Why can't I hit my 5i?

[snowman]

I can hit my 6i with little or no problem, but can never seem to hit my 5i...at all. I'll get 120 yards out of it at the most. I have tried changing ball position, pretending it is 7i, slowing down swing, speeding up swing, shorter swing, nothing seems to get me the 10 more yards than my 150 yard 6i that I am looking for.

Any ideas?

[LowPost42]

Re: Why can't I hit my 5i?

It could be a number of things, from a fitting perspective. Perhaps it's too long. Perhaps the SW/MOI is off. Those would be my first two guesses. Perhaps you don't have the swingspeed to be hitting a 27° iron well - it could be time to move to a hybrid.

[bill reed]

Re: Why can't I hit my 5i?

hi
it might be the loft. if say the loft on your 6 iron was only out 2% and it was say 28. instead of 30% and say the 5 iron was also out 2% and it was 28 instead of 27 then you could have just the problems you are having.
check the loft of your clubs and see if there out. most makers are + & - 2%.
cheers
bill

[snowman]

Re: Why can't I hit my 5i?

Thanks guys, might be time to vistit a club fitters to check the lofts and lies.

I was asking this because I am having problems with the hybrid I bought to replace the 5i...

[BrianW]

Re: Why can't I hit my 5i?

Is the 5 iron problem only distance?

[snowman]

Re: Why can't I hit my 5i?

Is the 5 iron problem only distance?

No I slice it real bad as well. I hit my 6i real well, but when I pull the 5i it is a weak 100 yard slice.

[cyc53870]

Re: Why can't I hit my 5i?

Do you hit anything lower than a 5 iron? How well do you hit a 3 or 4 iron? And what about your metalwoods?

[golfunderrepair]

Re: Why can't I hit my 5i?

And are you trying to hit the ball much further with the 5 than with your 6?

Tim.

[ubizmo]

Re: Why can't I hit my 5i?

It could be a number of things, from a fitting perspective. Perhaps it's too long. Perhaps the SW/MOI is off. Those would be my first two guesses. Perhaps you don't have the swingspeed to be hitting a 27° iron well - it could be time to move to a hybrid.

I've wondered about this sort of thing myself. Personally, the longest club that I can take advantage of is a 4i. When I try a 3i, even if I strike the ball well, it just doesn't stay airborne long enough to go any farther than the 4i shot went, and it may well go less far. So I don't carry a 3i anymore. Possibly my swing speed is such that the 4i takes me to my effective limit. Similarly, I got good distance off the tee with the 12* thriver that you made for me. Unfortunately, that club was stolen last year, but I acquired an 11.5* Cleveland Launcher that has a very similar feel, and I do pretty well with it. The other day I was playing with a friend a couple of years older than me (I'm 55), and he was struggling to get any distance at all off the tee. I took a peek at his driver and it was 8.5*. I asked him why he had chosen such a low loft, and he said something about wanting a "low, long ball"--but what he was getting was a very low *short* ball. I didn't say anything to him, but it seems to me that unless you have a very fast swing speed, an 8.5* driver is useless (not to mention being even more prone to sidespin).

I've never had my swing speed measured. I get reasonable, but not spectacular, distances. My 8i goes about 155 yds with good contact.

I'm wondering if the relation between swing speed and minimum useful loft is published anywhere. If, for example, anyone with a club head speed under 90 mph shouldn't be using any iron longer than a 5i, is this information available and widely known?

[jbrunk]

Re: Why can't I hit my 5i?

Probably because you are flipping and/or have poor clubface control.