[airair]

LYNN BLAKE
The secret to playing from poor and tight lies is 'pinch'; that is, the Club shaft
leans well forward and the Hands (with the Flat Left Wrist) lead through Impact.
And the secret to 'pinch' on the short shots is to move your Pivot Center (Head
or Point-between-the-Shoulders) slightly left -- either at Address or even
during the Backstroke -- of its normal mid-stance location. This is what Brian
does, and I never get tired of watching him execute these shots.
When seeking 'severe pinch', you should additionally play the ball well back
toward the right foot. In extreme situations, Brian will actually locate the ball
outside his right toe. All this moves the Low Point of the Stroke decidedly left of
the Ball Location and produces a steep Angle of Attack that avoids the grass or
ground behind the ball.

But, when playing such a shot, here's another really important thing:
Think "Float".
On almost all pitch shots, even the lower ones, that is your objective. However
long the 'air' time (versus 'ground' time), you are 'pitching pennies' and should
seek an "underhand pitch, motion and feel" whether you are lobbing, pinching
or severely pinching the shot. Especially from poor lies, most golfers attempt to
'gouge' the ball up and out. The lie intimidates, and they subconsciously hit the
ball harder than required to get the ball airborne and out of its predicament.
Remember, the Hands are only clamps. As such, they control Clubface
alignments. They do not produce Power.

Instead of relying on Club head Acceleration (Lag Pressure) to extricate the ball,
rely on the pre-set Pivot Center / Ball Location and resulting steep Angle of
Attack (Geometry). Despite the resulting lower trajectory -- which will be higher
if you add Cut (Open Clubface and Plane Line) -- the intent to 'float' the ball
toward the flagstick will soften the shot and add to your control