Chunk
A chunk in golf is a mishit where the club strikes the ground behind the ball before reaching it, taking a divot, and sending the ball much shorter than the golfer intended.
What is a chunk in golf?
A chunk is a contact mishit. The clubhead bottoms out into the turf before it reaches the ball, so a lot of the swing’s energy goes into the ground instead of into the shot. The ball then squirts forward, dribbles a few yards, or, in the worst cases, barely moves at all.
Most golfers use “chunk” both as a noun and as a verb. Someone might say, “I hit a chunk on the 5th” or “I chunked my approach.” In casual play, it sits alongside “fat shot” and “hitting it fat” as essentially the same thing. The Wikipedia Glossary of Golf lists chunk as a swing where the clubhead hits the ground before the ball, also known as a fat shot or chili dip.
Chunks happen most often with irons and wedges, where the swing is supposed to strike the ball first and the turf second. When that order flips, the result is what golfers call laying the sod over it: a thick slab of grass between the clubface and the ball, killing the shot. The lost distance is what makes the chunk so frustrating. A simple wedge into a green can turn into a 30-yard dud and a tougher recovery shot.
How a chunk happens
Every golf swing has a low point, which is the deepest part of the swing arc where the club is closest to the ground. On a clean iron strike, that low point sits slightly in front of the ball, so the club catches the ball first and then carves the turf out ahead of it. That is the divot a good iron player wants to see.
On a chunk, the low point shifts behind the ball. The club digs into the ground too early, slows on contact with the turf, and arrives at the ball with much less speed. GOLFTEC’s Director of Teaching Quality Josh Troyer told GOLF.com that lateral sway in the backswing, where a player’s pelvis and upper body drift away from the target, is one of the most common reasons the low point ends up too far back.
Chunk vs fat shot, chili dip, and sclaff
A lot of new golfers wonder whether these four terms describe the same shot or four different ones. The honest answer is that they overlap heavily, with small differences in how each one tends to be used.
| Term | What it means | Typical use |
| Chunk | The club hits the ground behind the ball, taking a noticeable divot | Any full swing or chip; iron and wedge shots most often |
| Fat shot | Same shot, more formal name; “hitting it fat” | Used across all clubs and all skill levels |
| Chili dip | A chunked chip or pitch around the green | Almost always reserved for short-game mishits |
| Sclaff | Older Scottish term for the same general shot | Rarely heard on courses today; mostly historical |
In day-to-day golf chatter, chunk and fat are interchangeable. Golf Compendium notes that chunk and fat shot describe the same outcome, with chili dip working as a third common slang term. Sclaff is the elder of the group and almost never comes up outside of golf history writing.
Where the term comes from
The verb “chunk” appears in American English from the 1830s as a variant of “chuck,” meaning to throw, according to National Club Golfer’s golf glossary. A second theory points to the visual: a chunked shot often sends a literal chunk of turf flying through the air, which is hard to miss when it happens to you. Both explanations show up in golf writing, and neither has been firmly settled.
Related Golf Terms
- Chip shot — A short, low-trajectory shot played near the green.
- Cavity back — An iron design with a hollowed-out back for increased forgiveness.
- Chili dip — A mishit chip shot that barely advances the ball.
- Chipper — A club designed for short chip shots around the green
- Championship course — A course designed to host professional or major amateur tournaments.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is a chunk the same as a fat shot?
Yes. In everyday golf, the terms are interchangeable. Both describe a shot where the clubhead hits the ground before the ball, costing distance and usually taking a large divot.
What is the difference between a chunk and a thin shot?
A chunk and a thin shot are opposite mishits. With a chunk, the clubhead hits the ground before the ball; with a thin shot, it catches the ball too high, the leading edge striking the upper half and sending the ball skidding low along the ground. Both lose distance, but for opposite reasons.
What does it mean to lay the sod over it?
It is golf slang for a particularly heavy chunk, where a thick chunk of turf ends up on top of or just in front of the ball. The shot usually goes a short distance, sometimes barely moving at all.
Can you chunk a shot on purpose?
Almost never on a normal shot, but yes, in one specific situation. The chunk-and-run is a deliberate technique from fairway bunkers, where the club is meant to hit the sand behind the ball and push it forward.
Can you chunk a putt?
Not in the usual sense. The term is reserved for full swings, chips, and pitches. Mishits on the green are described by other names, like a stubbed putt.
Sources
- Wikipedia. “Glossary of golf.” en.wikipedia.org. Accessed April 2026.
- National Club Golfer. “NCG’s Golf Glossary: What is a chunk?.” Updated April 17, 2024.
- Golf Compendium. “What Is a Chunk Shot in Golf?.” Published July 10, 2020.
- Golf Monthly. “What Is A Chunk-And-Run In Golf?.” Published December 5, 2023.
- GOLF.com. “Why you can’t stop chunking the golf ball, and how to fix it.” Featuring Josh Troyer, GOLFTEC Director of Teaching Quality. Updated August 27, 2025.
