Chipping Tips: Stop Hitting Behind the Ball (Fix Your Chili Dips)
Hitting behind the ball—often called a “chili dip”—is one of the most frustrating mistakes in golf, especially when you’re close to the green. You’ve done the hard work to get within striking distance, only to stub the ball a few feet or leave a divot the size of a pancake. The good news? It’s fixable with a few fundamental chipping tips.
Let’s break down the key reasons behind this mishit—and how to fix it for good.
🎯 1. Ball Position: Keep It Center or Slightly Back
Too many golfers set the ball too far forward in their stance when chipping or pitching. This invites the club to bottom out too early—resulting in fat shots.
✅ Chipping Tip:
- For short chips, position the ball in the middle or just back of center.
- For longer pitches, keep it slightly back of center—not off your back foot unless you’re intentionally trying to hit a low spinner.
🦶 2. Weight Forward: Feel Pressure on Your Lead Foot
A common mistake is setting up too flat-footed or with weight on the back foot, especially when trying to “lift” the ball.
✅ Chipping Tip:
- Set up with 60–70% of your weight on your lead foot (left foot for right-handed players).
- Keep that weight forward through the entire swing—don’t let it shift back.
This promotes a descending strike and ensures the club hits ball first, then turf.
✋ 3. Quiet the Wrists: No Flicking at the Ball
If your wrists flip at the ball, the clubhead passes your hands too early—leading to inconsistent strikes and chunked shots.
✅ Chipping Tip:
- Keep your lead wrist firm and your hands slightly ahead of the clubhead at impact.
- Use a one-piece takeaway to keep the motion smooth and compact.
- Think of brushing the grass—not scooping the ball.
Since this is a critical area, we’re sharing bonus chipping tips that will help you understand the process more clearly and make better swings and contact around the greens.
✋ Chipping Drills to Keep Your Wrists Quiet Through Impact
If your wrists are too active in your short game, you’ll often “scoop” or “flip” the clubhead, leading to fat or thin shots. The goal is to maintain a stable lead wrist and a controlled motion through the ball. These drills will help you build that muscle memory:
🏌️♂️ a. Lead Arm Only Drill
This drill trains your lead wrist to stay firm through impact.
How to do it:
- Take short swings using only your lead arm (left arm for right-handers).
- Place your trail hand lightly behind your back or on your chest.
- Focus on keeping the wrist flat at impact and extending through the shot.
✅ What it teaches:
Proper control, feel for the clubface, and a quiet lead wrist.
🧱 b. Towel Under Arms Drill
This drill prevents the arms from separating from the body, which often leads to wrist flicking.
How to do it:
- Tuck a small towel or headcover under both arms.
- Hit short chips or pitches without letting the towel fall.
✅ What it teaches:
Synchronization between arms and body—eliminating unnecessary wrist action.
🏌️♀️ c. Shaft Lean Drill (Hands Ahead Setup)
Helps you train for proper impact with forward shaft lean.
How to do it:
- At address, preset your hands ahead of the ball, creating a forward shaft angle.
- Hit shots keeping that angle through impact.
- Feel like your chest rotates through while hands stay in front of the clubhead.
✅ What it teaches:
Impact control, forward lean, and wrist stability.
🧱 d. Impact Bag Drill (or Old Pillow)
Teaches you to deliver the club with structure and stop flipping.
How to do it:
- Take your normal chipping or pitching setup.
- Swing and stop at impact into an impact bag or soft pillow.
- Ensure hands are leading the clubhead, and your wrists don’t collapse.
✅ What it teaches:
Reinforces solid wrist structure and ball-first contact.
✅ These wrist control drills complement your chipping tips and will eliminate wristy motion that causes chili dips and mis-hits.
📍 4. Control the Low Point: Hit Ball Then Turf
The “low point” is where your club bottoms out in the swing arc. If that point is behind the ball, you’re hitting dirt first.
✅ Chipping Tip:
- Use a small towel or tee 2–3 inches behind the ball during practice. If you hit it, your low point is too far back.
- Focus on rotating your chest through the shot rather than flipping your hands.
Rotating your chest through the shot is another essential concept in chipping tips. Many golfers mistakenly rely too much on their hands, but it’s the rotation of the upper body that stabilizes the club and leads to consistent contact. The following drills are designed to help you build that feel and improve your short game performance.
🔁 Chipping Drills to Train Chest Rotation Through the Shot
Many amateur golfers stall their body and let their hands take over — leading to flipping, fat shots, and inconsistency. The key to solid contact is to let your chest rotate through impact, not just your arms. These drills will help you build that movement:
🔄 a. Chest-to-Target Drill
A simple but powerful awareness drill.
How to do it:
- Hit 10–15 yard chips or pitches.
- After each swing, check your finish position.
- Your chest should be facing the target or slightly left (for right-handers).
✅ What it teaches:
Keeps your body moving through impact and promotes better rhythm.
🧍♂️ b. Feet-Together Drill
Limits lower-body motion, encouraging chest-driven movement.
How to do it:
- Stand with your feet together (or very close).
- Hit short chip shots, focusing on turning your chest through.
- Keep hands passive and body dominant.
✅ What it teaches:
Balances you naturally, making your upper body (chest) lead the shot.
🎯 c. Left Armpit Over the Ball Drill
Use this visual cue to keep the body moving through.
How to do it:
- Set up for a chip or pitch.
- As you swing, feel like your left armpit stays over the ball all the way through impact.
- This helps prevent early extension or flipping.
✅ What it teaches:
Promotes upper body stability and sustained rotation through the ball.
🏌️♂️ d. Alignment Stick Across Chest Drill
Adds visual feedback to ensure you’re turning, not sliding or flipping.
How to do it:
- Place an alignment stick across your chest, under both arms.
- Hit practice swings (or short shots if comfortable).
- Watch how the stick turns — it should point toward the target after impact.
✅ What it teaches:
Proper chest rotation and sequencing of upper body over hands.
✅ These chipping drills work hand-in-hand with solid fundamentals for better contact and more spin. By integrating chest rotation into your short game, you’ll produce cleaner strikes, more spin, and tighter distance control — especially under pressure.
🧠 Bonus Tip: Focus on the Landing Spot, Not the Ball
Looking at the ball encourages overthinking and deceleration. Instead, pick a landing zone and trust the swing to get it there. You’ll be more target-focused and less mechanical.
📌 Final Thoughts
Hitting behind the ball in your short game isn’t a swing flaw—it’s often just a setup and feel issue. By applying these chipping tips—fixing your ball position, maintaining weight forward, keeping the wrists quiet, and practicing low point and chest rotation control—you’ll start clipping the ball cleanly and confidently.
✅ Say goodbye to chili dips—and hello to tap-in pars.
