Most golfers struggle with chipping because they try to help the ball into the air. They flip their wrists, lean back, or slow down through impact. But that is not how good players’ chip. As Mike Malaska explains, the ball gets in the air because of the loft on the club, not because you try to lift it. And the motion you need is one you already have. It is your putting stroke.
Day 3 is about applying the same movement you have been working on—center contact, face control, and body connection—to your chip shots. The difference comes in your setup. By placing the ball slightly back in your stance and shifting pressure toward your lead side, you create a downward angle that helps you catch the ball first and brush the turf after. Mike shows you how to keep everything else the same. The hands, the right arm on the shaft, the motion—none of that changes. This is chipping built from your putting foundation.
In this lesson, you will learn how to train proper contact with the dot drill and how to get immediate feedback using a sand-line drill. These simple tools show you exactly where your club is landing and help you feel the difference between a solid chip and a mis-hit.

What You’ll Learn About Chipping:
How to use your putting motion for clean chip shots
Why ball position and setup create launch—not wrist action
How to use a dot on the face and the ball to train center contact
Why you should hit the ball first and brush the ground second
How a sand-line drill gives instant feedback on strike quality

Mike emphasizes that this is where you begin building your full swing. The mechanics remain the same. The setup changes. You are not inventing a new motion—you are adapting what you already know and learning how to control the bottom of the arc.

Key Takeaway:
Chipping is putting with a lofted club and a new setup. The ball gets in the air because of the face. Catch it first, then brush the ground. Keep the motion simple and trust what you have trained.