Will new irons help improve my swing?

[customdusty]

I currently play a set of 2008 Taylor Made Burner Plus irons, which I have played for 2 seasons now. Over the course of these two seasons, I have taken some lessons and brought my handicap down from somewhere well above 30, down to a 17 at present and probably lower when my handicap gets updated in a couple of weeks. I have found that the Burner irons play too long in general, and often times on solid strikes (especially on short irons) the ball may carry too long resulting in missed greens. As an improving player, I have appreciate the forgiveness that these clubs offer, but the short irons are really huge and don't offer much control. Being a relatively long hitter and with as long as the irons play, it leaves a lot of ground for "feel" shots at closer distances, but unfortunatly the huge bulky club heads don't offer much feel other than 1) I hit the ball, 2) I missed or nearly missed the ball. I also perceive the lack of feedback as an inability to refine and improve my swing, while almost feeling sloppy or that focus isn't all that important. (I compare these clubs to when I used to play baseball as a kid with a tennis racket and ball.)

My main goal is to continue to improve my game, and I regularly get video swing analysis to target a couple of recurring swing faults. At this point, my common misses are fat shots (due to a little bit of casting), hooks (closed clubface), and an occasional block with the driver.

That all being said, I have been out several times to demo some new irons. I hit almost everything out there, MBs, CBs, cast, forged, etc. During the demos I found that hitting some of the "player" type irons was more demanding of my swing and I hit some lousy shots, but with a refined swing I was able to get into a bit of a groove and hit some real nice shots. I've been told that these types of clubs are much less forgiving, and require a consistent swing which I first hand experienced. The advice I am seeking now is whether or not going into a more advanced club that provides better feedback and requires a more precise swing will help me improve in the long term, and what may happen in the short.

[sean_miller]

  customdusty said:

The advice I am seeking now is whether or not . . .

Pick up a single players iron - like a used demo 6-iron or something. Everytime you hit your Burner 5-iron, drop another ball and see how the players 6 iron feels. (or get a 7, 8 or whatever - you know what I mean).

[customdusty]

  sean_miller said:

Pick up a single players iron - like a used demo 6-iron or something. Everytime you hit your Burner 5-iron, drop another ball and see how the players 6 iron feels. (or get a 7, 8 or whatever - you know what I mean).

This was a thought that crossed my mind. I guess my underlying question is, fundamentally does using more difficult to hit clubs help to improve/refine ones game?

[Arsenal8807]

IMO, I don't think that it will hurt you, well maybe your feel in your hands if anything! Joking..
But I think that it will help you in approaching your ball and taking time to think about your swing and what you want to do with the ball. For me it helped and I went from TM Tour Burners to Nike VR Split Cavity irons. Best thing I've done. I lowered my handicap a bit with the past two rounds by shooting more consistent.

[sean_miller]

  customdusty said:

This was a thought that crossed my mind. I guess my underlying question is, fundamentally does using more difficult to hit clubs help to improve/refine ones game?

Would using a wooden tennis raquet turn you into the next Roger Federer? No. Would it be fun to play a match where you and a buddy both used vintage raquets? Absolutely.

If you think it's fun to "master" a more difficult club, go for it. If you want to shoot lower scores, get the iron that best suits your swing - there's no way someone else can direct on that part without knowing your game.

[radcochran]

If you are working hard and striving to get better, get a players club. Your handicap is low enough that you will be able to hit them some. With practice, yes, they will force you to improve your swing. Im doing that same thing now. You will grow into the clubs. Not many single digit handicappers hit game improvement clubs. Thats for a reason. Most older golfers have never swung a GI club. Just get a forged cavity back to start with. Not a blade. lol

[Joeyvee]

Titleist Ap-2s. Or something similar. I LOVE my ap-1s. I could probably benefit from some practice with the AP2s but cant afford to screw with other/new clubs

[Teedub7]

Try the ping i10s. They are on sale now and are amazing irons. They've helped me out a lot. they let you get away with some bad swings, but they are by no means a hacker iron. they look like a tour iron and they offer feedback, but they are also forgiving.

[Shindig]

  customdusty said:

I currently play a set of 2008 Taylor Made Burner Plus irons, which I have played for 2 seasons now.

There are plenty of so-called Players' Irons - I call them Swing Improvement Irons - that are more forgiving than your TaylorMade Burner Plus irons (I'm using the MPF scale here). These include the Ping S57 and i15, the Callaway X-Forged, and the Titleist AP2.

As an overall statement, though, I believe that Players' Irons provide more feedback and are better for improving your swing. I picked up Mizuno MP-57s with my handicap in the mid-20s, and saw it fall to the high teens very quickly after the purchase.

  Joeyvee said:

Titleist Ap-2s. Or something similar. I LOVE my ap-1s. I could probably benefit from some practice with the AP2s but cant afford to screw with other/new clubs

Total side note: I don't know your budget, but you know you can mix them, right? They're designed to fit together. You could get, for instance, the 9 and P from AP2 and keep 4-8 in AP1, if you wanted.

[customdusty]

Thanks for the feedback everybody. As far as future clubs, I have hit and liked the Ping S57 and of the forged cb's, I really liked the Cobra S2 forged. I also really liked the heavy feel of the TaylorMade MB, but they were difficult for me to hit well. I also hit nearly the whole line of Mizunos, and unfortunately none of them really stood out for me after hitting these after everything else. I have not had an opportunity to hit the Titleist AP2s, but have checked them out and they look outstanding. I actually was leaning towards finding a used forged cavity back set, so I'll see what I find. I likewise have a friend who has a set of Titleist 775 CB that I might get my hands on easily, and for little or no money. That might be the opportunity to explore this further and before I make an investment in a new set.