Thin To Win

'Cause Fat Goes Splat

An old colleague of mine would walk up and down the range blurting out all kinds of different phrases pertaining to golf as people were hitting golf balls. He was always coming up with these odd sayings which fit his personality perfectly.

People would laugh, smile or give him an odd look. Well, mostly odd looks.

Despite all his quirks and odd sayings, his phrases actually delivered pearls of wisdom.

One of his sayings, which I still use today, is, “Thin to win ‘cause fat goes splat.”

When I first heard him say it, he was working with a student who was getting upset because the student’s miss with his irons was a thin shot. Every time the student hit a thin shot, my colleague would say, “Thin to win ‘cause fat goes splat.”

He was letting the student know the thin shot was actually an okay mishit. The phrase served as a way to change the student’s mentality regarding hitting the ball thin.

Think about it. Thin shots go pretty close to the same distance as a solid shot. Some will go a little farther, some a little shorter but will still be close to the intended distance. Except for a bladed wedge shot around the green, a thin shot ends up okay in relation to intended distance.

Fat shots, on the other hand, go splat. They go nowhere. The club never makes contact with the ball. The divot sometimes flies farther than the ball. Often times, the ball flies half or less than the intended distance. Other than the shank, a fat shot is the worse type of mishit.

At the heart of the saying lays a fundamental factor in playing good golf: contact with the ball. Good players strike the ball then the ground. Bad players strike the ground then the ball. It’s difficult to play golf if you don’t strike the ball first.

Golfers spend too much time ignoring this aspect of contact. They will focus on perceived swing issues they believe are causing the poor contact. In reality, it’s much simpler to work on contact using drills specifically designed to improve contact than trying to fix a perceived swing issue which may or may not actually be causing the contact issue.

There are several drills I use with students to improve contact. These drills improve contact and also improve swing mechanics without having to focus on the swing mechanics. To learn about these drills, consider signing up for a paid subscription. Paid subscribers receive extra content each week.

But consider the wisdom of my former colleague. Thin shots in golf are actually good mishits, while fat shots are one of the worst mishits. If the fat shot is your big mishit remember, “Thin to win ‘cause fat goes splat.”

As always, be grateful every time you play. Be thankful you have the opportunity and privilege to play this amazing game. Now, go golf!