7-Iron Distance

[Thrdroc]

That is a long 6 Iron. I've had my new set of Taylor Made r7 tp irons for 1 weeks now and i've hit my 7 iron over 200 a couple times.

People should care how well they hit their 7 iron instead of how far they hit it. I know I would take dropping 50 yards off every club and hitting the ball straight over hitting the ball really far and not being able to control it.

[Cleveland Gunmetal]

  Thrdroc said:

People should care how

I agree. I continue to be amazed how caught up many golfers get with distance. Whether it's their driver, mid irons, short irons, whatever. Who cares? What do you shoot? I think that chart is kind of "fun" but doesn't factor in temperature, elevation, wind direction, loft, etc and shouldn't be used to make club selections, ie I think I'm an "average" distance player but that chart says I need to hit my wedge 10 yards further, or whatever. I have played with lots of players who let's say hit their 8 iron 150 yards. Then they'll have a 150 yard shot uphill with a little wind in their face and pull an 8 iron because

that's how far I can hit my 8 and wonder why they come up 15 yards short. As long as you know how far you hit each club you can use that information and the course elements when choosing a club, not some silly chart.

[lamebums]

  i-Guy said:

Good point. I agree that as long as you know how far each club goes (on the average) then you are in a good position to play well. Well if you can putt, right

I try to overpower long par 4's sometimes...I end up losing a ball, mishitting my shots, and racking up a big score on the hole.

I shot a 43 on 9 holes the other day...with 23 putts. Does that help you point out where the problem in my game is? It's really disheartening when I hit the ball with the gentlest of touches and the ball disappears out of sight.

[i-Guy]

  lamebums said:

I try to overpower long par 4's sometimes...I end up losing a ball, mishitting my shots, and racking up a big score on the hole.

I hear you on struggling to overpower the course...and Dude you are having a tough time with putting huh?

23 putts on 9 holes? But heck and still shot 43 means you are doing some pretty solid ball striking. My big problem with score right now is the Tee Box. Actually I have always struggled there. Back in 2001 I played on an Amateur Tour and struggled badly form the tee. However, my distance helped me because in one tournamnet I got so tired of this problem that I teed off with a 4 iron from every box (except Par 3's) and won by shooting an 81.

[jb1982]

I couldn't agree more about trying to "overpower the course". My home course is rather short with reacable par 5s and 2 driveable par 4s. If I hit a good drive I can leave my self an easy pitch so I always pull driver and swing out of my shoes, usually ending up in the rough. A buddy of mine took every club longer than a 6 iron out of my bag last week and made me play 9 holes. Usually I shoot right around 39-41 on 9 with all my clubs. I went out and shot a 3 over 39 with nothing more than a 6 iron. It's amazing what's it's like playing from the middle of the fairways and KNOWING you're not getting home in 2 on the par 5s and not driving the par 4s. It gave me a new appreciation for accuracy and control instead of simply "overpowering the course".

[i-Guy]

  jb1982 said:

A buddy of mine took every club longer than a 6 iron out of my bag last week and made me play 9 holes. Usually I shoot right around 39-41 on 9 with all my clubs. I went out and shot a 3 over 39 with nothing more than a 6 iron.

Very cool... that was kind of what I did with playing a 4 iron from each tee box to win that tournament (see a couple of post before this one). Playing in tournaments definietly makes you think differently about your game as scoring is the most important thing. When I played on this Amateur Tour for the first time in my life I started practicing more on my short game and putting versus hitting the driving range. But the main reason I decided to go with the 4 iron was becuase I was tired of giving up strokes because of penalties or playing from the rough and it worked.

Another quick note since this thread is about distance is how confused people are about how far they really hit the ball. When the group I was playing with in this tournament finished, we were all waiting to see scores posted and they started telling everyone how I hit a 4 iron all day off the tee and was out driving them most of the time. One guy even said "he probably hits his 4 iron around 300 yards" Man I wish! If I swing pretty hard and hit it really good I can probably put a 4 iron out there around 220-230 max. What was going on here was that these guys "think" they drive the ball around 300 yards, when actually they barley hit most of their drives 220. So when my 4 iron would roll past their drives I must have been hitting it 300 yards. You know to make them look good! LMAO...

[cdriver]

  jb1982 said:

A buddy of mine took every club longer than a 6 iron out of my bag last week and made me play 9 holes.

