Transitioning to a late hit help wanted

Out of serendipity, I just figured out the "late hit" after playing golf for many years. The difference is absolutely amazing, It's almost like "I was blind, now I can see" type of thing.

The question is, what kind of mental checklist can I rely on to ensure consistency? What else can I do, to avoid a too late hit and resulting hook?

Last question is, is this too advanced for the weekend golfer, should I just revert to the old swing?

As of now, I'm able to do it a little more than 50% of the time, and feeling rather vague about what I need to do to repeat it.

Any help is much appreciated.

Explain what you mean by "late hit" and how you "feel" you got there and maybe more will assist...

The difference is hitting through the ball with my weight shift at the exact moment and getting a crisp "snap" instead of hitting "at the ball"

It seems more a timing release of the iron as it hits through the ball.It feels almost effortless and less impact on the wrist. I can't seem to do with a 3 or 4 iron but can easily repeat it with say an 8.

This doesn;t apply to the driver but I was able to do with it a fairway 5 wood.

Sounds like you're talking about generating the proper lag and weight shift. Look up some vids on "lag" and that should help. The "pump drill" is good for instilling this. What you've done is shift your weight properly and held your wrist cock before releasing. The reason you can't hit your long irons is that they are further up in your stance and you haven't shifted your weight enough to catch the ball just before your swing bottoms out. I bet you alternately hit fat and thin shots. I know a few good golfers that don't move the ball very much forward for their long irons. You can play the ball in the exact same position with reference to your left foot. Just move your back foot to widen your stance for the longer irons. That way your shoulder (the pivot of your swing) is in the same position with respect to the ball. I went with single length irons since I have a left knee injury that hinders me from getting my weight shifted as much as I would like. I catch all my irons just before the bottom of my swing arc. That's one thing I always check when practicing. It's a great feeling when you finally learn how to really hit a golf ball. One thing I do to help me transition my weight is to setup with my shoulders tilted slightly so the right shoulder is lower than the left. You've probably seen this for driver setups. I make sure my left hip is shifted toward the target. I think it's called a "reverse K" setup or something??? So when I make my shoulder turn on my downswing, I instinctly get my weight on my left side. When I setup neutral, I don't do that repeatedly. This really helps with the tee shots too. I keep my head behind the ball much better. Also, keep your head still. BTW, I'm a weekend golfer too. I get out for a 9 hole after work league too. We have some excellent golfers in our league which keeps me focused.

vangator,

what you said is immensely helpful. I think the ball positioning is the culprit with the long irons. It never really occurred to be that the wrist release can't take place if the ball is too forward because it's likely the ball is actually being hit slightly on the upswing, and yes, I often hit my long irons pretty thin albeit with good distance. (5 iron about 200 yds) But as I said, the strike is often jarring as opposed to be wonderfully easy on the wrists.

So  the wrist release must coincide with the downward ball strike.

And yes, it is a wonderful feeling to finally know what hitting a golf ball is all about despite being able to play pretty well all these years.

I will focus on the weight shift starting from a slightly right leaning position as well.

thanks again.