The Fried Egg
Why this drill
The plugged bunker lie looks like a catastrophe and is actually a recipe — square the face, hit closer to the ball, expect run-out. Ten minutes of practicing golf's ugliest lie converts panic into procedure.
Setup
Practice bunker. Make your own fried eggs: drop balls from shoulder height into soft sand so each buries in its crater. Sand wedge, eight balls.
The drill
Unlike the standard splash, square or slightly close the face, play the ball middle, and swing steeply into the sand an inch behind the crater — the club must dig, not bounce. The ball comes out low, with no spin, and runs: plan for it, landing well short of the flag. Score every first-try escape, and note the run-out length each time — that knowledge is the shot. Eight balls, then two standard splashes from clean lies to restore the normal recipe.
One thought to take with you
Dig, don't splash — and let it run; stopping it was never on offer.