How to Stop Flipping at Impact in Golf

A weak, high golf shot that floats right of your target probably isn’t the result you were looking for, but it’s an all-too-common feeling for many golfers. That lack of power and precision often comes from one single, frustrating habit: flipping at impact. This article will break down exactly what a flip is, why it happens, and give you a series of practical drills you can use to replace that scooping motion with the solid, powerful compression you see from great ball-strikers.

What is "Flipping" and Why is it Killing Your Game?

In simple terms, a flip - often called a scoop - is when your hands slow down and the clubhead accelerates past them right before impact. Instead of your hands leading the clubhead through the ball, the clubhead gets ahead, and your lead wrist (the left wrist for a right-handed golfer) bends upward or “cups.” It’s an instinctive attempt to lift the ball into the air by spooning it off the grass.

Imagine your left arm and the club shaft forming a straight line as you approach the ball. A good impact position maintains or even slightly increases the angle of your trailing wrist while keeping the lead wrist flat or even slightly bowed (flexed). In a flip, that entire structure collapses. The lead wrist breaks down, and the trail wrist straightens out too early, casting the clubhead at the ball.

Why is this such a big problem?

• Loss of Power: The flip adds loft to the club at impact. Your 7-iron suddenly has the loft of a 9-iron or a pitching wedge. It also happens because you've released all your stored energy too early, a motion known as casting. Instead of unleashing power through the ball, you're "throwing it away" before you even get there.
• Inconsistent Contact: A flip drastically changes the low point of your swing. If you flip too early, you hit the ground behind the ball (a fat shot). If you flip a little late and catch the ball on the upswing, you hit it thin or top it. Consistency becomes nearly impossible because the timing has to be perfect.
• Poor Trajectory and Direction: Flipped shots tend to fly high, weak, and without much control. Because you’re relying on split-second hand timing to square the face, you can easily hit pulls, pushes, or weak slices. You can't achieve that penetrating ball flight with a scooping motion.

True compression happens when you strike the ball with a downward angle of attack, hands ahead of the ball, leading to a satisfying a "ball-then-turf" strike. Flipping is the exact opposite of that.

The Real Reasons You're Flipping the Club

Flipping isn’t a sign that you’re a bad golfer, it’s usually a symptom of another issue in your swing. Your body is smart, and it will create compensations on the fly to try and get the clubface back to the ball. The flip is one of its favorite survival moves. Let's look at the primary causes.

1. Your Body Stops Rotating

This is the number one cause of the flip. A good golf swing is powered by the rotation of your hips and torso - your body is the engine. When your body turns back in the backswing and then unwinds on the downswing, it pulls the arms and the club through the impact zone. But what happens if that engine stalls?

If your lower body stops turning as you approach the ball, your arms and hands are left on their own. With no rotational force to pull them through, they have no choice but to take over and *throw* the clubhead at the ball in an attempt to generate speed and square the face. This arm-takeover is the-essence of a flip. The sequence is broken: your body stops moving, and your hands launch an independent rescue mission.

2. An Open Clubface on the Downswing

If you get halfway down in your downswing and the clubface is pointing wide open to the sky, your brain knows you’re in trouble. It realizes that if you continue rotating your body normally, the ball is going to sail far to the right (for a righty). Instinctively, it triggers a last-second, rapid-fire flip of the hands to try and roll the clubface shut just in time for impact.

Sometimes you can time this move perfectly and hit a straight shot, which only reinforces the bad habit. But more often than not, it results in a wild miss. This reaction is often caused by a poor takeaway or a grip that isn't helping you control the clubface.

3. The Instinct to "Help" the Ball Up

This is a mental hurdle every golfer has to clear. Seeing the ball on the ground makes you feel like you need to *lift* it to make it fly. It feels like the right thing to do. We associate "up" with lifting. But in golf, it’s the opposite. The loft of the club is designed to get the ball airborne. Your job is to strike down on it.

By hitting the ball first and the ground second, an iron compresses the ball against the clubface, and the loft then launches it upwards with spin and control. Trying to "scoop" it up out of a sense of trying to "help" the ball airborne is a direct path to flipping at impact.

Actionable Drills to Stop Flipping and Start Compressing

Understanding the "why" is half the battle. Now let's work on the "how." These drills are designed to retrain your body and hands to achieve a powerful impact position. Start slow and focus on the feeling, not the result.

Drill 1: The Impact Bag Smash

An impact bag (or even a sturdy old cushion) is a fantastic tool for feeling the correct impact position without the pressure of hitting a ball.

1. Set up to the impact bag as if it were a golf ball right in the middle of your stance.
2. Take a slow, waist-high backswing.
3. Begin your downswing by turning your hips and torso toward the target.
4. Strike the bag and hold your finish at the moment of impact.
5. Look at your position. Your hands should be well ahead of the clubhead. Your lead wrist should be flat or even slightly bowed. Your trail wrist (right wrist for a righty) should still be bent. Your body weight should have moved to your front foot. This is the position you want to ingrain. A flip would feel like a weak slap against the bag, proper impact feels like a solid, driving punch.

Drill 2: The Split-Hand Swing

This drill makes it almost impossible to flip the club and teaches you what it feels like to have your body lead the way.

1. Take an 8 or 9-iron and grip it normally with your lead hand at the top.
2. Now, slide your trail hand down the shaft about four to six inches, leaving a noticeable gap between your hands.
3. Without a ball at first, make slow, waist-high swings.
4. You will immediately notice that the only way to effectively execute the swing is by rotating your body. The handle of the club will feel like it’s being pulled through by your torso. A flip with this grip feels incredibly awkward and ineffective.
5. Once you have the feeling, try hitting some very short shots off a tee. Focus on the sensation of your chest turning through and the handle leading the way.

Drill 3: The Headcover Connection Drill

This is the best drill for fixing Cause #1: a stalled body rotation. It forces you to keep your arms and body moving together as a single unit.

1. Take an empty headcover or a small towel and tuck it into your lead armpit (left armpit for a righty).
2. Set up to a ball and make slow, controlled half-swings.
3. Your goal is to hit the ball without the headcover falling out.

If you stop turning your body and let your arms fly away on their own (the prelude to a flip), the headcover will drop. To keep it in place, you must maintain the connection between your arm and your chest by actively rotating your body through the hit. This drill is a simple but powerful teacher of proper sequencing.

Drill 4: The Left Arm Only "Chip"

This exaggerates the feeling of keeping a flat lead wrist through impact.

1. Grab a short iron and make a small grip, holding it with your lead hand only.
2. Set up to a ball.
3. Make tiny swings, almost like a long putting stroke, trying to make crisp contact with the ball.
4. The focus here is singular: do not let your lead wrist bend backward at any point through the impact zone. Feel like you are dragging the handle of the club past the ball, keeping your wrist flat all the way into a short, controlled finish. An incoming video would show your handle, hand, and forearm in a straight line well after the ball is gone. This is the anti-flip feeling.

Final Thoughts

Stopping the flip requires a new understanding of the swing's power source. Your goal is not to lift the ball but to rotate your body to deliver a descending blow with the handle ahead of the clubhead. By engraving the feel of a flat lead wrist and a body-led rotation, you will replace that inconsistent flip with solid, pure compression.

Practicing these drills is the best way to build the correct habits, but sometimes on a tricky on-course lie, old instincts will whisper at you to scoop the ball. This is where modern tools can offer in-the-moment support. For those uncertain situations, our app Caddie AI acts as your personal coach, providing a clear strategy for tough shots. By helping you analyze your lie and commit to the correct play, it removes the guesswork and builds the confidence you need to make a great swing when it counts.