Which club to use during lessons

[surfmonkey89]

I signed up for lessons (to be followed by a club fitting) two weeks ago, and for the first lesson I picked out my 7-iron to hit, because it was my worst club. Today I just finished the third lesson, and while I can see some improvement, I have to wonder - is it the right idea to use the worst club in your bag during lessons? Or should I use something I'm more comfortable with, like a 6 or even an 8, which I hit with more confidence?

 

(Background: been playing since I was 10, forty years, with a solid decade away from the game. Now I'm trying to get back in, using the set I bought 9yrs ago)

 

 

[Pretzel]

For lessons it doesn't really matter which club you use. The same swing fundamentals will apply for every club in the bag.

If you have particular issues with irons in general, or problems specifically with the driver, then it's worthwhile to bring that up with the instructor and have them look to see what you're doing with that type of club specifically.

Other than that, however, just use whatever club will get you to the target you're aiming for. The difference between an 8, 7, and 6 iron is all purely in your head (none of them are significantly different from the others), so as you improve your fundamentals and swing mechanics those things will carry over to every club in the bag.

[iacas]

Two things:

• A seven iron versus a six iron? C’mon man.
• Three lessons in under two weeks? Why???

[Slim_Pivot]

Mid irons are what they typically ask for 6-7.

Has your 7 iron always been bad, maybe it’s unbalanced or made wrong. I’d make sure I hit all 7 irons bad or just “my 7 iron”.

If I had a mental block with a club, I wouldn’t be using it in an overall technique lesson. Time with a coach is valuable.

[boogielicious]

My Evolvr instructor has me using my 7 iron for my iron swing, driver and PW. I don't think 6 or 7 would make a difference.

[LMoore]

14 minutes ago, Slim_Pivot said:

Mid irons are what they typically ask for 6-7.

Has your 7 iron always been bad, maybe it’s unbalanced or made wrong. I’d make sure I hit all 7 irons bad or just “my 7 iron”.

If I had a mental block with a club, I wouldn’t be using it in an overall technique lesson. Time with a coach is valuable.

I have my irons checked every 6-12 months no matter. We have a local repair guy that is set up for gripping, shaft replacement, loft and lie, balancing, and even shaft frequency. The loft and lie will change with forged irons if you tend to take a lot of turf. Mats are not very kind to lofts and lies either.

Since I have had him do many things over the last 5 years, he doesn't charge. First time.....$30 or so. A full bag analysis will certainly be more.

[Slim_Pivot]

2 hours ago, boogielicious said:

My Evolvr instructor has me using my 7 iron for my iron swing, driver and PW. I don't think 6 or 7 would make a difference.

I agree with @boogielicious

[surfmonkey89]

3 hours ago, iacas said:

Two things:

• A seven iron versus a six iron? C’mon man.
• Three lessons in under two weeks? Why???

A seven versus a six wasn't really the heart of the questions, sorry. The question was whether I should base my lessons and fitting on a club that I struggle the most with in my bag.

I have lessons every Monday, so it was technically three lessons in fifteen days.

I just signed up here, and after reading a few threads I realize I need to be...more precise. 😐

2 hours ago, LMoore said:

I have my irons checked every 6-12 months no matter.

These are 9yrs old (Mizuno MX-200), and have never been checked since I bought them. Maybe that's the problem. I already know they're 1/2" too short.

The company actually went out of business between the time I ordered the clubs from them and I received them (no, they didn't tell me).

 

[Pretzel]

3 hours ago, surfmonkey89 said:

A seven versus a six wasn't really the heart of the questions, sorry. The question was whether I should base my lessons and fitting on a club that I struggle the most with in my bag.

To answer that question, the only swings that will be different enough from each other to need to practice individually would be wedges, irons, and driver/woods. Like @boogielicious said, a Gap/Pithcing Wedge, 7-iron, and Driver would be plenty for working on the differences in how they swing. For the most part though, like I said, the fundamentals carry over from one piece to another - just with different feelings.

3 hours ago, surfmonkey89 said:

These are 9yrs old (Mizuno MX-200), and have never been checked since I bought them. Maybe that's the problem. I already know they're 1/2" too short.

It would probably be a good idea to just check the clubs for loft a lie. Especially with softer forged irons like Mizunos (it's less of an issue with harder cast clubs like PING irons), they can tend to change in loft and lie angle as you continue to use them over the years. 

It's probably not a problem, but it's worth checking for the peace of mind at least.