Why do I top the golf ball and how do I stop?
What a topped shot actually is
A top (or thin shot) is contact at the ball's equator or above: the leading edge arrives high and the ball comes out low and scuttling, with no distance control and no ability to hold a green. On face-on video it always looks the same: chest height rises before impact, or the lead arm arrives bent.
The key is the low point, the bottom of the swing arc — the central concept of Adam Young's Practice Manual. With an iron, that low point should fall at the ball or just after it. If your body stands up in the downswing, it is not "your hands" that fail: the entire arc rises, and the contact point rises with it.
The real cause is not "lifting your head"
The clubhouse tip ("you lifted your head!") points at the symptom, not the cause. The documented causes of thin contact are three:
- Standing up in the downswing: loss of posture or early extension — the hips move toward the ball, the chest rises and the whole arc lifts.
- Trying to scoop the ball up with the wrists: the "help it into the air" move throws the low point backward and the leading edge meets the equator.
- Ball too far forward in the stance: the club is already swinging up when it gets there.
The fix: one thing only
Do not stack fixes. One concept, the one Adam Young and Leadbetter give for thin contact:
- Keep your chest height through impact: stay in your posture and cover the ball with your chest on the way down.
The drill (15 minutes)
- Film your swing face-on and mark your head height at address with a line on the screen.
- Hit balls at 70% effort checking that your head does not rise before impact.
- The right feel is covering the ball with your chest on the way down. 15 reps per session.
With Birdia this drill runs itself: you film the swing with your phone, the pose engine detects the 4 phases on your own device and you can compare your height frame by frame, no sensors needed.
Sources
- Adam Young — The Practice Manual: The Ultimate Guide for Golfers.
- David Leadbetter — The Golf Swing.
Frequently asked questions
Will keeping my eye on the ball longer stop the tops?
Usually not: your eyes can stay glued to the ball while your chest still rises and the arc lifts anyway. Work on the cause — keeping chest height through impact — not the symptom.
Why do I alternate tops and fat shots?
Because they are the same mistake with opposite sign: both are low-point errors. On a fat shot, the bottom of the arc falls before the ball; on a top, the whole arc rises and meets the equator. Training where your low point falls (Adam Young) improves both at once.
Can an app detect why I top the ball?
It can measure what a mirror cannot. Birdia detects your swing phases and your tempo with your phone camera, and its coach only recommends drills from a knowledge base with cited sources — and if the measurement confidence does not reach the threshold, it does not report it.
Analyze your swing free with Birdia →