Thin and fat chip shots are the most score-damaging mistakes in amateur golf. A skulled chip across the green, or a heavy contact that travels 3 feet, turns makeable pars into bogeys and double-bogeys. These 5 drills fix the root causes permanently.
Place a coin on the ground where the ball would sit. Try to chip the coin, not the ground behind it.
Alternate: place the coin 1 inch in front of a ball and try to contact ball-then-coin in sequence.
Fold a towel and place it 4 inches behind where your ball sits.
Chip without hitting the towel. If you hit it, you dipped behind the ball — the cause of heavy contact.
Practice chipping with only your lead hand on the club.
Make 10-15 chip shots one-handed. Then resume normal two-handed grip.
Place a towel 6 feet onto the green from the fringe. Chip from the rough to land on the towel.
Vary chip distances by moving the towel. Focus only on landing zone — not final resting spot.
Practice from 4 lies: tight fairway, light rough, medium rough, heavy rough. Same distance each.
How does your setup need to change? More weight forward in rough? Different ball position?
"Clean chipping contact comes from ball-first contact with a firm lead wrist and forward shaft lean. All fat and thin chip shots have the same root cause: the club's low point is in the wrong position relative to the ball."
GOATY's Lead Arm and Impact coaching specifically addresses the forward shaft lean and lead wrist condition that produces clean chipping contact. The same mechanics GOATY measures in full swings — body position, weight forward, lead arm structure — determine chipping quality.
Start Free Live Lesson with GOATY →