Short irons (7 up) are fine, 6 and down are impossible - what's up?

[Baraethon]

I am relatively confident with my short irons - PW/9/8 are comfortable, 7 is a little more iffy. 6 and down are nearly impossible for me to hit. My usual miss is a wrist shattering chunk - if I do make contact with the ball, I tend to hit a nice pull hook into the woods. 

 

I think some of this is in set up - I notice especially with my 4 iron I set up way too far away, more like a driver almost, so the club is laying way too flat on the hosel - I can see that causing a closed face hook pretty easily. Standing more upright though feels like I don't have enough space to get the club to the ball.

 

I've messed with choking up on the club or similar tactics, but I still can't get in a comfortable position at impact. What fixes can I try here?

Thanks!

[North Butte]

It means you are a typical, average golfer. A pretty small percentage of golfers can get consistent, good results from an iron that's more than about 37" long or with less than about 29 degrees of loft (give or take). Among the people I play with (high single digit to mid-teens handicaps, very few big hitters) there are two kinds. The ones who carry a "6 iron" with about 25-27 degrees of loft and then hybrids for the longer clubs of those who stop their irons at a "7 iron" and use a hybrid in the 6-iron spot. 

[MonteScheinblum]

It’s fairly simple.  You have a significant underlying swing issue that you can only go so far up the bag and are still able to compensate.  So common, it’s almost universal.  Have to address what happens to be the root cause.  

[Baraethon]

My clubs longer than 4 iron are OK, actually, especially off the tee. Just feels like that 3 wood swing doesn't translate to the long irons.

[indianagolf2]

1 minute ago, Baraethon said:

My clubs longer than 4 iron are OK, actually, especially off the tee. Just feels like that 3 wood swing doesn't translate to the long irons.

Less lofted clubs are very difficult to be consistent...more side spin and less backspin

[Santiago Golf]

A driver and 3 wood is often times more forgiving than a 4 and 5 iron, also off a tee can mask alot of problems

 

For golfers above a 8 handicap, there is typically a steep fall off from 7 iron to 6 iron

 

I try to get golfers I teach to just have 3 clubs in their set above a 7 iron, 4-6 hybrid, 3 or 4 wood, Driver

You don't need to be that precise from 4 to 6 iron distance, you need to get that shot around the green

Must simpler to practice when you only have one club to focus on than 4 

 

I dont know, maybe Im wrong

 

I agree with Monte, there is a swing problem that you just don't notice or can manage with the short irons

 

 

[phizzy30]

8 hours ago, Baraethon said:

My clubs longer than 4 iron are OK, actually, especially off the tee. Just feels like that 3 wood swing doesn't translate to the long irons.

3 metal swing and long iron swing is supposed to be slightly different which is why you're having issues.  More loft usually means more forgiving as well. 

[ShortGolfer]

I found a long iron to be most useful for hitting the ball under the trees back onto the fairway.  The low flight is less likely to hit the tree branches than a short iron.

I think shot shaping or hitting low flights with short irons is harder than learning to hit partial swings with long irons.

[Haroputt]

On 8/13/2023 at 5:45 PM, Baraethon said:

I am relatively confident with my short irons - PW/9/8 are comfortable, 7 is a little more iffy. 6 and down are nearly impossible for me to hit. My usual miss is a wrist shattering chunk - if I do make contact with the ball, I tend to hit a nice pull hook into the woods. 

 

I think some of this is in set up - I notice especially with my 4 iron I set up way too far away, more like a driver almost, so the club is laying way too flat on the hosel - I can see that causing a closed face hook pretty easily. Standing more upright though feels like I don't have enough space to get the club to the ball.

 

I've messed with choking up on the club or similar tactics, but I still can't get in a comfortable position at impact. What fixes can I try here?

Thanks!

Work with modification of the pull hook swing into a desirable draw 

change setup /grip by holding the iron strong left arm ( motorcycle) grip 

Might feel odd at first. Club Face will look closed 

Will need several practice swings to get the feel and May hook the ball at first 

I don’t think you need to stand closer to the ball. I think far away is better to create as much width in the follow through 

Try to stand taller and feel like you are slinging the club as far away from you on follow through 

Good luck 

Suggest you get a pro  to look at your swing when modifying it 

edit

once you are hit the long iron solidly you will notice that the PW/9I/8I will go 10-20 yards further 

Edited August 15, 2023 by Haroputt

[North Butte]

4 hours ago, ShortGolfer said:

I found a long iron to be most useful for hitting the ball under the trees back onto the fairway.  The low flight is less likely to hit the tree branches than a short iron.

I think shot shaping or hitting low flights with short irons is harder than learning to hit partial swings with long irons.

My current set of (used) irons came with a 4i and 5i which are clubs I don't ever use.

 

But I did stick them in the bag for my first few rounds just to try them out. That 4i punch shot is some magic. I've never been able to punch out with a hybrid, fairway wood or higher lofted iron like that.

 

More than once I'd have a waist-high limb just in front of me and I'd be trying to just advance it as much as I could, maybe 50, 60, 70 yards up toward the green and it would come out like a knee-high bullet and end up just short of the green.

 

I sometimes thing I ought to drop a hybrid or something and stick the 4i in the bag. I need that shot about once every couple rounds and it's amazing to be able to hit it 120+ yards without ever getting 6' off the ground.

[ShortGolfer]

A huge part of golf is being able to reliably recover from bad shots and put your mind at ease.  It makes sense to carry a club that allows you to do that.

 

[Jeselnik]

On 8/13/2023 at 5:45 PM, Baraethon said:

I am relatively confident with my short irons - PW/9/8 are comfortable, 7 is a little more iffy. 6 and down are nearly impossible for me to hit. My usual miss is a wrist shattering chunk - if I do make contact with the ball, I tend to hit a nice pull hook into the woods. 

 

I think some of this is in set up - I notice especially with my 4 iron I set up way too far away, more like a driver almost, so the club is laying way too flat on the hosel - I can see that causing a closed face hook pretty easily. Standing more upright though feels like I don't have enough space to get the club to the ball.

 

I've messed with choking up on the club or similar tactics, but I still can't get in a comfortable position at impact. What fixes can I try here?

Thanks!

Split a piece of garden hose over your 3 wood shaft.  Swing it on a low plane 50,000 times, you’ll figure it out.

 

JNIK

[Baraethon]

Do you mean to get my swing flatter, and a good tempo? My swing needs to be less flat, if anything - I have a nasty tendency to roll my wrists over as soon as I start my backswing and get super flat 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pLzSdlFSPfM

 

I threw up a few swing here in the past as well~

 

 

 

[Chunkitgood]

First you have to understand that a good golf swing is produced by good body action, then figure out what that action is and learn it.  The rest will follow.