Hitting Irons off of the Toe

[UDFlyer1]

Is this a sign that my clubs are too upright and need to be flattened or to flat and need to be bent upright? I am always confused and looking for the wrxs gurus to chim in. Thanks in advance.

[t8er]

What do your divots look like? If they are toe deep...the divot is deeper on the furthest side then they are too flat (or you swing out to in..or both) If they are heel deep...deeper on the closest side they are too upright and need to be flattened. Generally, if they are too upright the heel catches and you hit pulls.

[Taylormadematt]

Try standing a lttle closer to the ball?

[PurePursuit]

Try extending the irons. Length is usually the issue.

[JCAG]

Do you mean off the toe of the face (length issue) or a sole mark near the toe (lie issue)?

[combover]

Note: I am not that good of a golfer, so take this with however much salt you wish...

 

Hitting off the toe can be caused by a bunch of things, and measurement is one of them. I am currently using some old clubs that are stock length (I am 1/2 and 2 up) and I constantly hit off the toe.

 

Also, look at your swing plane and your approach to the ball. Not sure how your swing is, but you may be reaching for the ball because your too erect at address.

 

Just a couple of thoughts..

 

Charlatan

[BOWERSFJ]

. . . Or you are swinging outside to inside instead of thru the ball. As you can see from the varied responses it could be one, or a combination of many things. You could spend a whole season bending, adjusting, lengthening, and still no fix the problem if it is a swing issue. A quick lesson with your local pro would pin down the problem right away.

[harleypitbull1]

Not positive but I believe if the club is too flat,,,, you should make face contact on the heel of the club. And as the club gets more upright it will move the contact point more toward the sweetspot. So toe contact would be that clubs are too flat. But if it is TOE SOLE marks like from a lie board then the clubs are to flat and need to go up.

[UDFlyer1]

Some additional information maybe helpful in diagnosing the problem. I am 5'11" play off of an 18, but was a low as a 12 in the past and have my irons & wedges 1/2 inch over standard. I have made some very significant swing changes in the past year to flat out my plane. My divots are thin usually off of the toe side. My misses are thin more often than fat, which I can live with (thin to win, right?). When I am practicing on the range the ball marks are almost right where the scoring lines begin off of the toe, but it hit the ball really well and the feeling is not noticable. The problem is when I play, things get a little bit more exaggreated and I begin to hit hard hooks/pulls off of the toe.

 

Appreciate any additional insight any wrxers can provide. I will definitely look at standing a bit closer to the ball as several friends have also recommended this strategy before bending my irons.

[JCAG]

UD

 

My divots are thin usually off of the toe side. If you mean that the divot is deeper on the heel side versus shallower on the toe side then the toe is to upright and must be bent down which means flatten the club.

 

When I am practicing on the range the ball marks are almost right where the scoring lines begin off of the toe, but it hit the ball really well and the feeling is not noticable. If you mean the ball marks are on the face but toward the toe then this is a length issue.

 

Of course all of the above might well be a swing issue......LOL

 

Many "club jokeys" continually misunderstand/confuse and cannot seperate length and lie issues thus they suggest the opposite of what is needed. I see it here all the time. If I did not know better, many of the responses would confuse me.

 

My suggestion is have a professional club fitter test/measure you and go from there.

[Swoosh-Thud]

. . . Or you are swinging outside to inside instead of thru the ball. You could spend a whole season bending, adjusting, lengthening, and still no fix the problem if it is a swing issue. A quick lesson with your local pro would pin down the problem right away.

 

When you flattened your swing, I believe you developed an over the top move Out->In (pulls/hook misses).

 

You can still hit the center of the face with clubs that are either too flat (right misses) or too upright (left misses) with a good swing. Not hitting the sweetspot tends to be a swing issue more often than not.

 

I did the same thing 20+ years ago when I bought a net and hit balls inside my apartment---> Got flat/OTT and toe marks.

 

Get video/lessons before you do anything to your clubs. Good luck.

[FOSTER_TPI_GFI]

1 a.). Plane, Plane, Plane. From a club fitter and teachers perspective it could be two different things.

Teacher: Stand with your feet together and make shorter swings (7 iron) with mostly the arms and make sure that you hinge your wrists in the back and through swings. This will give you a better feel for he club head and teach you how to swing the club head through the ball rather than hitting at it. You will be very surprised how far you can hit the ball with this drill and how much easier it is to hit the middle of the club. Effortless power is the secret and not powerless effort!!! Too many big muscles being used, with your current swing.

 

1 b.). Fitter: Shaft is too stiff not releasing the toe drop and the club is not releasing at the proper point. Thus, marking more on the toe than the center. Flattening or making the clubs more upright will not correct the issue. Man down and try a flex lower and perhaps shorten your clubs which in theory would make the clubs a bit more flat. It will also send the ball to the right if you are coming over the top....

 

Thanks

 

Foster TPI_GFI

[Dill Pickleson]

Try standing a lttle closer to the ball?

 

standing closer to the ball did wonders for me, standing closer helped reduce my hook with the irons, it help me hit higher iron shots, it stopped me from hitting 50 percent of my irons off of the toe, and it stopped my club from being to upright at impact

[Hafeowns]

I went through a face of missing EVERYTHING off the toes early this year after i busted my shoulders. After change to my swing clubs and yada yada.

 

I just stood a tiny bit closer and "taller" to the ball and am back to great iron shots...well atleast some great ones.

[UDFlyer1]

I wanted to thank everyone for all of their feedback. I started with the most basic thing to address the toe shots - standing too far away from the ball. That seems to have made a major difference (for the better) and now I am hitting the ball much better. Shot two of my best rounds this year on Saturday and Sunday.