What to do with occasional bomb?

[acegolfer]

With the new swing change, I can hit my normal distance with a 3/4 swing. Of course, with 3/4 swing I get more consistency, which is what I needed to reduce the variance of my misses.

However, once every 5-10 attempts, I hit a bomb even with the same 3/4 swing. I'm not hitting it hard. It's just a solid pure hit that I can feel the ball is properly compressed and the ball rockets after impact. It feels so great but the ball flies 15-20 yards longer than normal distance.

Ideally, I would like this pure hit to be my normal distance (see my 2nd question below).

Q1. To give you some specifics, I normally carry 165 yds with a 3/4 6 iron swing. But if I hit it pure (10-20% of time), it would carry 180 yds. Should I consider 6 iron a 165 club? Or should I consider it a 170 club? What's the proper club selection on the course? (FYI, I have hard time getting up and down from behind the green.)

Q2. My next question is "how hard is it to hit pure consistently 90% of the time?" Or am I better off playing now because 80-90% of time I can hit 165 with 6 iron?

[James_Black]

What clubs do you have?

Blades are the only clubs that'd do that to your game.

If you don't have blades, maybe your taking a full swing with the shots that go farther?

[Harmonious]

Chances are, what you think is a 3/4 swing is in actuality a full swing. If you hit it 165 yards 80% of the time, that's what you should do.

[mck]

Q2. My next question is "how hard is it to hit pure consistently 90% of the time?" Or am I better off playing now because 80-90% of time I can hit 165 with 6 iron?[/QUOTE]

I've never thought of it that way. I think the next time I go to the range I'll hit 50 6 irons and try to get a percentage of my miss-hits. I do think sometimes that what we think is a 75% swing is really much closer to a full swing and what "feels" like 50% is probably closer to 75%. that may be just me though

[acegolfer]

What clubs do you have?

I'm not using blades. But I can compress the ball properly 10% of the time when I hit solid.

Chances are, what you think is a 3/4 swing is in actuality a full swing. If you hit it 165 yards 80% of the time, that's what you should do.

If you are correct, then I can't compress the ball with 3/4 swing. Should that be a concern for me?

Q2. My next question is "how hard is it to hit pure consistently 90% of the time?" Or am I better off playing now because 80-90% of time I can hit 165 with 6 iron?

I've never thought of it that way. I think the next time I go to the range I'll hit 50 6 irons and try to get a percentage of my miss-hits. I do think sometimes that what we think is a 75% swing is really much closer to a full swing and what "feels" like 50% is probably closer to 75%. that may be just me though[/QUOTE]

I agree with you. My mind is saying a 50% swing, but in reality it is 3/4 swing. Nevertheless, I occasionally bomb it, when I hit it solid.

[James_Black]

I'm not using blades. But I can compress the ball properly 10% of the time when I hit solid.

I don't think it's about compression but if you think it is, try out some lower compression balls?

You'll be more consistent then.

[Harmonious]

If you are correct, then I can't compress the ball with 3/4 swing. Should that be a concern for me?

When you say you can't compress the ball, what does that mean? You say that you hit your 6 iron 165 yards 80% of the time, with your "3/4 swing". Are you not happy with the contact you are making, or do you feel you just want more distance? Contrary to what a lot of posters here may claim, 165 with a 6 iron is a good distance. If you can do that 80% of the time, you are well on your way.

[acegolfer]

I don't think it's about compression but if you think it is, try out some lower compression balls?

Thanks. What I experienced was at the range. It could be due to the range balls.

When you say you can't compress the ball, what does that mean? You say that you hit your 6 iron 165 yards 80% of the time, with your "3/4 swing". Are you not happy with the contact you are making, or do you feel you just want more distance? Contrary to what a lot of posters here may claim, 165 with a 6 iron is a good distance. If you can do that 80% of the time, you are well on your way.

Let me clarify.

