely don't want to be decelerating, so imagine your making a long follow through, even though you're not.