What Is a Steep Golf Swing?

If you feel like you're chopping down on the golf ball like you're trying to split a log, you're likely dealing with a steep golf swing. It’s one of the most common issues plaguing amateur golfers, leading to frustrating shots like big slices and chunky divots. This guide will walk you through what a steep swing is, what causes it, and most importantly, provide you with clear, actionable drills to start shallowing your swing for more consistent and powerful contact.

What Exactly Is a Steep Golf Swing?

Imagine the path your club takes is tracing a giant circle around your body. A perfect golf swing is a rotational motion, where the club swings around you on a tilted circle or plane, much like a planet orbiting the sun. It's a shallow, sweeping, and powerful motion.

A steep golf swing, on the other hand, is a more vertical motion. Instead of the club working around your body, it works too much up and down. Think of it this way: a shallow swing is like a merry-go-round turned on its side, while a steep swing is more like a Ferris wheel. This overly vertical downswing causes the club to approach the ball at a very sharp, downward angle - hence, "steep."

In technical terms, this means the club shaft is well above the ideal swing plane during the downswing. The club gets "outside" the proper path and comes "over the top," cutting across the ball from out-to-in instead of approaching it from the inside.

The Classic Signs: How to Know If Your Swing is Steep

Not sure if this is your issue? Here are the most common symptoms that point to a steep swing path:

• The Slice: The classic out-to-in swing path generated by a steep swing puts left-to-right spin on the ball (for a right-handed golfer). This is the number one cause of the dreaded banana ball that dives weakly off into the right-hand trees.
• Pulls and Pull-Hooks: If you combine that same out-to-in path with a clubface that is closed relative to that path, the ball will start left of your target line and either stay straight (a pull) or curve even more left (a pull-hook).
• Deep, Chunky Divots: A steep angle of attack means the club digs aggressively into the turf. You'll often take deep, fat divots that start behind the ball, sometimes feeling like you've hit a brick wall. This absolutely kills distance and consistency. A good divot is shallow, taking a "bacon strip" shaving of turf after the ball.
• Inconsistent Contact (Fat & Thin Shots): With a steep swing, your margin for error is razor-thin. If the timing of your vertical drop isn’t perfect, you’ll either hit the ground before the ball (a fat shot) or catch the ball on the upswing with the leading edge (a thin, bladed shot).

If any of these sound painfully familiar, there's a good chance your angle of attack is too steep.

Breaking Down the Root Causes of a Steep Swing

A steep swing isn't random, it's a reaction to a flaw that usually starts long before you even get to the top of your swing. Understanding the cause is the first step to finding the cure.

1. The Backswing takeaway

Many steep swings are doomed from the very first move. A common flaw is to immediately lift the club with the hands and arms, often rolling the clubface open and picking the club up in a very vertical path. A good takeaway involves turning the shoulders and torso as a single unit, allowing the club to move back low and wide, staying "connected" to your body's rotation. If your first move is all arms, you’re already setting yourself up for a steep, disconnected downswing.

2. Lack of Body Rotation Creating a "Lift"

Power in the golf swing comes from rotation - the coil you create in your torso as you turn away from the ball. Golfers who don't rotate their shoulders and hips properly in the backswing often compensate by simply lifting their arms to get the club high. This arm-lift puts the club in a very high, upright position at the top, a perfect spot to chop down from. Remember: you want to turn to the top, not lift to the top.

3. The "Over the Top" Downswing

This is the monster flaw that's truly the hallmark of a steep swing. The "over the top" move happens in the transition from backswing to downswing. Instead of the lower body initiating the downswing by turning toward the target (which naturally lets the club drop or "shallow" onto a better path from the inside), the golfer's first move is to throw their hands, arms, and right shoulder outward and over the swing plane.

It's an instinctive move to hit the ball hard from the top, but it pushes the club onto that steep, out-to-in path that causes so many problems. The correct sequence is hips, then torso, then arms, then club. The over-the-top move is a rush from the upper body.

How to Fix a Steep Golf Swing: Step-by-Step Drills

Reading about it is one thing, feeling the change is another. These drills are designed to retrain your body and give you the sensation of a shallower, more powerful swing path.

Drill 1: The Headcover Guard Rail

This drill gives you instant, undeniable feedback on your swing path. It forces you to attack the ball from the inside to avoid hitting an obstacle.

What you'll need:

• An iron (start with a 7 or 8-iron)
• A golf ball
• An old headcover or an empty range basket

The Steps:

1. Set up to your golf ball as you normally would.
2. Place the headcover on the ground just outside of your target line, about one a half club heads outside the ball and one club head ahead of the ball.
3. The goal is simple: hit the golf ball without hitting the headcover.
4. Take a few slow, easy practice swings, feeling how your club must approach the ball from an "inside" path to miss the a headcover on the down a swing. A steep, over-the-top swing will collide with the headcover every time.
5. Start hitting shots at 50% speed. Your only focus is missing the headcover and making solid contact. As you get comfortable, you can ramp up the speed. This drill provides a powerful visual and physical constraint that forces your swing onto a shallower plane.

Drill 2: Tucking Your Trail Arm

A flying trail elbow (the right elbow for a right-handed player) is a classic symptom of the over-the-top move. This drill promotes a more connected feeling by keeping that elbow closer to your body on the downswing.

What you'll need:

• Your golf clubs
• A small towel or a glove

The Steps:

1. Take your normal setup.
2. Place the towel or glove securely in the armpit of your trail arm (your right armpit if you're right-handed).
3. Take slow practice swings with the goal of keeping the towel in place until after impact.
4. To keep the towel from dropping, your trail elbow must stay closer to your side as you start the downswing. This "tucked" feeling prevents the arm from flying out and over the top, which in turn helps to naturally shallows out the golf club.
5. It will feel very connected, and you might feel like your swing is shorter. That’s okay! It’s a sign you are using your body rotation to power the swing, not just your arms.

Drill 3: The Pump Drill

This dynamic drill ingrains the correct downswing sequence and the feeling of dropping the club "into the slot" before turning through impact.

What you'll need:

• An iron
• A golf ball

The Steps:

1. Take your normal backswing and pause at the top.
2. From the top, initiate the "pump" by dropping your hands and the club about halfway down to hip a level. Feel your lower body shift slightly towards the target as the club drops. This is the shallowing move.
3. Return the club to the top of your backswing.
4. Repeat this "pump" two times: down to hip level, back to the top, down to hip level again, back to the top.
5. On the third "pump," don't stop. Continue the move all the way down and through to hit the ball and finish your swing.

This rehearsal teaches your body the sequence of 'drop then turn,' breaking the old habit of 'turn and throw' from the top. It disconnects the bad upper-body-first instinct and replaces it with the feeling of the club lagging behind as your body leads the way.

Final Thoughts

Altering your swing path from steep to shallow is a process that takes patience and repetition. Focus on replacing that feeling of chopping down on the ball with a more rounded, rotational motion led by your body. These drills are designed not just as a quick fix, but to help you build motor patterns so a more efficient, on-plane swing becomes second nature.

Understanding concepts like swing plane is a significant first step, but when you're on the course battling that old habit, it helps to have expert guidance in your pocket. My job is to simplify these complex movements, and that's precisely what we aim for with our Caddie AI. If you find yourself slipping back into a steep swing during a round or can't figure out why you're suddenly hitting big pull-hooks, you can get instant feedback and personalized drills to get you back on track, helping make every practice session and every round a chance to improve.