I'm happy with 165-yd 6 iron as long as it is consistent. So I don't want the extra length at the expense of consistency. But I'm not happy with the contact that I'm making with these 165-yd shots. I don't get the same feeling when I hit it pure with little effort (you probably know that feeling). When it happens (once every 5-10 attempts), I know it's a bomb. I love that feeling but don't like the result because most likely it ended up behind the green. It seems that I'm better off slightly miss hit 165-yd 6 iron consistently rather than trying to hit perfect every time. What are your thoughts on this?

[BigMikey]

Chances are, what you think is a 3/4 swing is in actuality a full swing. If you hit it 165 yards 80% of the time, that's what you should do.

I agree, and I had a similar issue but only discovered it after I video'd my swing on the range. I either do a full or 1/2 swing to try and keep it simple for me. My brain can only store so much. I would guess that your 3/4 to full swing is very small and is affected by how much lag you maintain and how fast your tempo is when you come back through on the follow through.

My suggestions would be to: Develop a tempo drill that is range verified: My futher definition on this would be to focus on keeping your swing speed tempo the same but as fast as you can consistently hit balls to a target on the range. My instructor gave me this task and told me to focus on whatever tempo thoughts that made my accuracy better. I do it with 1/2 and full swings and log the distance and relative accuracy. Tempo control is different for all of us but my trick was to practice turning my hips through to start my downswing the same speed regardless of what club or swing (1/2 or full). This way theoretically your club head speed should be consistent for each swing range resulting in accurate distances. Previously I would unwind my hips faster than normal on some swings. I remember carrying a 7 iron 175 with a perfect hit, but I swung like I was trying to drive to 300 with my driver. Now that I've stopped doing that My 7 Iron carries 135 with a 1/2 swing and 145 - 150 with full swing. I know I could punch it farther, but I'm throwing darts. If I need 160 I'll just pull out the 6I. Using a video camera if you got one helps you identify if it's your swing size (3/4 or Full) or if your just going all at it.

[Harmonious]

Let me clarify.

Even the great Hogan only hit a handful of "perfect" shots per round. Of course, his perfect and our perfect are 2 different animals, but the reasoning still holds. Of course, try to improve your contact, but when you are playing on the course, don't base your club selection on a perfect swing. Many people do, which is why they are generally short of the green, and which is why most golf architects put the hazards in front of, rather than behind, most greens.

[jamo]

There is no reason to play it as your 170 club. You said you either hit it 165 or 180. Playing it as your 170 will eave you with a lot of 15 and 45 foot putts.

[Rugger]

The ball you play makes a big difference. I was playing a practice round last night, when I got to 18 I dropped two balls at 150yrds out: one of them was a range ball I found earlier, and one of them was a ProV1. I put full swings on them with a pitching wedge, both swings are pure contact and the ball took off going really, really high. The range ball stuck about 2 feet from the pin, probably 155 yards, but the ProV1 overshot the green by about 20 yards, going 170 probably.

Note that the green was lower topographically than where I hit from, so that accounts for some overall distance, but the ball also played a big part of the difference between the two.

[TourSpoon]

In my experience, what feels like 75% is probably closer to 90% which is right on the money for consistency. Now if the same exact swing is producing a 15 yard variance then I would have to think that you usually miss the center of the club face more often than not and when you hit the center you "pure" it. My other thought is that you may catch a flier from light rough and you are thinking that you pured it. Either way, you should play your percentages and really try to hit the sweet spot more often as consistent contact is the goal. Once you get that ironed out then adjust accordingly.

[acegolfer]

Even the great Hogan only hit a handful of "perfect" shots per round. Of course, his perfect and our perfect are 2 different animals, but the reasoning still holds. Of course, try to improve your contact, but when you are playing on the course, don't base your club selection on a perfect swing. Many people do, which is why they are generally short of the green, and which is why most golf architects put the hazards in front of, rather than behind, most greens.

Thanks. That makes a lot of sense. I shouldn't hope to hit perfect 90% of the time.

