The term “top,” “topped shot” or “topping” means exactly what it sounds like – the club strikes the top half of the golf ball.

A “thin” shot is similar, only the club makes contact slightly farther down on the ball, below the equator. Put another way, the ball is struck near the bottom grooves of the clubface.

A topped ball goes almost straight down, usually bouncing along the ground for a short distance before petering out. A thin shot actually gets airborne, but flies with a low or line-drive trajectory and no backspin. It usually rolls a fair distance before stopping.

Adding insult to the injury of a poor result, both shots cause an unpleasant sound and sensation, sometimes causing the fingers to vibrate. Indeed, topped and thin shots are bad all the way around.

Like all golf maladies, topped and thin shots are rooted in a few common causes. This series of video and text lessons will help you eliminate these mishits from your golf game.