Anyone have short iron woes?

[mhodar13]

Ok, so I have a terrible short iron game. It really is where my strokes come from. I am oppisite of most people who have iron struggles. Most can hit 7-pw good, but struggle with the longer ones. While, for me, I can't hit my 7 or higher consistently at all. I always pull up and blade the ball. I mean, for god's sake, I have no problem hitting a 1 iron. Don't put it in my bag, but I can hit it good. So, my question is, does anyone have any tips or drills to help me stay down on the ball with the shorter clubs? Thanks.

[CG031]

I'd strongly suggest working on 8-W at the driving range. I have no idea what your schedule or how much time you have to practice. I usually hit at least 75 balls per day with just these few clubs alone, and I've seen a huge improvement in that department of my game.

[bjw181]

Funny, I just got back from the range and I was very solid with my 3 iron out to about 215 or 220 yards. But when I tried to hit the 7-iron it was very inconsistent and steep.

I think I was standing a bit too close to the ball with the hopes to get a little extra spin and control. But when I do this, I loose distance control. One swing will be a bit steeper and ill loose it long and right while another swing would be thinner and fly too high...

I think my problem is trying to muscle my short irons too much. Ive been playing a while and I know trying to muscle with the long irons is disasterous. But I still seem to think I can muscle the shorter irons. Try slowing it down a bit. I don't know your swing but if you have a more rotational swing like me, short irons can be tough...

[sean_miller]

Try playing more par-3 and pitch & putt courses. They're cheap, they're typically faster, and you get more chances to work on your trouble areas in a "real" situation. The greens are typically smaller too so you have to be even more accurate.

[mhodar13]

Yeah, I practice at least a few hours every day, but not at the range. I can't get to the range that often, once every week or so. But, I practice a ton in my backyard with plastic balls. My grandma has a camper that she goes to every few weeks and there is a little 9 hole course there where the longest hole is I believe 130 yards. We're going there I think August 5th. It's free golf, so I'm hoping to get some practice in with my short clubs.

[Knockglock]

"Just hit down damnit"

[mhodar13]

Lol I'm tryin'. slowly gettin' better.

[enduro]

Why would you swing the club any differently? The only difference as far as you're concerned is how close you stand and a little bit of where the ball is in your stance. Since you're blading them, move the ball in your stance?

For very short chip I have the ball near my back foot.

For most short irons the ball is very much in the middle of my stance.

But swing the club like any other. It's a bit steeper but it's the same swing. Your body is doing the exact same thing. The grip should have the same motion...

[prutkows]

best idea = play par 3 courses. real game exposure

[kafka01]

I think my problem is trying to muscle my short irons too much. Ive been playing a while and I know trying to muscle with the long irons is disasterous. But I still seem to think I can muscle the shorter irons. Try slowing it down a bit. I don't know your swing but if you have a more rotational swing like me, short irons can be tough...

Well i guess you can "muscle" your irons obv., doesnt matter if its a short or long iron, you just have to produce the power with the correct movement/body parts and in the correct phase of the swing, and thats where many people are wrong.

OP - there is no such thing as being a good long iron player and bad with short ones - the principle is the same, and if you can launch a 3 iron on a correct flight path, you should be able to do this with an 8 too. Short irons this year are probably the best part of my game this year, hitting them very solid and consistent (with additional length). If i have a bucket of 100 balls on the range, i hit about 3/4 with short irons and the rest with driver/3wood and a couple long irons (since i dont really need them that often). So i practice what i need, its good for my swing, and the results reflect that. I got a blade 2iron in my caddy box which i take out sometimes to play just for fun, but i never would get the idea to practice that thing on the range (i prob. hit 10 range balls with it the whole year) - whats the use of it, but if i play it, i dont have lots of problems with it. I´m not saying, that i max out my distance with it - for this i probably would need to practice hitting hit, adjusting for the sweetspot and getting really used to it, but hey, if i have to max out distance, i just take my rescue and go with that.