Lots of times when I walk the course, I carry a bag with driver, 4,6,8,P,SW and putter. My scores are no worse with this abbreviated set than with a full set. A lot of it has to do with making a swing where I can feel the distance instead of just blasting it for the fences... It also makes me think about how far I need to hit it to leave myself with a good yardage for the clubs I am carrying. That takes the grip it and rip it mentality out of the game.

[lamebums]

  i-Guy said:

I hear you on struggling to overpower the course...and Dude you are having a tough time with putting huh?

When a par 4 is like, 450+ yards and I mishit driver so it only goes like 200-220, I'll be tempted to bust a 3 wood and go for the green. I know I have the range, but I'm so unreliable with the 3 wood that I should bag it--push fade goes into the woods, hitting four. I tend to not learn my lesson--I'll drop another ball and crank another 3-Wood, only to watch consecutive shots go out of bounds, into the woods, into lakes, etc, etc...

After a serious blowup hole where I hit 4 OB's on the 4th hole with driver (getting me a 12 on that hole), I bagged it and hit 3 iron on every tee, except par 3's. I was only 2 over for the next 5 holes, including a birdie on a par 5. But, that 12 really ruined my day, I got a 50 for 9 holes. And Putting...god, let's not go there. I for some reason seem to miss the hole by one inch to either side, every time. Or, I'm one inch short. Nothing's more painful than driving the green in two on a par 5 and then four-putting.

[lamebums]

  i-Guy said:

Another quick note since this thread is about

Everyone says they hit it "300 yards". I typically call bullshit on them. The average Joe Six-Putt needs to knock about 50 yards off what he thinks he drives, in order to get his real distance. When I crush it, I

might get 280, or 300 once in a blue moon. And that ball is really far out there. When some duffer says he hits it "300 yards" and I outdrive him, I go like; "That was 270... guess the hot dog did it to you, eh?" Edit: I used to think I was long...but yard markers painfully told me otherwise. Doesn't your course have yard markers? Be like "This hole is 350 yards long...and your ball is next to the 153 marker. You do the math."

[jb1982]

  lamebums said:

Everyone says they hit it "300 yards". I typically call bullshit on them. The average Joe Six-Putt needs to knock about 50 yards off what he thinks he drives, in order to get his real distance. When I crush it, I

I've got one of those Sky Caddy GPS range finders and it's fun to actually mark the tee box and see how far you actually hit it on a straight line. Last night at league this 26 capper hit his drive and pulled the "Man I caught that pure! I bet it's out there 320." I pulled out the GPS and he'd hit it exactly 239 yards into the left rough!!! And the other three of us were all a good 30 yards past him. It was great.

[iacas]

In the past two weeks, I've added significant yardage to my irons and driver. Today on a par three I have sometimes hit 3W to and come up short (okay, I'm exaggerating - it was windy as hell that day - I normally hit a hybrid) - I hit a 5-iron. The hole measures 215 but was playing 195 today. That's 10 yards further than normal. On another par three I normally hit a 4-iron or 5-iron to, I hit a 6-iron.

The weird thing is my ball is going a LOT higher, too. It's a bit freaky, but my swing is in a better place right now. If I can get the hang of maintaining my lag a little longer, I should really be getting them out there.

P.S. I'm not long by any stretch. My 7-iron distance is normally 155. Lately it's been 165, to answer the question. The 6-iron I hit today was to a hole 187 yards away. That's far for me.

[CG031]

  iacas said:

In the past two weeks, I've added significant yardage to my irons and driver. Today on a par three I have sometimes hit 3W to and come up short (okay, I'm exaggerating - it was windy as hell that day - I normally hit a hybrid) - I hit a 5-iron. The hole measures 215 but was playing 195 today. That's 10 yards further than normal. On another par three I normally hit a 4-iron or 5-iron to, I hit a 6-iron.

Yea, 7 iron distance = 155 from a 4.5 handicap is rather shocking. My dad is a 3.5 and he hits his 9 iron 150 lol. (hes not a big guy, hes 5'9 165) but it doesn't really matter. If you're accurate, can putt, and have a good short game that's whats huge. Distance is overrated.

[iacas]

  CG031 said:

Yea, 7 iron distance = 155 from a 4.5 handicap is rather shocking.

It shouldn't be - that's about how far most single digit players hit their 7-irons. It's pretty average, really. It's a big part of the reason why I don't believe half the people in the "I hit my 6-iron 210 yards" thread.