The ball you play makes a big difference. I was playing a practice round last night, when I got to 18 I dropped two balls at 150yrds out: one of them was a range ball I found earlier, and one of them was a ProV1. I put full swings on them with a pitching wedge, both swings are pure contact and the ball took off going really, really high. The range ball stuck about 2 feet from the pin, probably 155 yards, but the ProV1 overshot the green by about 20 yards, going 170 probably.

Makes sense but doesn't apply to me. I play the same model ball.

Now if the same exact swing is producing a 15 yard variance then I would have to think that you usually miss the center of the club face more often than not and when you hit the center you "pure" it.

This is absolutely the case. I know it will fly 180 yards at impact, if I pure it. The 165 yarder is slightly off center hit. Thanks to iron technology.

[RC]

Forget that you are hitting a 6 iron. The club does not matter. What matters is developing distance control and knowledge of how wind and elevation affect your length. You want to know your carry distance and figure the environmental effects of the landing area (will it roll out or stop, uphill or down, wind effects, is the green soft or hard and fast, etc.) The best thing to do is find a club or clubs that have a carry of X yards 90+ percent of the time. Whether that is a 5, 6, or 7 iron is relatively unimportant. Now there is one other thing. The shaft and the ball you play need to be matched with your swing speed so that your "go to" stock shot feels like a compressed, solid strike on the ball -- good feedback. The best player I play with hits an 8 iron anywhere from 100 yards to 160 yards, but he know the distance he is going to hit the shot and invariably is within a 7 to 8 yard range or that distance. He is a distance control wizard. If he is outside 20 feet from the hole it is unusual. He makes me feel stupid sometimes because I will ask him what club he hit and it can well be two clubs difference from what I thought... either longer or shorter, but the distance he hits is spot on.

So, my advice is get a ball/shaft/club to play that feels good and learn to hit exact distances on command -- that and a short game will lower your handicap quickly.

[TourSpoon]

This is absolutely the case. I know it will fly 180 yards at impact, if I pure it. The 165 yarder is slightly off center hit. Thanks to iron technology.

That just seems like a lot for a slightly off center hit. True consistency will come the closer you get to the center of the club face so you may want to figure out where you are missing (ie toe hit) and work to get the contact closer to the heel.

[socaltaoist]

My $.02 is that when you are taking this 3/4 swing what you are actually doing is taking a full swing but using your muscles, skeleton, connective tissue etc in a much more efficient form. More than likely you are fighting two different types of swings. Believe it or not when someone does a 3/4 swing usually they are in effect creating a more athletic swing that is using the spine more correctly and leads to better contact. One reason you might not be hitting it that pure is due to mis-timing your arm/hand involvenment. I would say don't play to your average yardage (that's ridiculous...what happens when he improves his swing?) play to where you know you can hit it. My specific advice for better ball striking to get to your true yardage would be to focus on creating a lag in the transition move of your downswing. When you begin the downswing motion with the spine/hips feel the suppleness in your wrists at the top as the lag is created. I have found by increasing my tempo (aka 3/4 swing) focusing on driving with my spine through the swing has helped incredibly and when I feel that lag created my swing is at ease. I still mis-time but the frequency has gone down dramatically since I have started to focus on feeling the lag during the transition of my swing.

[2bGood]

Even the great Hogan only hit a handful of "perfect" shots per round. Of course, his perfect and our perfect are 2 different animals, but the reasoning still holds. Of course, try to improve your contact, but when you are playing on the course, don't base your club selection on a perfect swing. Many people do, which is why they are generally short of the green, and which is why most golf architects put the hazards in front of, rather than behind, most greens.

I know this, but what always go through my head is I would hit to hit he ball pure and then go on to make boogie because I flew the green.

However a few rounds I went out and tried to hit the ball to the back of the green every time, funny thing is I did it as I knew short would be better, so I swung easy and easy swings go farther.