6 Ways to Fix an Over the Top Golf Swing

Think of your swing plane as an invisible tilted circle around your body. In a proper swing, the club travels along this plane going back and coming down. When you come over the top, your downswing path moves outside this plane. 

Your club approaches the ball from outside the target line instead of from inside.

Picture it this way: at the top of your backswing, instead of dropping the club down and approaching the ball from inside the target line, you’re throwing it out toward the ball. Your shoulders spin out early, the club comes across the ball outside in and you’re left with weak contact and that dreaded slice.

Good players approach impact from inside the target line with the club traveling slightly outward through the ball. Coming over the top is the exact opposite. Cutting across the ball from outside to in. That path creates all your problems.

The effects of coming over the top are devastating to your ball flight. 

First, you lose massive amounts of distance. That outside-in path creates a glancing blow instead of solid compression. The power that should be driving the ball forward is being wasted on sidespin.

Do you struggle with a persistent slice? When you come over the top with an open clubface, the ball starts left and curves right. If you manage to close the face, you’ll hit pulls that fly dead left. Either way, accuracy becomes a nightmare.

Contact suffers too. Coming over the top makes it nearly impossible to hit down on the ball properly. Instead of crisp, compressed shots with divots pointing at your target, you’ll either hit it thin or catch it heavy. Your strike becomes unpredictable. Sometimes you’ll blade it across the green, other times you’ll chunk it well short.

And let’s talk about consistency. When your swing path changes from shot to shot because you’re fighting this fault, you can’t develop any kind of reliable pattern. One swing you might come over the top severely, the next you might compensate and flip your hands. 

It’s exhausting and demoralizing.

The first step to stop coming over the top is awareness. 

You need to feel what you’re doing wrong before you can fix it. Record your swing from down the line. Watch where the club is at the top of your backswing and where it approaches the ball. If it’s moving outward and across, you’ve confirmed the problem.

Your hips should begin rotating and shifting toward the target before your hands start down. This proper sequence naturally drops the club into the slot and promotes an inside approach. 

Feel like you’re bumping your lead hip toward the target to start the downswing.

The pump drill works great here. 

Take your normal backswing, then pump the club down about halfway while keeping your shoulders closed. 

Feel the club drop down and behind you instead of throwing out toward the ball. Do this several times before actually hitting a shot.

Another effective drill is the alignment stick drill. Stick an alignment stick in the ground at an angle matching your swing plane, just outside the ball. Practice swinging without hitting the stick. If you come over the top, you’ll hit it every time. 

This drill gives you instant feedback.

Work on your grip too. Make sure you can see at least two knuckles on your lead hand at address. A stronger grip makes it easier to square the face from an inside path, which removes one reason your body wants to come over the top.

The over the top golf swing might feel natural, but it’s costing you distance, accuracy and consistency. With the right awareness, some focused practice on proper sequencing and patience with the process, you can break this habit.

Start your downswing with your lower body, let the club drop into the slot and watch your ball flight transform from weak slices to powerful, penetrating shots that actually go where you’re aiming.