Tip provided by: Keiser University College of Golf

 

Hitting the top of the ball is one of the most common faults among many avid golfers. The typical belief that golfers have for this shot is that they are not keeping their head down. This may be the case but we sometimes take too much “medicine” for the ailment. In other words, golfers may take keeping their head down to the extreme, holding their chin to their chest throughout the entire golf swing, which limits motion and can cause the problem of topping the ball to become even worse.   

 

A better way to think during the swing is to keep your chin up at address and then try to keep it level during the swing. If the head raises or lowers during the swing, this will bring the bottom of the swing arc up or down with it, causing the top of the ball to be hit or causing a “fat shot, where the club hits the ground behind the ball. Maintaining a constant head position or keeping or the spine angle consistent throughout the swing will help to make contact at a consistent point at the bottom of the swing.

 

Another cause of hitting the top of the ball or generally inconsistent contact is an early release of the hands during the downswing.  A common misconception for some players is that they need to snap their wrists at the moment of impact.  At best, this is very difficult to accomplish consistently and actually adds loft to the club face at impact, causing a higher, shorter shot. During the downswing, if we keep our hands and wrists passive, the club will stay low to the ground longer and will help you achieve more solid contact.  An additional bonus is that your distance will increase due to the face of the club being in the proper position at impact, not adding loft to it.

 

A final suggestion is to watch the amount of effort you are putting into the swing. The old expression “swing hard in case you hit it” is probably not the best solution. The best swing is usually one that feels the easiest. If making solid contact is a problem, slow down!  If you don’t hit it solidly, swing speed is not going to help.

--By Keiser University College of Golf