Hitting the ball fat is one of the errors of swing technique that will quickly add preventable strokes to your game. Even though beginner golfers are more prone to making fat shots, they can vex even veteran players.

In a fat shot, the club head strikes the ground behind the ball, trapping a chunk of grass and dirt between the club face and the ball. As a result, the club never really strikes the ball and the ball goes pretty much nowhere. Oh, hilarious!

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Not only is hitting the ball fat embarrassing, it can also be painful. It can be physically painful as the impact of the club head with the ground jars your hands, arms and shoulders. It can be mentally painful because the bad shot can kill your confidence. And do we even need to mention the pain that comes with looking at your score card at the end of the round?

Causes of Fat Shots
Hitting the ball fat can come from several factors, including a general lapse in concentration, poor club choice, an improper set up, bad swing form and – most commonly – failure to properly transfer weight forward during the downswing. Here are some tips to help you stop hitting the ball fat.

Note: these instructions are for right handed golfers. Left handed golfers should reverse the directions. (See our tips for left handed golfers.)

Choose the Right Club — The first solution to hitting the ball fat is to select the right club for the shot. Fat shots sometimes come from the mistaken notion that the club has to undercut the ball to loft it into the air – which means taking a mega-divot. Using a club with the right amount of loft will help to prevent this.

Set Up Properly — The next step to stop hitting the ball fat is to check your set up. Center your weight over both feet and stand with your feet and shoulders square. Make sure your right shoulder isn’t too low at address, as this shoulder can cause a problem later during the swing.

The ball should be centered in your stance. If the ball is too far forward, the club is more likely to hit the ground too soon.

Maintain Good Form — Stand with your back and shoulders aligned, bent over slightly at the waist. Be careful not to slouch or bend over too far, because that moves your arms and club too close to the ground. The result is that the club hits the turf before it gets to the ball. Stand up straight enough that the club head is high enough to be in line with the ball, not the grass.

Another cause of hitting the ball fat is dropping the right shoulder during the swing. (See, we told you this was important.) Starting with the right shoulder high enough during the address and backswing can help to prevent this. But you still must prevent it from dropping during the downswing. If the right shoulder drops, the result will be a steep swing arc that smacks the club head into the ground before it even gets to the ball.

Shift Your Weight — The most common cause of hitting the ball fat is that weight is too far onto the right leg and doesn’t transfer forward to the left leg during the shot. With your weight behind the ball, your arms and club head will be behind the ball, too, directing the club head into the ground behind the ball.

Do This Instead and Cure Those Fat Shots
Grab your 9-iron and set up as just described, maintaining good posture. Practice hitting balls while standing with all of your weight on your left leg only, holding your right foot a little bit off the ground. Shifting your weight forward moves the arc of the swing forward as well. This action sets up a swing arc that hits down onto the back of the ball rather than behind it. When your swing arc flattens out properly, start practicing with your right foot back on the ground.

As you work on this fix, practice with all of your clubs. Hitting the ball fat can happen with any club, so you need to practice with each one to get the proper feel of hitting the ball and not the ground. Start with your 9-iron and work your way down, including the woods. (To learn more about these clubs, see our article: Irons and Woods — A Brief Comparison for Beginner Golfers.)

By following these tips, you can cut the fat from your game and watch your scores shrink!

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