How do they hit it so far???

[WhiteMF]

Watching some of the PGA championship yesterday and Mickelson hits a 6 iron 220. The south african guy hit a 5 iron on the same par 3.

I feel like I'm doing fine if my 6 iron gets around 180 and if I catch it just right maybe 190. How on earth do I pick up an extra 30 yards?

[DaSportsGuy]

1) They are strong
2) They have the best equipment
3) Their swings are seen and critiqued by the best swing analysts in the game

[saevel25]

Limiting excess movements in the swing
Strong core muscles.. they did an interview with some of the younger golfers and they said they spend more time in the gym some days than on the course.
there 5 irons have been turned into 4 or 3 irons. So what you may be playing is a 7 iron, but to the pro's its a 6 or 5 iron in loft.

[jamo]

They swing the club fast because they are strong and because they have efficient swings.
All of their clubs are optimized for them.
They hit the sweet spot every single time.

[Deryck Griffith]

You don't necessarily have to be "strong" to hit the ball far. Yes, strength is a part but in Golf, power and swing speed is generated by sound swing mechanics.

[TN94z]

Along these lines, what about Bubba on the 600 yard hole.....had a 56* for his second!

I think it's as much hitting the sweet spot with efficient swings that generate high clubhead speeds and irons that are slightly different lofts than what we are used to as it is hitting the weights. Sure having a strong core and strong legs are beneficial, but the swing mechanics do the biggest part IMO.

[saevel25]

Well you get that, but also he swings past 90 degrees with his shoulders, he is up on his toes when he hits the ball, he is extremely flexible, he unleashed the power of hell ;b, he hits the sweet spot, he's playing whistling straights which probably has a nice 10-15 mph tailwind...

Yes he did demolish that ball, but his normal average isn't close to what you described he did on that one hole.

[pittpanther]

All the other responses have been spot on. They swing hard, and they make perfect contact.
But don't forget - the pros deloft the heck out of their clubs also. They take "descending blow" to a new level!

[sean_miller]

They swing the club fast because they are strong and because they have efficient swings.

That all gets my vote. Physical fitness, equipment that fits, and skill.

[Zeph]

In theory, it's a fairly easy equation.

Clubhead speed
Dynamic loft
Smash factor

Clubhead speed and dynamic loft is a result of technique, forward leaning shaft at impact and club loft.
Smash factor is a result of ball striking, hitting the sweetspot.

Being strong can help, but you may well hit it far without being bulky. Tiger has bulked up the last 13 years, but he was hitting it 300 in 2000 too. Getting the swing sequence right is important to achieve high clubhead speed.

[TN94z]

Since we are talking about Phil, has anyone noticed that it seems like Phil's weight hangs back on his back foot for a long time? It almost seems like he still has a lot of weight back there after he has hit the ball. Maybe my eyes were fooling me yesterday, but it sure looked weird.

[iacas]

Since we are talking about Phil, has anyone noticed that it seems like Phil's weight hangs back on his back foot for a long time? It almost seems like he still has a lot of weight back there after he has hit the ball. Maybe my eyes were fooling me yesterday, but it sure looked weird.

Especially with the driver. But that's why his driver has only 6 or 7 degrees - and that's the only way Phil knows how to hit the ball near level, AND that's why Phil plays a fade (or a slice) with the driver. It's not a swing you'd copy - I've never seen a teacher use Phil Mickelson as a swing to model. But he does it and it works for him... (which doesn't necessarily mean something else couldn't work better).

Sorry, these posts are off topic, so I hope that side discussion ends there.

[kafka01]

In theory, it's a fairly easy equation.

Thats pretty much it.

When we as amateur take a 6i - we actually hit a 6i - when they do it, they have like a 4i in there hands (if they want to), since the bottom of their swing is so much further in front than ours. And when you combine this with "golf fitness" and sweetspot, everybody can do it, really. Problem is, those 3 terms dont sound like much, but to get there is A LOT of work.

[LottaBalata]

All the other responses have been spot on. They swing hard, and they make perfect contact.

They have the ability to hit a great, long delofted shot. But I don't think that's exactly the norm either. I've heard it so many times when someone like a Tiger or Ernie hits one. . ."That balls in the clouds", etc, etc. And we're talking 4 irons, not 8's and wedges.

[TN94z]

Especially with the driver. But that's why his driver has only 6 or 7 degrees - and that's the only way Phil knows how to hit the ball near level, AND that's why Phil plays a fade (or a slice) with the driver. It's not a swing you'd copy - I've never seen a teacher use Phil Mickelson as a swing to model. But he does it and it works for him... (which doesn't necessarily mean something else couldn't work better).

I was actually leading this into the original question of how they hit it so far. The OP mentioned Phil and my next post was going to be to ask how he did that with weight on the back foot. It wasn't really a side discussion, but I will end it there

[steelernation]

I have never seen a pga pro hit " 6 iron 220 yards" I am very curious about the shape of the shot. Cant really see that on TV.

Is their 6 iron going 220 at a high angle of attack or low? I hit one last week from the rough that distance, but it didnt get over 40 feet high.

IMO
in order of importance...
Their contact with the sweet spot is near perfect.
Their mechanics are finely tuned and they carry the best equipment which also matches their swing.
They are generally either avg to larger men or are flexible to the %99 of the male population.

[KEEPITSIMPLE]

It really doesn't matter how far they hit the irons. I mean some of the taller players like Phil probably have shaft that are longer than standard and if you get like the wind behind you that is at least a club plus the ball usually rolls a bit.Now going by 15 yard gap for most advance players,it probably be more impressive if he hits a 265 yard 3 iron or carry the ball 325 yards, but I am not sure how many players could actually carry it 325 with a regular length shaft.

And honestly I am not impressed by their power, if I was their size, I probably hit it as long if not longer than they do. I mean you just have to understand lag and whip and creating coil and delaying the realease and connection, and trust me if I don't know how to do anything else in golf, I understand how that works and it is actually pretty simple concepts but they are just really hard to repeat.

[sean_miller]

It really doesn't matter how far they hit the irons. I mean some of the taller players like Phil probably have shaft that are longer than standard and if you get like the wind behind you that is at least a club plus the ball usually rolls a bit.Now going by 15 yard gap for most advance players,it probably be more impressive if he hits a 265 yard 3 iron or carry the ball 325 yards, but I am not sure how many players could actually carry it 325 with a regular length shaft.

They're not all as tall as Phil. So how tiny are you?

I mean, when you're looking for golf trousers do they need to have elastic on the waistband?