ANOTHER common miss in golf is to ‘top’ the ball, meaning the ball pops up in the air and rolls along the floor, not achieving the desired height and distance for the shot.

The most common cause of this shot is the leading edge of the club coming into contact with the equator of the golf ball.

This means that the grooves of the club don’t have the opportunity to grip the ball and create spin which results in the ball’s flight.

This outcome comes from our natural instinct.

Golf becomes a difficult game when we trust our instincts, particularly when it comes to striking the ball from the ground, iron shots from the fairway for example. We see the ball on the floor and we instinctively think we have to lever the ball up in the air using our hands (flicking), arms (collapsing) and body (leaning back).

In fact, this makes our job harder. As we make this scooping action, it has the opposite effect on the club and ultimately the ball that we are looking for.

The club shaft leans back and the leading edge of the club is produced to the ball resulting in topped shots.

To solve this, go against your instinct and trust that the club has enough loft to get the job done.

Focus on forward at impact.

Lean forward on your forward leg, lean the shaft forwards towards the target and hit forwards to hit the ball up into the air.

To get this sensation it may be required to set up with your weight favouring your left side to help you get the sensation of hitting down on the golf ball.

In short, if you want the ball to go up, you have to hit down on the ball if you are plagued by topped shots.