Avoid Fat and Thin ShotsIrons: Compress the Ball Irons Intermediate ⏱ 4 min 🇫🇷 Video in French

Thin Shots and Early Extension: The Chair Drill

Name: Thin Shots and Early Extension: The Chair Drill
Uploaded: 2023-09-22T12:00:00+00:00
Duration: 4 min 22 s
Channel: Paul Lambersens
Description: Do you hit your irons too high, or do you alternate between fat shots and thin shots? According to Paul Lambersens, the cause is almost always the same: your hips are moving forward toward the ball at impact. Two exercises—one using a chair and one involving a very low squat—are all it takes to regain your proper angles.

Do you hit your irons too high, or do you alternate between fat shots and thin shots? According to Paul Lambersens, the cause is almost always the same: your hips are moving forward toward the ball at impact. Two exercises—one using a chair and one involving a very low squat—are all it takes to regain your proper angles.

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Paul Lambersens · his YouTube channelFree lesson selected by Fred P.

Schedule · Step 4 of 7Hit Your Irons Pure in 7 StepsValidated when: Out of 10 shots, none were thin shots.

Step 5 →

To be continued

8 minSame problemFat Shot from Tipping Back: Right Shoulder Toward the BallLewis Wallace · Intermediate 7 minSame problemStop Hitting Your Irons Fat: Water in the Left EarChris Ryan · Intermediate 3 minFrom the same pro4 Exercises to Improve Swing Speed in GolfPaul Lambersens · Intermediate

What the lesson shows

According to Paul Lambersens, 95% of players who take thin shots or lack consistency in their contact make the same mistake: a early expansion of the pelvis. Upon impact, the pelvis moves closer to the ball, the player straightens up, and loses the column angle He’s off-balance. Stiff, with his shoulders “up to his ears,” he hits the ball with the tip of the club and ends up too high. The easiest way to check this is to film yourself at address.

First exercise: a chair against the buttocks. The right glute pushes the chair up as you rise, and the left glute pushes it down as you lower; losing contact signals extension. Second exercise, popularized by Tiger Woods: lower yourself fully at the start of the downswing, then rotate while staying low, to close the angle instead of opening it. It's just the opposite sensation—one you should then try to replicate more gently with the ball.

The Exercise, Step by Step

Place a chair behind you and assume the posture, with your buttocks against the back of the chair.
Swing by gently pushing the chair with your right buttock as you come up.
When going downhill, push the chair with your left buttock, without ever losing contact.
Hit a few balls while trying to make the same contact with the chair.
Another exercise: At the start of the downswing, lower yourself sharply, then turn while staying low.
Then tap with the same feeling, but much more gently.

Key Takeaways

The problem most often stems from early pelvic expansion.

Upon impact, we want to restore the column angle set at the address.

Filming yourself makes it easy to see how far it extends.

The chair provides immediate feedback: you should never get up from it.

The low downswing is a different sensation—it's not a swing to be copied exactly as it is.

Mistakes to Avoid

Bring your hips closer to the ball at impact.
Straighten up and open the column angle.
Raise your shoulders toward your ears as you go downhill.
Hitting balls with an exaggeratedly low swing path: this is an exercise to develop feel.

Driving Range Mode

Keep it in plain sight, on the rug.

Swinging with no weight against the chair
A few balls while staying in contact with the chair
Excessive low-load drop
Profile video to check the column angle

Your Questions

How can I tell if I'm doing a premature extension?

Film yourself from the side. If your hips move toward the ball at impact and you straighten up, that’s the flaw described by Paul Lambersens.

How do I use the chair?

Sit with your buttocks against the chair. The right glute pushes as you rise, and the left glute pushes as you lower. If you lose contact, your pelvis will shift toward the ball.

Do you really have to stoop as low as Tiger Woods to hit the ball?

No. Paul Lambersens describes it as the opposite sensation of your weakness. With the ball, you’re aiming for the same idea of closing the angle, but in a much more subtle way.

Why do my thin shots often end up at the very edge of the club?

As the player stands up, his body moves away from the ball: the video explains that contact is then made with the toe and too high on the ball.

Learn More

All “Avoiding Fat and Thin Shots” videos →Find the lesson that's right for you All “Irons - Compressing the Ball” videos →Find the lesson that's right for you Fat Shot from Tipping Back: Right Shoulder Toward the BallThe “gratte aux fers” comes from tilting the upper body backward: the sternum in front of the ball (“right shoulder toward the ball”), controlled by a stick. The Arm-Shoulder Triangle in Golf: Bringing It Back at ImpactMaintain the arm-shoulder triangle from address and bring the clubhead toward the inside of your front thigh at impact, first on a half-swing and then on a full swing. Hands in front of the clubhead at impact to compress the ballCompression comes from dynamic loft, not a steeper angle of attack: grip end toward the hip crease, timing, hands forward, left wrist bowed. Paul LambersensAll of his lessons

Video posted on YouTube by its creator (Paul Lambersens). Best Golf Tips selects and summarizes the best free lessons, without hosting them.