Anyway, back to the topic (which isn't "how far Erik hits his 7-iron)...

[CG031]

  iacas said:

It shouldn't be - that's about how far most single digit players hit their 7-irons. It's pretty average, really. It's a big part of the reason why I don't believe half the people in the "I hit my 6-iron 210 yards" thread.

I hit mine like 150 and I'm 5'6" 130 pounds, and I am 25 handicap...

[Parker0065]

Some pretty interesting comments about distances. The last thing in the world I want to do is call BS on anyone in particular. I don't doubt that there are some that can swing from the heels and occasionally nail a 7 iron 170-190 yards at sea level. I would really like to see that done consistantly for 20 shots or more on the range, and the ball landing in a tight landing area of 20 ft or less. If you only put one or two in a 20 foot circle then your probably overswinging and losing a lot of accuracy. I'm a 5 handicap and my long game is my strength, meaning I normally average 12-14 greens in regulation and I use a 7 iron from 150-160 yards. Can I hit a 7 iron 175-180? Yes, but my GIR average is going to go down real fast if I start swinging that way!


I know the tour guy's are hitting 7 irons from 170-190 yards but I believe there are a few factors going on with that. For one, the pro's have clubs tweaked to perfection for thier swing and most if not all of them turn the lofts down meaning thier 7 iron loft and length is not what you buy off the shelf. The other thing is I think the TV anouncers stretch it just a hair. Not saying thier lying, just saying they may not report all the factors or thier yardages are just a bit off. I know some Champions Tour Anouncers got busted for that a few years ago. One other thing is the fact that they swing better and make better contact so the ball goes farther.


All that being said, If your consistantly hitting your 7 iron 170-190 yards and your GIR percentage isn't extremely high, then you need to focus on accuracy, not distance. You will be a lot better player!!!

[iacas]

  CG031 said:

I hit mine like 150 and I'm 5'6" 130 pounds, and I am 25 handicap...

Not to continue this side discussion beyond the norm, but handicap and distance are usually not as related as you might think.

Plus, I probably COULD add 5-10% to any of my clubs, but who knows where they'd be going. I'd rather hit them straight than long - and that's partly, I have no doubt, because I learned to play golf on a very narrow, short-ish course.

  Parker0065 said:

I don't doubt that there are some that can swing from the heels and occasionally nail a 7 iron 170-190 yards at sea level.

That's another thing: I'm at about 750 feet above sea level. Not much. The air here is usually pretty damp and heavy. I can't say I've ever really played up in the mountains or anywhere higher, but some people at even 1500 feet above sea level will see a little bit of a difference.

  Parker0065 said:

The other thing is I think the TV anouncers stretch it just a hair. Not saying thier lying, just saying they may not report all the factors or thier yardages are just a bit off.

Remember, too, it's the caddies of the players who signal the club choice. They'll flash two fingers for a 7-iron (assuming the announcer knows to add the other 5 on the other hand). If they want to make their player seem more manly, why not flash three fingers and signal 8-iron when the player is really hitting 7?

  Parker0065 said:

All that being said, If your consistantly hitting your 7 iron 170-190 yards and your GIR percentage isn't extremely high, then you need to focus on accuracy, not distance. You will be a lot better player!!!

Yep.

[Leo Morris]

'The weird thing is my ball is going a LOT higher, too. It's a bit freaky, but my swing is in a better place right now. If I can get the hang of maintaining my lag a little longer, I should really be getting them out there.'

What exactly do you mean by maintaining your lag?

[TarDawg]

I was half giggling half rolling my eyes at some of the responses. I honestly don't care if I hit a 7 and you hit a 9 to get to the same place. But being that I'm 5-10 220 I feel I should be able to hit the ball a little longer than some one 5-10 180 (unless it's Charles Howell III). For me I worry about the distance only because for me it's telling me I'm striking the ball well. If I'm left or right but long it means my club face wasn't square to the target at impact or I had some silly swing. Which for me is normally over the top for my slices. And for my hooks i tend to get too armsy on my swing.

I think perhaps I didn't make myself clear. For example being the size I am and the swing speed I tend to produce If I were hitting my 7 only say 145-150 that means to me I probably haven't shifted my weight properly or something else went wrong. I think you have to worry about your distance because it is an important tell tell sign on some parts of your swing.

I know that chart wasn't the be all end all but it does give me an idea of how i'm striking the ball.