Can't hit irons in the air or hit them long...help

[JJLinn]

So here's the deal. Bought a set of the Slingshot HL's a few weeks ago after reading a ton of good reviews about them. Easy to hit/get up in the air, etc. I take them out on the range the first time and hit them better than I've hit any iron in my life. Got height and distance out of them. No complaints.

Then I begin to unravel. 2nd time at the range a week later, all the irons had the same trajectory when I did hit them normal and the rest were all topped or fat shots. I figured maybe if I took them out on the course, I'd revert back to how I did the first time.

Dead wrong, same thing happened, and I couldn't help but get frustrated. I took them out again today and got the same crappy results. Granted it was raining pretty hard and I couldn't get a decent grip on the club, but I was still discouraged. At first, I was worried that because I left my clubs in the backseat of my car in 80-90 degree weather, the heat ruined the clubs. That didn't happen, right?

Being a complete amateur, I have no idea how to correct it as I can't afford a lesson right now. Here are two practice swings I took with my 7 iron in the backyard:



I know it's kinda crappy quality, but maybe someone can find something wrong. For a club that was supposedly game improvement and easy to hit and hit high, I can't do it worth anything. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

[Kieran123]

I have the same clubs and never experienced this.

Looking at the video ( hard to see ), you're bending your knees WAY too much. Straighten up and stick your bum out.

New clubs will take getting used to.

I found mine phenomenally better than my old clubs. They fly high and far....and I can work them left and right surprisingly well.

[JJLinn]

I have the same clubs and never experienced this.

That's the thing...the first day I took them to the range, I was hitting better than I ever had. My shots were getting proper height and distance. I hit a PW over 100 yards for the first time in my life (I'm not a huge dude which is why I can't hit as far as I'd like) that day, but ever since, meh. I'll try to stand more upright, maybe that's a big contributor as to why I can't hit them.

[senorchipotle]

nothing wrong with your clubs, dude. i live in texas where the devil won't even visit during summer and my clubs live in my car.

[bunkerputt]

So when you say you can't get them in the air, are they relatively flushed shots that go low, or are they half-topped? From your swing, I'm guessing the latter. You're letting your butt move in towards the ball on your downswing. That's a huge no-no because it either makes you stand up or squinch up your shoulders to maintain your eyes' relation to the ground. Both of these lead to casting and most people top it to the left or flat out chunk it when they get sick of topping it and decide to go for something different. Look at yourself on the video you took and then look at a tour player. You are extremely upright. Bend more from the waist and less from your knees. Keep that angle when you swing down and make sure your butt moves away from the ball at the start of your downswing. See if that doesn't take care of it. BTW, you may want to check it with a blade. I don't think those clubs offer any feedback to where you are hitting it on the face.

[Kieran123]

So when you say you can't get them in the air, are they relatively flushed shots that go low, or are they half-topped? From your swing, I'm guessing the latter. You're letting your butt move in towards the ball on your downswing. That's a huge no-no because it either makes you stand up or squinch up your shoulders to maintain your eyes' relation to the ground. Both of these lead to casting and most people top it to the left or flat out chunk it when they get sick of topping it and decide to go for something different. Look at yourself on the video you took and then look at a tour player. You are extremely upright. Bend more from the waist and less from your knees. Keep that angle when you swing down and make sure your butt moves away from the ball at the start of your downswing. See if that doesn't take care of it. BTW, you may want to check it with a blade. I don't think those clubs offer any feedback to where you are hitting it on the face.

They do give feedback for the toe, but not so much for the heel of the club.

[jwolf02]

They do give feedback for the toe, but not so much for the heel of the club.

What's up JJ! Long time no see. I echo what people are saying about your setup. Check some threads around here for advice, there's a ton of good info. There's a good drill in Golf magazine this month about setup - basically, stand up straight with your knees barely bent, butt behind your heels (which you obviously are already doing). Hold a club parallel to the ground behind your legs (letting your arms hang free) and then bend down from the waist. Once your weight shifts slightly to the balls of your feet, your body is in a solid setup position. Let your arms hang straight down and grip the club.

Not sure if it's perfect, but it's helped me get back to basics with the setup lately.

[JJLinn]

So when you say you can't get them in the air, are they relatively flushed shots that go low, or are they half-topped? From your swing, I'm guessing the latter. You're letting your butt move in towards the ball on your downswing. That's a huge no-no because it either makes you stand up or squinch up your shoulders to maintain your eyes' relation to the ground. Both of these lead to casting and most people top it to the left or flat out chunk it when they get sick of topping it and decide to go for something different. Look at yourself on the video you took and then look at a tour player. You are extremely upright. Bend more from the waist and less from your knees. Keep that angle when you swing down and make sure your butt moves away from the ball at the start of your downswing. See if that doesn't take care of it. BTW, you may want to check it with a blade. I don't think those clubs offer any feedback to where you are hitting it on the face.

It's a variety of both, but a majority of them are topped and/or barely leave the ground. I've only been golfing for a year so those shots are to be expected, but that doesn't make it any less frustrating. I'm not sure if this causes all of my short irons to go the same distance, or that's another thing I need to fix/adjust.

What's up JJ! Long time no see. I echo what people are saying about your setup. Check some threads around here for advice, there's a ton of good info. There's a good drill in Golf magazine this month about setup - basically, stand up straight with your knees barely bent, butt behind your heels (which you obviously are already doing). Hold a club parallel to the ground behind your legs (letting your arms hang free) and then bend down from the waist. Once your weight shifts slightly to the balls of your feet, your body is in a solid setup position. Let your arms hang straight down and grip the club.

Holy crap, small world haha. I've been doing alright, looks like the Millers haven't been though

I'll have to try that drill out. It's weird, my two uncles have been golfing for probably 12-15 years each and neither picked up on this flaw. They did help me out with a bunch of other stuff like my grip and most of my swing, but not this part.

[Shanks A Million]

I'll have to try that drill out. It's weird, my two uncles have been golfing for probably 12-15 years each and neither picked up on this flaw. They did help me out with a bunch of other stuff like my grip and most of my swing, but not this part.

Doesn't matter how long someone's been playing. PGA pros generally have to go through about 5 years of training and apprenticeship. Being able to spot flaws in a golf swing tricky, and requires a very trained eye.

[JJLinn]

Doesn't matter how long someone's been playing. PGA pros generally have to go through about 5 years of training and apprenticeship. Being able to spot flaws in a golf swing tricky, and requires a very trained eye.

True, I just figured they would catch something that obvious. I had no idea. Not sure when I'll be able to hit the course again (I hate our local driving range, can't hit off rubber tees), but hopefully this tip helps.

[HackerD]

Swaying on the swing can cause a mix of fat and thin (topped) shots. Hard to tell from video from behind but I'm seeing some head movement during the swing that looks like lateral motion.

[JJLinn]

That I know I do...was a tip I got for helping with the weight shift.