@trv, thanks for adding those closeup pics. I'm not 100% sure what you have there. The default answer is damage, but again I'm not positive since both of the letters I see to be about the right width (as opposed to be extra skinny if a well-placed hit divided the letter in half).
Please keep checking back to this thread and hopefully one of our other members will have a better idea of what is going on. Even if this end up being a die gouge or something from the mint, I suspect the coin itself will not have a huge premium over face value.
"If you climb a good tree, you get a push."
-----Ghanaian proverb
"The danger we all now face is distinguishing between what is authentic and what is performed."
-----King Adz