Golf Swing Tips – How to Stop Topping Golf Balls and Improve Your Golf Swing
Do your golf balls just roll along the ground and never get into the air? This is called topping the ball, and happens because your club contacts the ball above its equator. Ironically, many golfers make the problem worse by trying to “help” the ball into the air – trying to lift or scoop the golf ball off the turf. So, what is the correct way to stop topping the golf ball?
Unfortunately, there is no easy answer. Fundamentally, the problem is that your golf swing mechanics are incorrect in some way. Assuming that you are using the correct golf club, its design will ensure that ball will fly into the air when you swing the club correctly. The fastest way to stop topping golf balls is to consult a golf pro or golf swing coach. He will be able to see where your worst mistakes are and suggest the best drills to improve your golf swing. Once you learn to perform those drills correctly, this embarrassing problem of dribbling your golf ball on the ground will be fixed.
Of course, not everyone has access to a competent golf pro. Before you start surfing the web for a solution, let me give you a warning. Some websites use the terms topping the golf ball, skulling, and hitting the ball thin interchangeably. Not to mention that the golf swing tips contradict each other. Let me suggest a more old fashioned alternative. Go hit your local library for some golf swing instruction books. Look for the books which teach golf swing techniques or show the correct golf swing mechanics. Browse them and borrow the books which you can understand. Read them carefully and take notes. Then go hit a few dozen golf balls and capture it all on video. Analyze what you see, and compare it against your notes. You should see some major deviations from the norm. Once you correct these mistakes, you should have improved your golf swing and stopped topping your golf balls.
Pursuing shortcuts tends to be a hit or miss affair. I must admit that sometimes you just do not have time to do it right. In such cases, you just have to cross your fingers, make a quick prayer and hope for the best. So, here are two quick golf swing tips to stop topping golf balls:
Aim one inch in front of the ball. Stand with the ball further back in your stance. Swing your club as usual, and you will hit the ball lower.
Some golfers find that they only top the ball with their drivers and low-numbered irons. This shows that they have difficulty controlling the added power when they swing these clubs. Here are three golf swing tips to help you:
Practice half-swings until you consistently hit the ball without topping, then graduate to practicing full-swings Practice swinging the golf club in slow motion to ingrain the correct movement into your muscle memory. Once you are satisfied that you fully understand the correct golf swing mechanics, gradually increase the speed you swing the club. Practice your golf swing with old-style blade irons. These old-fashioned clubs have tiny sweet spots. They give you excellent feedback when you do not hit the ball right – the club vibrates strongly and stings your hands. Once you can contact the ball with the sweet spot consistently, you will stop topping the golf ball.
Topping the golf ball once is embarrassing. Topping the golf ball swing after swing is humiliating. The fastest way to stop topping golf balls and improve your golf swing is to ask a golf swing coach to look at your swing. The next best way is to study and understand the correct golf swing mechanics.