Fat vs Thin Golf Shots
A fat shot is when the club hits the ground before the ball, taking a big chunk of turf and losing most of its speed, so the ball comes up short. A thin shot is the opposite: the club catches the ball too high, near its middle, so it flies low and hard and often runs past the target.
They feel like opposite problems, but they usually share a cause: the lowest point of your swing is in the wrong place.
Fat vs thin at a glance
| Fat shot | Thin shot | |
|---|---|---|
| Where the club hits | Ground first, then the ball | Leading edge into the ball's middle |
| Other names | Heavy, chunked, duffed | Bladed, skulled |
| Ball flight | Weak, high or dribbling | Low, hard, little spin |
| Distance | Short | Often long, especially near the green |
| Feel | Thuddy, the club stops in the turf | Stinging, especially on a cold day |
| Divot | Big, starts behind the ball | None, or very shallow |
A thin strike that goes even higher on the ball becomes a topped shot, which barely gets airborne. That one has its own guide: what is a topped shot?
The low point explained
Every swing has a low point: the spot where the club is at the bottom of its arc. For a clean iron shot, the low point should be just in front of the ball. The club meets the ball while still travelling slightly down, then takes a small divot.
- Low point behind the ball: the club hits the ground first. That's fat.
- Low point behind the ball, but the club bounces off the turf and rises: it catches the ball's middle. That's thin.
- Low point too high, from lifting up: also thin or topped.
That's why the same golfer can hit one fat and the next one thin. Fix the low point and both problems improve.
Common causes
- Weight hanging back on the rear foot through impact.
- Scooping: flicking the wrists to help the ball up.
- Ball too far forward in the stance.
- Swaying off the ball on the backswing and not getting back.
- Standing up or straightening the legs through impact (mostly thin shots).
- Slowing down on chips, which lets the club drop behind the ball (mostly fat shots).
How to fix them
- Shift your weight forward. At impact, aim for most of your weight on your front foot. Hold your finish on that foot.
- Hands ahead of the ball at impact, with the shaft leaning towards the target.
- Stay level. Keep your posture and head height steady until the ball's gone.
- Check ball position: middle of the stance for mid irons, a little back for chips.
- Accelerate through. On short shots especially, a firm stroke beats a slow, careful one.
A drill for both
The line drill: spray a line on the range grass, or draw one in a practice bunker. Set up with the line where the ball would be and make swings. Your divot or sand mark should start on the line or just in front of it. If it starts behind, you'd have hit it fat. Once you're hitting the line consistently, add a ball.
Fat and thin around the green
The short game makes both mistakes more costly. A fat chip goes a few feet. A thin chip races across the green and off the other side. In bunkers, it flips: you want to hit the sand first, but a very heavy splash leaves the ball in the bunker, and catching the ball clean (a thin or bladed bunker shot) sends it flying over the green. See how to hit out of a bunker and how to chip in golf.
Fat and thin in Mashy
Mashy recreates this in its bunkers. When you're in the sand, a miss on the swing meter's final tap changes the strike: tap early and the shot comes out heavy, or fat, and finishes short; tap late and it's bladed, or thin, and runs out. Play too low a shot from the sand and it can catch the lip and roll back in. It's a good way to learn how much a clean strike matters.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between a fat shot and a chunk?
They're the same thing. Chunked, heavy, fat and duffed are all names for a shot where the club hits the ground before the ball. Golfers sometimes use "chunk" for a particularly bad one that takes a big lump of turf and barely moves the ball.
Is a thin shot better than a fat shot?
From the fairway, a thin shot often works out better, because it still travels a reasonable distance and may run onto the green. Around the green it's usually worse, as a thin chip can shoot across the putting surface into trouble. A fat chip tends to leave you short but still close to the green.
Why do I hit my irons fat?
The most common reason is the swing's low point falling behind the ball. That usually comes from weight staying on the back foot, trying to scoop the ball into the air, or the ball sitting too far forward in the stance. Moving your weight forward and keeping your hands ahead at impact help.
What does skulled mean in golf?
Skulling the ball means hitting it with the leading edge of the club, so it flies low and fast, usually with little spin. It's another word for a badly thin shot, most often used for chips and bunker shots that shoot across or off the green.
Can you hit a fat shot in Mashy?
Yes, from the bunkers. In Mashy's sand, tapping early on the final tap of the swing meter gives a heavy, fat shot that comes up short, while tapping late gives a bladed, thin shot that runs out. Away from bunkers, timing misses affect direction instead.