Lee Trevino reveals the secret to 'the best chipper I've ever seen'

It's funny how the game's truly great players never stop trying to get even better. Lee Trevino is perhaps the best example there is.

The 84 year-old hits balls on the range almost every day. He still tinkers with his technique, and is constantly learning lessons from the past. He shared a couple of those a few weeks ago, ahead of the PNC Championship in Orlando. If you tend to struggle around the green, this one may prove particularly useful.

Trevino said when it came to chipping, the best he ever saw was Hubert Green. It was something Trevino has said many times over the years, and he even made it official in a 2000 edition of Golf Digest (which you can read in full in our archive, right here)

Green won the 1977 U.S. Open and then topped Trevino to win the 1985 PGA Championship (which the legendary writer Dan Jenkins wrote about here).

Why Trevino loved it

You can hear Trevino explain why in his own words below, but the reason why Trevino loved Green's short game action started at setup.

1. Green played the ball back in his stance.
2. He choked down on the shaft.
3. He leaned the grip forward so it was covered by his left forearm.
4. Green would hinge back so the grip was exposed.
5. Finally, he would pop the clubhead into the ball.

Done correctly, it meant the grip re-aligned with his left forearm at impact, and was covered all the way into his limited follow through.

What you can learn

Trevino says this isn't a shot many of us will be able to master for most shots — Trevino himself says he never got the hang of it. But one thing he says the rest of us can learn from Green's technique is aligning the shaft with your left arm at setup, and keeping it there.

You can read more about that impossible to screw up technique right here. And thank Hubert Green in the meantime.

This prevents the clubhead from passing the hands, and scooping chips with your wrists—a sure recipe for chunks and thin shots.