3 + 4 = @%$#&

[radar1]

Why in hell are 3 and 4 irons so hard to hit cleanly ? I have no trouble hitting 3 and 5 woods off the fairway no trouble launching a 5 iron off the deck. My drives improved out of site when I Teed it down and convinced my self it was the same shot as a wood on the fairway. So why in bloody hell is this so difficult ?
Peter

[keiko]

Re: 3 + 4 = @%$#&

Without seeing your set up and swing, hard to say but try these things:
Feet close together-less than a foot apart, ball left of center, loose hands and arms, just take half swings nice and slow/easy. Once you can do that, step up to fuller swings with feet still close together. You are proving to yourself that you can stay on balance, swing easy and still hit great shots.
More than likely, your ball position for low irons is too far back and you are swinging too hard. Also, try making sure your hands are ahead at impact, you want to pinch the ball not scoop it. Hitting down makes the ball go up; hitting up makes the ball go down.

Why in hell are 3 and 4 irons so hard to hit cleanly ? I have no trouble hitting 3 and 5 woods off the fairway no trouble launching a 5 iron off the deck. My drives improved out of site when I Teed it down and convinced my self it was the same shot as a wood on the fairway. So why in bloody hell is this so difficult ?
Peter

[LowPost42]

Re: 3 + 4 = @%$#&

The 3 and 4 are hard to hit for the average golfer using standard clubs - unless that golfer is 6'6". Those golfer often find the 3 and 4 easy to hit, and the shorter clubs more difficult.

In other words, they're likely too long to use well. Try gripping down to see if you hit them better.

[radar1]

Re: 3 + 4 = @%$#&

Thanks guys, I am definitely swinging too hard, I think that started after I got frustrated. I was hitting the 5i so sweetly, I didn't expect a problem with the 4 . My hands are forward no probs. I will work through the other suggestions. This is a recently built club and it feels great in the hand, I will work through this until I get it. The others perform really well, so these should to, the problem is definitely me.Thanks keiko.And LP
Peter

[KrudlerAce]

Hit Down

Spot on what 'Keiko' said about hitting down with the long irons. This is the number one fault of golfers when hitting long irons. Scooping and lifting only makes the shot harder but hitting down on the shot gives you a better chance of making solid contact.

[keiko]

Re: Hit Down

Thanks KA, those who scoop or try to lift at impact wind up chicken winging shots; it's insidious and can work it's way into one's swing silently. All of a sudden, one begins to wonder why they are thinning or topping shots; no one I have ever seen top a shot has done so because they "looked up", it's usually because they have chicken winged the shot.
The left arm should be relatively straight at impact with the right arm close by and rotating.
I have found those with chicken wing problems also do not transfer the weight from right to left(for right handers) during the downswing, leaving them on their back foot with the left arm bent.
Also, chicken wing can come from standing too close, or, from not hitting from inside to out. OTT(over the top) or hitting from outside in will cause chicken wing.
Scooping creates a myriad of problems.
We should think, hit down to make the ball go up, at least with irons.
Driver is another story which I have covered in posts on long driving section.

Spot on what 'Keiko' said about hitting down with the long irons. This is the number one fault of golfers when hitting long irons. Scooping and lifting only makes the shot harder but hitting down on the shot gives you a better chance of making solid contact.

[BrianW]

Re: Hit Down

I like to swing all clubs like I have my 7 iron in my hand, I actually pretend that longer clubs have a 7 marked on them. The length takes care of the extra speed and the loft the ball flight.

[radar1]

Re: Hit Down

Thanks guys, we don't actually have a driving range here , just part of a fairway which can be hard to get on.I have been using wiffle balls at home .I have really concentrated on the 4i and think I am getting there.. fat shots seem to be the predominate problem. I played with my brother yesterday and connected better than ever before. I believe the bad shots occur when I try too hard and have an error in my wrist release. In fact bro. said my swing looked really easy, that is an improvement, before the David Blair videos the comment from all was "you look like your trying to hard".So I must be getting there if he can't pick up the release. Sorry this is long. My question is if it is in the release, am I too early or late or should I look else ware, such as dropping shoulder. Just thinking there may be a common problem?

At a bit of a loss, Peter

[Paraneva]

Re: 3 + 4 = @%$#&

Unorthodox or not but I solved the same problem with rearmament: I swapped irons 3,4 & 5 to hybrids (I already had 2 and 4). Somehow my longer Lynx irons (from 5) are clearly different, the shorter ones are easy to use but the longer ones just don't work (maybe they are too long or too heavy?). So I decided the easiest road is the one I take. I have no actual course experience yet but the new clubs feel good at the exercise and in a week I should be know better. Some of my friends think this I show no character but who cares.

[keiko]

Re: 3 + 4 = @%$#&

You are smart to go to hybrids. They are nice to hit and very dependable. I really like the ball flight; almost effortless.

Unorthodox or not but I solved the same problem with rearmament: I swapped irons 3,4 & 5 to hybrids (I already had 2 and 4). Somehow my longer Lynx irons (from 5) are clearly different, the shorter ones are easy to use but the longer ones just don't work (maybe they are too long or too heavy?). So I decided the easiest road is the one I take. I have no actual course experience yet but the new clubs feel good at the exercise and in a week I should be know better. Some of my friends think this I show no character but who cares.

[radar1]

Re: 3 + 4 = @%$#&

I am a little unsure about hybrids. I have a Wilson killer whale a mate gave to me. I dabble in club making and thought I might find it interesting. It is virtually unmarked except for a lot of marks on the inside 1/3 of the face. My mate never used it, somebody else had trouble. It looks to be about a 6i loft. people say they are good out of the rough, but I haven't found that. I can hit a 4i ok now, fairway woods ok, Is there a different swing for hybrids ?
Peter

[BrianW]

Re: 3 + 4 = @%$#&

I am a little unsure about hybrids. I have a Wilson killer whale a mate gave to me. I dabble in club making and thought I might find it interesting. It is virtually unmarked except for a lot of marks on the inside 1/3 of the face. My mate never used it, somebody else had trouble. It looks to be about a 6i loft. people say they are good out of the rough, but I haven't found that. I can hit a 4i ok now, fairway woods ok, Is there a different swing for hybrids ?
Peter

Hybrids have a wider sole, not so much as a fairway wood but more than an iron, you need to make contact more like a fairway wood than an iron. Work on bouncing the sole of the hybrid off the ground and into the ball, this requires you sweeping the ball more than striking down on it.

In the rough an iron will snag in the grass and this will pull the face open, a hybrid has a wider sole and shallower face that will cut through the grass better.

So! play the ball just forward of centre and bounce the sole of the hybrid into the ball. I think you will like the results.

[radar1]

Re: 3 + 4 = @%$#&

Thanks very much everyone, I'll see how I go tomorrow.Peter

[radar1]

Re: 3 + 4 = @%$#&

I spent this morning hitting with the hybrid. It must not have had much use as there were only a few marks on the inside third of the face. When I was finished 50 or so the inside marks had turned into gouges and cuts, I wasn't hitting it badly with only 10 or so heel hits I could feel. Distance was great for me, averaging 180 meters. The balls were dirty but still I have never seen a club or iron cut up like this. It's that Wilson killer whale I have mentioned elsewhere. If I had to guess I would say it is aluminium as it cut back easily on the wheel. Has any one seen this before?

Peter